The Cultch Presents
Parifam
Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre and Medusa Theatre (Vancouver)
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About
the Performance
Past and present, memories and secrets, swirl and blend in this powerful new play.
Detached from family and friends, Parifam Mana draws and paints in her private studio in Montréal—a place where memory and inspiration are in a continuous battle. Parifam‘s world is turned upside down when her childhood friend Ramak re-enters her life. Parifam and Ramak grapple with the hidden truths that linger in their past—soon to be revealed in an exhibition on Persian culture at a museum they built together.
- Recommended for ages 16+
- Content Warning: Mature themes, including depictions of sexual violence towards a minor, trauma, mentions of abortion, anxiety, depression, and nudity on stage.
The Femme Festival is made possible with the support of Charlotte and Sonya Wall Arts Fund
Show
Credits
Cast:
Parifam
Foojan Nixie Shabrang
Ramak
Nazanin Shoja
Kian
Donia Kash
Casra
Alex Shirdel
Justin
Craig Erickson
Prison Guard / Man
Arsham Farasat
Voice Of Mr. Mana
Mehdi Darvish
TV News Reporter
Zara Durrani
Creative Team:
Playwright
Aki Yaghoubi
Dramaturg
Diane Roberts
Director
Panthea Vatandoost
Set & Co-Props Designer
Parjad Sharifi
Costume Designer
elika mojtabaei
Lighting Designer
Jonathan Kim
Projection Designer
Joel Grinke
Sound Designer and Composition
Ruby Singh
Assistant Sound Designer
Vanessa Lefan Yuen 阮樂凡
Co-Props Designer and Artwork Painter
Megan Lane
Intimacy Director
Sam Jeffery
Production Team:
Producer
Patricia Trinh
Producer
Stephanie Wong
Production Manager
Jamie Sweeney
Technical Director
Liam Hunt
Stage Manager
Jessica Bournival
Stage Manager
Evan Ren
Apprentice Stage Manager
Caroline Tang
Active Listener
Faranak Ghorbani
Musicians
Oud
Gordon Grdina
Bass
Mark Helias
Cello
Hank Roberts
Percussion
Hamin Honari
Voice
Fathieh Honari
vAct is a member of the Professional Association of Canadian Theatre and engages under the terms of the Canadian Theatre Agreement, professional artists who are members of the Canadian Actors’ Equity Association.
Parifam was developed with the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, Teesri Duniya Theatre, Playwrights’ Workshop Montreal, Montreal Arts Council, and Ruby Slipper Theatre.
Playwright’s Notes
Caring for humanity and Mother Earth starts with caring for our true selves. But what if our true selves have been buried under secrets, masks, and much shame? Parifam is the story of two courageous Iranian-Canadian families who let go of their secrets and start searching for their true selves.
Parifam, an Iranian architect, while making a home for Iranian historical art pieces, has to walk through her own past and find herself by looking in the mirror.
It is an absolute honour to celebrate these two Iranian-Canadian families’ journey toward authenticity at The Cultch at its 50th anniversary.
—Aki Yaghoubi
Director’s Notes
When I first read Parifam in the summer of 2022, I first fell in love with the women of the play, Parifam and Ramak. These two Iranian women, with all their depth, complexities, desires, ambitions, strengths and weaknesses, their relationship to each other, and their dogged determination to flourish despite what happened to them. And after every reading since, I have fallen more and more in love with them and their families.
This play explores the effects of trauma not only on the individual, but on the family and community at large; what survival can look like on different people. It examines how deeply destructive ideologies and values wielded by a ruling government can reach the hearts of even the most educated and progressive minds. It comes face to face with the question of home, identity and belonging, how immigration or refugee status can affect our sense of self.
Parifam asks more questions than it answers, and it harbours many secrets. It has been my honour and pleasure to explore its every nook and cranny with this beautiful group of artists, and to bring it to the Historic stage as a part of the Femme Festival.
