Cast Bios
Megan Adam is a Toronto-based performer. She did her training at Randolph College and since then has performed in many new works in Toronto indie theatre, as well as classical theatre andsome TV/film spots. For PLS, she was last seen as a virgin dying on a mountaintop (Hirena in Dulcitius) and travelled with the company to the Kalamazoo Medieval Theatre Festival. She will be battling it out with the first folio in Spur of the Moment Shakespeare Collective’s Shakesbeers ShowDown! You can catch her performing improvised theatre a few nights a week at comedy hubs like Bad Dog Theatre and Comedy Bar. Follow her on her website meganlynadam.com.
Alan Belerique is a Toronto improviser who has studied with Second City, Bad Dog Theatre and New York’s UCB. He has improvised in numerous shows including the Toronto Improv Festival, Festival of New Formats, Bad Dog's Globehead and Del Close Marathoz in New York. An accomplished actor, he has also performed in PLS Theatre's production of To Seek a Child, A Christian Turned Turk and the lead in A Medieval Christmas. He wrote and starred in The Roommate, for the Fringe Festival and is the lead in Hey '90s Kids, You're Old which is touring across North America. Catch him around town, including at his monthly Social Capital Theatre improv party show Connect Four-ty!
Cheryl Cheung (Lionel/Constable/Servant)
Cheryl Skylar Cheung is a freshman studying criminology and sociolegal studies and political science at the University of Toronto. She serves as a staff illustrator with her on-campus newspaper, The Varsity and is a Government of Canada History Awards Recipient. The Dutch Courtesan is the first play she ever participated in. She hopes you will enjoy the show as much as she enjoyed being part of the cast. Currently, she lives in a cozy town-home with her mother and dog, Haidyn, where the three enjoy homemade dinners and exhausting games of fetch together. In her spare time, she writes poetry and makes soaps by hand. You can find her all hours of the day at cherylskylar.com.
Daniel Coo (Cockledemoy)
This is Dan's (UTSC 82) first production with PLS. After a career in education, Dan returned to performance, and can be seen in films Salvage, Offworld and 30ish, web series The Waddling Dead and P2 GTA, television Paranormal Survivor and Scariest Night of My Life, and heard in upcoming episodes of the podcast The Program. He won an ACT-CO Thea award for Leontes in Much Ado About Nothing. Stage work includes the Toronto Fringe, A Midsummer Night's Dream with Theatre Orangeville, and As You Like It with Bard in the Park; musicals Mute: The Musical and Ned Durango and Verve Theatre's Sylvia. Many thanks to the worshipful Noam and Linda for guidance through the murky and lewd world of The Dutch Courtesan. Find him at: https://dancoo1960.wordpress.com
Andrew Eldridge grew up in the small town of Fort Frances Ontario. It was here that he discovered his passion for music and drama. Eldridge performed from a young age; taking part in the Rainy River District Festival of the Performing Arts as early as age eight and involving himself in the Fort Frances High School musical productions for four consecutive years. Upon taking a year off from school Eldridge enrolled in Randolph College for the Performing Arts and graduated in August 2018 from the triple threat program.
Carmen is thrilled to be part of her first show with PLS! She is a graduate of the University of Toronto and spent the last year studying collaborative creation methods at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. She is a founder and co-artistic producer of Off-Key Productions and is currently redeveloping their verbatim play What She Said. Recent credits include: Dreams (ENSEMBLE: Canadian Rep), Mr. Donaldson (RCSSD), Church of the Seven Noses (RCCSD), What She Said (Off-Key Productions) and Pericles (UofT).
