What is your role in this Production? I am the Assistant Choreographer and a member of the Ensemble. And I dance … a lot!!What brought you out for this production? I met Director Barb Mah when I was going to school and dancing at the University of Alberta. I had the chance to work with her on A Chorus Line and enjoyed it very much. Barb comes into rehearsal with a clear vision of the show, which allows the rehearsal process to run smoothly. I moved back to Edmonton in 2011 and since then I have been looking for a chance to work with her again. When Barb told me she was going to be directing Anything Goes, I immediately pencilled the dates of the show into my calendar. Anything Goes is a classic musical with big dance/production numbers, which are my favourite!! Every show should have a time-step and some jazz hands!!
What is your background in theatre? I was a competitive figure skater growing up and started dancing during my university degree. I moved to Edmonton in 2001 to attend law school at the University of Alberta. I started dancing with the Orchesis Dance Group as a way to find some balance within a very crazy academic schedule. In my second year, I met Barb Mah and Sharon Richardson. They soon announced to the jazz group that they would be directing and choreographing A Chorus Line at Festival Place in the fall of 2004. The only catch … all the dancers had to learn how to sing. So, with a lot of prompting from both of them, I soon began voice lessons and appeared in my first musical in 2004 – Lil’ Abner. Let’s just say their enthusiasm for musical theatre is contagious and I spent much more of my time in my final year of law school dancing and singing than studying!! Unfortunately, as a young lawyer I was unable to fit much theatre into my schedule. After many years in a law firm, I have now moved to an in-house position and I am once again able to enjoy the hobby I love. This is my first production with Walterdale.
Biggest Challenge? I have done a bit of choreographing in the past, but this is definitely my first attempt at a dance number for a musical. It was a challenge to be the choreographer and also a dancer in the same number. I also seem to find it most difficult to remember the steps I created.
This play takes place on a ship, you have any good boating stories? When I was in university, my parents took my sister and I on a cruise to Alaska. It was our first cruise and it was spectacular. The scenery and wildlife that we had the opportunity to see were stunning. It is one of my favorite family vacations and I have very fond memories of the time we got to spend together that week.
In the Spirit of "Anything Goes" how true is that about you? Not very!! While I would love to embody the spirit of Anything Goes, as a lawyer I am very much about rules and procedure. Though, I am trying desperately to learn to leave the lawyer at the office and to laugh and enjoy life to the fullest. It’s a work in progress …
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