—Panthea Vatandoost
About vAct
Founded in 2001 by Joyce Lam, Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre (vAct) first began as a community theatre. Over the next 12 years, vAct collaborated with over 500 Asian Canadian theatre artists, and produced over 40 shows. In 2013, Donna Yamamoto was appointed as the Producing Artistic Director. Thus began vAct’s rapid transformation from a community theatre to one of the most exciting diversity-mandated professional theatre companies in Canada. In the Western Canadian theatre community, vAct plays a unique role. We are the only professional theatre company in Western Canada to consistently premiere new works by Asian Canadians. Following Donna’s retirement in 2022, Derek Chan took over as Managing Artistic Director, bringing with him over a decade’s experience in creating, developing, and producing original intercultural, multilingual works within BC, across Canada, and internationally.
vAct staff:
Derek Chan 陳嘉昊 (he/him) – Managing Artistic Director
Katie Voravong (they/she) – Associate Artistic Producer
Annie Jang (she/her) – General Manager
Karen Tsui (she/they) – Development Coordinator
Karla Comanda (they/she) – Marketing Coordinator
Leslie Dos Remedios (she/they) – Resident Dramaturg
Kamila Sediego (she/her/siya) – Resident Dramaturg
vAct Socials:
Instagram: @vactheatre
Facebook: VACT
X: @vactheatre
About Medusa Theatre
Medusa Bio: Medusa Theatre Society (MTS) was founded in 2018 by Panthea Vatandoost. MTS is dedicated to developing, producing, and supporting works created by and for the immigrant and refugee community, with a focus on the Middle East, North Africa, and Turkey (MENAT).
Medusa staff:
Managing Artistic Director – Panthea Vatandoost
Artistic Producer – Peri Allan
Medusa Socials:
Instagram: @medusatheatre
Facebook: Medusa Theatre Society
X: @medusatheatre
Thank Yous
vAct would like to acknowledge the generous support of Bonnie Mah, Jack Gin Family Foundation, held at Vancouver Foundation, Elsie and Audrey Jang Fund, held at Vancouver Foundation, Anndraya Luui, Bruce and Susan Stout, Ken Gracie & Philip Waddell of The McGrane-Pearson Endowment Fund, held at Vancouver Foundation, and all of our donors listed on website.
Parifam was developed with the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, Teesri Duniya Theatre, Playwrights’ Workshop Montreal, and Ruby Slippers Theatre.
Special thanks to Shoreline Studios, Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre, Nava Records Studios, Blackout Arts Society, Siona Gareau-Brennan, Sarah Sosick, MJ Cox, Peri Allan, David Kaye, and the Board of Medusa (Bita Ardabili, Carina Chan, Dhirendra, Shannon Walsh)
Cast & Company
Bios
Aki Yaghoubi
Playwright
Aki Yaghoubi is an award-winning Iranian-Canadian theatre and film artist. She studied Acting & Directing and Scriptwriting at the Samandarian Artistic Educational Institute, Tehran, Iran. She has worked alongside iconic Iranian artists Bahram Beyzaie, and Mohammad Rezaeirad. In Canada, she has worked alongside Rahul Varma, artistic director of Teesri Duniya Theatre; Diane Roberts, artistic director of Arrivals Legacy Project; Emma Tibaldo, artistic director of Playwrights’ Workshop Montreal; Jivesh Parasram, artistic director of Rumble Theatre, and Diane Brown artistic director of Ruby Slippers Theatre. She received two grants from the Canada Council for the Arts for her plays Parifam, and Tara’s Barrier. She won DémART-Mtl grant from the Conseil des arts des Montréal (2017); and the Outstanding Actress Award for the film Sin la Habana from the Reelworld Film Festival (2021). Her play Parifam was selected for the Ruby Slippers Theatre’s Advanced Theatre Festival (2023). Parifam’s world premiere is scheduled for April 2024 at The Cultch at the Femme Festival. She received a grant from the BC Arts Council for her play Evina’s Barrier (2023). Evina’s Barrier was workshopped and presented at the Advance Theater Festival by Ruby Slippers Theatre in February 2024.
Alex Shirdel
Casra
Alex is an actor, assistant director, and ESL teacher. He has performed in shows like Three Acts of a Woman, Mayor’s Dilemma, and Faust. Alex has his M.A. in English Language and Literature. He loves watching movies, reading, and hiking. In Parifam, Alex will be playing Casra.
Arsham Farasat
The Man / Prison Guard
Born and raised in Vancouver, Arsham is a Persian-Canadian actor. He attended Vancouver Film School, graduating in 2020. Since then he’s worked primarily in Film and TV but holds a special place for great theater. You most recently may have caught Arsham in Check Please with RCTC and The Judge’s Daughter with the Sinister Seniors. Arsham thanks his fellow cast and all the crew, and is excited to start the season off strong with Parifam. He hopes you all had as much fun watching as he did working!
Caroline Tang
Apprentice Stage Manager
Caroline Tang is an emerging stage manager and recent graduate of the BFA Theatre Design and Production program from UBC. This is Caroline’s debut with Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre and Medusa Theatre Society and she is super excited to work alongside an amazing cast, crew, and creative team! Caroline is very grateful for the opportunity to apprentice on an awesome SM team. Past stage management credits include EVP: Beauty and the Beast (Theatre Replacement), Before They Cut Down Our Tree (J to K Productions), The Lightning Thief (CTORA), Tosca (UBC Opera), Chinatown (City Opera Vancouver), and Newsies (Theatre Under the Stars).
Craig Erickson
Justin
Craig is delighted to make his debut with vAct and/or Medusa Theatre Society. Recent projects include new works Child-ish (Pacific Theatre), Hurricane Mona (Touchstone/Ruby Slippers), and The Cull (Arts Club). Other highlights include: Wakey Wakey (PT) East Van Panto: The Wizard of Oz (Theatre Replacement), Forget About Tomorrow (Belfry/Arts Club), Angels in America, Parts 1 and 2 (Arts Club), The Invisible Hand (PI) Titus Buffonius (Rumble Theatre), and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf (Arts Club/Blackbird Theatre). Upcoming: Angelo in Measure for Measure at Bard on the Beach, where he has spent nine seasons. TV: Bau: Artist at War, So Help Me Todd, Mysterious Benedict Society, Bates Motel, Man in the High Castle, and Lucifer. Also in hopes for production: Craig and actor/producer and Vact alum Raugi Yu have created a comedy pilot about late-night security guards called Calvin and Jerzy.
Diane Roberts
Dramaturg
An accomplished director, dramaturge, writer and cultural animator, Diane has collaborated with innovative theatre visionaries and interdisciplinary artists for over 30 years. Her directorial and dramaturgical work has been seen on stages across Canada and her reputation as a mentor, teacher, and community collaborator is nationally and internationally recognised.
The roots of storytelling and multi-disciplinary art forms (mixing of ritual song, dance, storytelling, live art, and theatre) drive her arts practice as a director, dramaturg, and cultural animator. Her intuitive style of facilitation draws on specifically crafted creative engagement tools that inspire artists of all disciplines and cultural backgrounds to unearth their authentic creative impulses.
Diane developed the Arrivals Personal Legacy process during her seven-year tenure as Artistic Director of Urban Ink productions, has birthed new Interdisciplinary works across Canada, throughout the Americas, in the UK, Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean. This work has allowed her to articulate, cultivate, and realise a vision for theatre that encourages Indigenous ways of knowing as a stepping stone to creative expression.
She is also a founding member of Obsidian Theatre and backforward collective and co-founder and Artistic Director of Boldskool Productions with playwright Omari Newton.
Alongside her professional career, Diane is a PhD candidate in Interdisciplinary Studies, Fine Arts Humanities at Concordia University in Montreal; a 2019 Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation Scholar; and a 2020 Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship award holder.
Donia Kash
Kian
Hailing from the Qashqai tribe in Iran, Donia Kash (they/them) is an agendered multi-disciplinary performer and filmmaker. Playing the role of Kian in Parifam directed by Panthea Vatandoost and written by Aki Yaghoubi is a tremendous opportunity to represent Canadian/Persian storytellers. Donia is thrilled to be returning to the stage after years of experience in various projects and festivals, recent highlights include: The Tremors Festival and the Or Festival.
Recently, Donia was named A Star to Watch at the Whistler Film Festival and received a UBCP award nomination for their performance in Hallmark’s, Hearts In The Game. Donia’s other recent television credits include a multi season recurring role on A Million Little Things (ABC), So Help Me Todd (CBS), and many more. Next, catch Donia at the helm of the feature film Slay directed by Jem Garrard. When Donia isn’t acting, writing or directing they can be found playing pickleball or making Persian soup with their Mom.
elika mojtabaei
Costume Designer
elika mojtabaei الیکا مجتبایی (she/her) is an Iranian-born Canadian costume designer, writer, editor, translator, and dramaturg. She lives and works on the unceded traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, colonially known as Vancouver.
She is artistic associate with The Biting School; and co-founder of No Small Feat. She has collaborated with Theatre Conspiracy, vAct, Alley Theatre, Medusa Theatre Society, elysse cheadle, Alexis Fletcher, and Jin-me Yoon as a designer; and with rice & beans theatre, Momentum 180, The Institute for Development of Contemporary Arts (Tehran), Ladan Sahraei, and Luciana Freire D’Anunciação as a writer, editor, dramaturg, and translator. Upcoming project: TechniCowlour—a multidisciplinary installation and performance co-created with Aryo Khakpour.
elika’s creative process begins with extensive research. The movement and stillness of bodies, the power and limitations of material, and the joys and tribulations of language inspire her. Through a lens of intersectional feminism, she works with the poetry of the unsaid. She is interested in magic realism and finding meaning within textures and colours. The potential of costumes and words interweaving to build imagined worlds fascinates her.
Evan Ren
Stage Manager
Evan is a stage manager and lighting designer based in Vancouver. Graduated from UBC theatre production and design in 2020, her former stage management credits include: Still·Falling (Green Thumb Theatre); Beautiful: the Carole King Musical (ASM, the Arts Club); Rubaboo (ASM, the Arts Club); Forgiveness (ApSM, the Arts Club); Around the World in 80 days (Bluebridge theatre); Cranked: the Remix (Rehearsal SM, Green Thumb Theatre); Ride the Cyclone (Bluebridge theatre);Yellowfever (ApSM, Firehall Arts Center); ‘da Kink in my Hair (ASM, the Arts Club); Mary’s Wedding (ApSM, Firehall Arts Center); East Van Panto: Alice in Wonderland (ApSM, Theatre Replacement); Cariboo Magi (Far from the tree production); Guards at the Taj (SACHA); The Winter’s Tale (ASM, Carousel Theatre); The Drowsy Chaperone (ASM, TUTS). Thank you for coming and enjoy the show!
Faranak Ghorbani
Active Listener
Faranak Ghorbani is a registered clinical counsellor and art therapist currently working in Vancouver. She is a trauma-informed and highly compassionate individual with over ten years of combined education and experience in the helping field, with a bachelor’s in Psychology and Master’s in Counselling Psychology and Art Therapy. Using both talk therapy and art therapy, she is currently providing individual and group therapy to diverse clients (adults, children & youth) who are dealing with trauma, life transitions, systematic oppressions, physical & mental disability, anxiety, grief and more. Additionally, Faranak has been facilitating monthly strength-based community art therapy workshops for individuals,and families in the community to foster a sense of belonging between individuals in diverse communities.
Foojan Nixie Shabrang
Parifam
Foojan is an interdisciplinary performer With a BFA in Theatre Performance from Simon Fraser University. Her work is deeply shaped by her upbringing both in Iran and amidst the vibrant landscapes of unceded Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh territories. Trained in devised practices of non-hierarchical collective creations, Foojan’s process revolves around the interplay between lived experiences, conveyed through physical expression, and the insights she derives from them. Her relentless curiosity and desire to collaborate with all walks of life complements this approach, allowing her to bring a unique, autonomous perspective to every project she undertakes; including her recent portrayal of the title role in the short film “My Roommate Ahriman,” which premiered at the Whistler Film Festival in December 2023. Foojan’s aspiration is that her work instills in her audience the same love and reverence she holds for Iranian culture. Whether celebrating the remarkable people, resilient history, delish cuisine, or breathtaking landscapes and artistry, she endeavors to foster a deep and enduring appreciation that transcends the boundaries of cultural understanding.
Jamie Sweeney
Production Manager
Jamie Sweeney is a Canadian, Vancouver-based, theatre collaborator. She is a lighting designer, a technical director, a performer, a deviser, a creator, and an artist. She has a BFA in theatre production and design from Simon Fraser University. Some companies she has worked with include Ballet BC, Bard on the Beach, Vancouver Opera, Arts Club, Rice & Beans Theatre, vAct, and Neworld Theatre. Further credits can be found on her website: jamiesweeney.ca
Jessica Bournival
Stage Manager
This is Jessica’s first production with vAct. Previous credits include: Bunny and Fairview (Search Party), Home (HipBang!) Henry V and Romeo & Juliet (Bard on the Beach), Ceci est une histoire d’amour and Le soulier (Seizieme), Made in Italy and 12 dates of Christmas (Arts Club), Th’owxiya and Quelqu’un t’aime M.Hatch (Axis Theatre Co.)
Joel Grinke
Projection Designer
Joel is a creator of highly immersive and interactive experiences for museums, themed attractions, and theatre. He crafts moments of wonder using automation, tightly integrated multimedia design, and stagecraft to make experiences that have been described as “unique,” “uplifting,” and “spectacular”. Recent projects include the Lights of Hope Light Up Celebration, a multimedia and fireworks spectacular created for the opening of St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation’s annual fundraiser. So How Should I Be, a theatrical escape-game experience about anxiety for young audiences created for Presentation House Theatre. Other favourite projects include co-creating a walk through exhibit of The Christmas Carol for Roedde House Museum in 2020 and the Eerie Illusions Halloween overlay at Burnaby Village Museum. Recent projection design projects include Million Dollar Quartet for The Arts Club. Joel has a Bachelors of Performing Arts, is a graduate of Studio 58, and is currently part of the Experience Design Certificate program with Odyssey Works. He is a member of the Themed Entertainment Association, The World Experience Organization and IATSE Local 118.
Jonathan Kim
Lighting Designer
Jonathan, better known as Jono, is a Korean-Canadian lighting designer who currently lives and works on the unceded, stolen and ancestral lands of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories (Vancouver, BC). He is a graduate of Simon Fraser University’s Theatre Production and Design program. Recent credits: Bright Half Life (Persephone Theatre); Empire of the Son (Pacific Theatre); Peace Country (rice & beans theatre); How Black Mothers Say I Love You (the frank theatre company); Zahak, The Serpent King (The Biting School); Into the Woods (Studio 58); CHILD-ish (Pacific Theatre); How to Believe in Anything (dreamphase productions); Jade Circle (rice & beans theatre); Red Velvet (Arts Club Theatre Company).
Liam Hunt
Technical Director
Liam is a Technical Director and Sound Engineer who has been in the industry for about 8 years. After graduating from Capilano University he is now working full-time at the Massey Theatre as their SAD (Senior Audio Development) Technician. Liam’s philosophy as the TD is to strive and fulfill the artistic concepts created by the designers to the best of his abilities.
Megan Lane
Co-Props Designer and Artwork Painter
Megan Lane is an interdisciplinary artist based in the Vancouver area with experience in theatre as a technician, a set designer, a performer, and as a puppet maker and puppeteer. Outside of theatre, she is also interested in clothing design, textiles, furniture design, woodworking, visual art, and whatever other creative medium she can get her hands on. Megan graduated from the Stagecraft and Event Technology program at Douglas College in 2019, and from SFU’s School for the Contemporary Arts with a BFA in Theatre Production and Design in 2023. Currently, she is exploring subjects such as design led creation in performance, devised theatre, tactility within contemporary performance, the intersection between design and performance, interdisciplinarity, and non hierarchical collaboration. Her credits include Scheherazade (Vancouver Symphony Orchestra), The Frontliners (Fringe Festival) and The Tempest (Carousel Theatre for Young People). As she moves forward in her artistic journey, Megan is excited to explore all that is to be learned and discovered within the lifelong practice of creativity.
Megan is grateful to be living, learning, working, and creating on unceded sc̓əwaθenaɁɬ təməxʷ (Tsawwassen), S’ólh Téméxw (Stó:lō), Kwantlen, Stz’uminus, šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmaɁɬ təməxʷ (Musqueam), səlil̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), and Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) territory.
Mehdi Darvish
Voice Of Mr. Mana
Mehdi is a Vancouver based actor. He’s very happy to be involved in the very first production of Parifam. His film and T.V credits include Masters of Science Fiction, Delete, and Window Horses. His recent theatre credits are a Canadian and a U.K tour of Foreign Radical with Theatre Conspiracy, Facts with United Players, and Echoes from Far Away Cities with Blackout Art Society. He holds a BA in theatre from York University and has studied acting at Actor’s Foundry.
Nazanin Shoja
Ramak
Nazanin Shoja is an Iranian actor, singer, and dancer based in North Vancouver. She is a graduate in Performing Arts from Université de Nice Sophia-Antipolis (France) and Randolph Academy for Performing Arts (Toronto). Stage highlights include: Echoes from Far Away Cities (Blackout Theater), When the Reaper Calls (North Vancouver Community Players), The Dance Teacher (Tomo Suru Players), and Cats (Fighting Chance Productions). TV/Indie Film credits include The Watchful Eye (ABC), Debris (NBC), Possession, The Repression, and Life on Earth. She also acts as program director for the annual BC Culture Days celebrations, part of Canada’s largest public participation campaign for the arts.
Panthea Vatandoost
Director
Panthea Vatandoost is an Iranian actor, producer, creator for film and theatre. Panthea is the founder and Managing Artistic Director of Medusa Theatre Society, a non-profit dedicated to
supporting and producing works that engage with the immigrant and refugee community, with a focus on MENAT voices.
Some of her recent works include writing and performing قرار / Date Night as a part of Rumble Theatre’s Lupercalia Festival, directing Dooja Ghar (The Other House) – A Mirza Sahiban Story for South Asian Arts’ Monsoon Festival, and taking on a lead performance in Blackout Arts Society’s Echoes From Far Away Cities.
Parjad Sharifi
Set and Co-Props Designer
Parjad Sharifi is a Vancouver-based theatre scenographer and maker. His recent design work includes set design for The Arts Club’s Teenage Dick and lighting design for The Arts Club’s Dolly Parton’s Smokey Mountain Christmas Carol. Parjad has won Jessie Richardson Awards for his designs and collaborated with various performance companies in Vancouver and Canada, including Fight With A Stick, The Arts Club, Vertigo Theatre, Caravan Farm Theatre, Neworld Theatre, Leaky Heaven, Electric Company, Rice and Beans, Theatre Conspiracy, Rumble Theatre, Pi Theatre, 605 Collective, Kokoro Dance, and others. Parjad is an associate professor of theatre at the University of the Fraser Valley and has directed three productions: Art, Pariah (Outcast), and Rhinoceros at the University of the Fraser Valley. As a performance artist and researcher, Parjad has been developing a digital performance and scenography project titled Delayed, which was exhibited at UFV’s S’ELIYEMETAXWTEXW Art Gallery in 2022. He is a member of the Associate Designers of Canada.
Ruby Singh
Sound Designer and Composition
Ruby Singh is a multi award winning performer, composer and producer residing on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ/Selilwitulh Nations (Vancouver BC.). His creativity crosses the boundaries of music, poetry, photography and film engaging with mythos, memory, justice and fantasy. Singh is an artist whose work is informed by sound found all around us, from the whirling planets and stars of distant galaxies to percussion of an umbrella under coastal rains, to the perpetual moving birdsong of the dawn chorus, constantly circling the globe. The richly imaginative visual textures to his sound design have found kinship in the theatre, film and dance worlds, where he has been celebrated by multiple Jessie and Leo award nominations. His distinct approach uses traditional and emergent sonic practices to create compositions that express the vast spectrum of the human experience. Singh’s artistic impulses gravitate in many directions, in 2022 he received the Lieutenant Governor’s Jubilee Award for excellence in art and music. In 2023 he was nominated for a Juno Award and received the Western Canadian Music Award for best Global Music Artist of the Year and was awarded Artist of the Year by the BC touring council. Singh believes in art’s ability to reimagine futures, to repurpose aesthetic freedoms toward civil and environmental justice.
Sam Jeffery
Intimacy Director
Sam Jeffery (she/her) is an intimacy director and coordinator, actor, award-nominated fight director, creator, and educator born and raised in amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton) on Treaty 6 territory. A graduate of the University of Alberta’s BFA Acting program, Sam is also co-AD of StoneMarrow Theatre and teaches at Vancouver Film School. She’s delighted to now make the coast her home.
Selected intimacy credits: Sunrise Betties (ITSAZOO Productions); Elf: The Musical (Arts Club); Mob (Workshop West Playwrights’ Theatre); Dooja Ghar (The Other House) (Monsoon Festival); Boy Trouble (Amoris Productions); Oil (UBC); Smoke (Tiny Bear Jaws); Michael Mysterious (Pyretic Productions); The Blue Hour (Skirtsafire); Death and Other Details (Hulu); Batwoman (The CW); The Magicians (SyFy). For full credits see samjeffery.com
Stephanie Wong
Producer
Born in Hong Kong, Stephanie Wong (she/they) is a multidisciplinary artist and producer who is grateful to live and create on the ancestral and unceded lands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm, Skwxwú7mesh, and Səl̓ílwətaʔ peoples. Their art is an invocation to imagination, which they explore through a practice of directing, producing, performance, and design. A graduate of Studio 58’s Acting Program, and the current Associate Artistic Director of re:Naissance Opera, their practice is rooted in collective care, representation, equity, and inclusion. Her desire as a Producer is to make the artists’ vision a reality, and to bring to life the most fulfilled version of a creative project. By honoring the intersections of their professional and personal experience, their work amplifies stories of culture, connection, and coexistence.
Recent theatre credits include: IndieFest (Producer, re:Naissance Opera 2021-2023), The Liminal (Producer / Creator, re:Naissance Opera), Every Brilliant Thing (Set Designer, The Arts Club), Blood Wedding (Dramaturg, happy/accidents), Queen of Carthage (Co-Director, re:Naissance Opera & Early Music Vancouver), and God Said This (Actor, Pacific Theatre).
Tricia Trinh
Producer
Trinh (they/she/he) is a queer, genderfluid, Chinese-Vietnamese-Canadian, interdisciplinary theatre artist; with a background in directing, playwriting, curating and producing. Graduate of UVic (BFA). Founder/Artistic Director of Dusty Foot Productions. Selected Playwright/Director Credits: Probability (rEvolver 2018), Red Glimmer (Fringe 2019), Attachments (Tremors 2020/ RST 2023/ ATF 2024). Selected Assistant Director Credits: we the same [Ruby Slippers 2021], Henry V (Bard on the Beach 2023). Selected Producer Credits: Telling It Bent (frank theatre ‘20-‘24), New Creation Series (Rumble Theatre ‘21-‘23).
Her artistic practice aims to examine the multiplicity in intersectional identity, specifically investigating intercultural socio-political influence on queer identity and gender identity. They approach theatre as a direct vessel in which we can share with one another our humanity. He is ecstatic for the opportunity to collaborate with the electric team of Parifam.
Upcoming creative venture: Directing the world premiere of Dil Ka by Lee Nisar presented by Ruby Slippers with Presentation House and Blackout Arts Society; running March 22-31, 2024.
Vanessa Lefan Yuen 阮樂凡
Assistant Sound Designer
Vanessa Lefan Yuen 阮樂凡 is a Taiwanese multidisciplinary artist with practices in music, sound art, visual media, written works, theatre, northern Shaolin kung fu, dance, and aerial hoop. Using field recordings, feedback, electronics, voice, and acoustic instruments, her work continues to explore new ways interweaving mediums can create immersive spaces for healing, processing emotions, ideas, and reflection on personal and collective experiences.
Her recent works include debut album “What Holds Us Together?” (2022), “Unsent Letters: To Whom It May Concern”(2023), an experimental play/installation created in residency at What Lab, diving into the cyclical nature of interpersonal relationships, attachment, memories, and the subconscious, “Space is Made” (2023) created in Residency with Media Arts Committee, and Assistant Sound Design on “Julius Caesar” at Bard on the Beach 2023. She currently works as a 4DSOUND technician at Lobe Spatial Sound Studio.
Zara Durrani
TV News Reporter
Zara Durrani is a Pakistan Canadian tv host and actor based in Vancouver. She is currently filming On Location with Zara as seen on Telus Optik.
Community Resources
Community Partner
Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre (formerly WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre) provides free-of-charge, gender-affirming support services to survivors of sexualized violence with shared experiences of gendered oppression including: cis and trans women and trans, non-binary and Two Spirit survivors.
Support services include toll-free, nation-wide 24-Hour Crisis & Line, Text/Chat Support, victim services, hospital, court, and police accompaniments, individual counselling and support circles. Gender-based violence is systemic, and our work goes beyond service provision to advocating for and enacting change within our society to create safer communities.
Despite being BC’s largest sexual assault centre, and managing a caseload of more than 300 survivors at any given time, the waitlist to access free-of-charge counselling at Salal SVSC is almost 2.5 years long. A donation of $40 funds 1 hour of Crisis Support on Salal’s 24-Hour Crisis & Information Line. To find resources, learn more, or donate, follow us @salalsvsc or visit salalsvsc.ca