Noam Lior (Prologue/Director)
Noam is one of the co-founders of Shakespeare at Play, and works as the project's dramaturge, editor, annotator, and occasional performer (playing older male roles when better actors are not available). Noam is an alumnus of the University College Drama Program and the Centre for Drama, Theatre, and Performance Studies at the University of Toronto, where his dissertation focused on digital multimedia Shakespeare editions. He also works as a director and dramaturge (sometimes even on non-Shakespeare plays!), is serving as dramaturge and judge for Spur-of-the-Moment Shakespeare Company's ShakesBeers Showdown. He is also Finance and Publications Co-ordinator for the Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies
Breanna Maloney (Crispinella)
Breanna is an actor, singer and writer based in Toronto. She is a co-founder of the independent theatre collective, Skipping Stones Theatre. Breanna received her acting training from the University of Windsor’s BFA acting program and East 15 Acting School’s MFA International theatre program. Breanna has continued to study her craft alongside artists of the Moscow Art Theatre School (MXAT) and the Globe Theatre (UK). Recent theatre credits: Lizzie Cratchit in A Christmas Carol, Charlotte in Ether (White Mills Theatre Co.), Ophelia in Hamlet(s) (Skipping Stones Theatre), B in Crave(Pure Carbon Theatre), Kay in The Night Watch (Tristan Bates Theatre). Find out more at www.breanna-maloney.com
Andrew Merzetti (Sir Lionel Freevill/Musician/Composer)
Andrew is very excited to be out of jail. He's never been in jail but has heard it's no party. He's also excited to re-join PLS for about the tenth time, having pretended to be many centurions, monks, and Enobarbuses in his time. He thanks Noam, Linda, Glenna, and Paul, and especially the rest of the cast for making him look so good in comparison, LOL J/K winky face. Andrew is one half of the folk rock and mountain music duo William & Polly with wife Denise Anderson, and he now offers cut-rate but mildly effective tutelage in the arts of guitar pulling, ukulele confronting and banjo despair. Hit him up!
Scott Moore (Sir Hubert Subboys)
After training at the Ryerson Theatre School, Scott has performed in numerous shows in Toronto including: Friar Laurence in Romeo and Juliet, Cassius in Julius Caesar and Clarence in Richard III (Hart House Theatre); Coulmier in Marat/Sade (Soup Can Theatre); Bob Float in The Aquarium and Robert Greene in It Was Kit (Triple Take Productions); Balthazar in The Spanish Tragedy, Gilbert in Knives in Hens, Hitler in Mein Kampf, Tobias in A Delicate Balance, and Deflores in The Changeling (Graduate Drama Centre); Caesar in Julius Caesar, Master Ford in Merry Wives of Windsor, Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing, and Bottom in Midsummer Night’s Dream (Alchemy Theatre); Goldberg in The Birthday Party and Ernest in The Anger in Ernest and Ernestine (Rhino Productions); and various roles with the Poculi Ludique Societas and the Ancient Comic Opera Co.
Flora was born and raised in Budapest, Hungary. She had been living in Germany, when she was accepted to The National Theatre School in Montreal, so she moved to Canada in 2009. After graduating she was working as a full-time dance teacher until she left the country to reconnect with her family in Hungary. She spent almost three years there, working in film production, but the time came when she couldn’t stand being behind the camera anymore and made the decision to come back to Canada and focus on nothing else but her career as an actor. She is represented by Premier Artists.
Anjali Rai (Mary Faugh/Holofernes)
Anjali was last seen in Clown Scenes in the Distillery District and before that the Hamilton Fringe production of The Blue Bird and the Scarborough Theatre Guild production of Tartuffe. She was also in The Creases in My Sari at the Alumnae Theatre. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Theatre from UBC. In addition to being a theatre actor, she also does film and television. Anjali is excited to be a part of The Dutch Courtesan and wishes to thank Noam Lior and Linda Phillips for giving her the opportunity to find her inner pimp. ‘I could not ha’ sold your maidenhead oft’ner than I ha’ done.’
Ross Slaughter (Caqueteur/Garnish/Servant/Constable)
Ross is a second-year PhD student at the Centre for Drama, Theatre, and Performance Studies at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on conceptualizing internet memes through the lens of drama and performance. Ross's involvement with the play comes from a love of history and a desire to stay involved with theatre practice. He'd also like everyone to know that his Caqueteur costume was pulled entirely from his own closet.
Elvira Tang (Nurse Putifer/Servant/Constable)
Elvira is an undergraduate student at University of Toronto. She has performed in theatre productions throughout high school. She has always been a part of the performing arts whether singing, dancing, acting or modelling. Elvira is thrilled to be returning to the stage as the caring nurse, Putifer. This is her first time to play a character that is not ‘evil’. She often impressed the audience by playing a mean and sassy girl. The last time she graced the stage was Spamalot in 2018 as the French Taunter. She is always open to new challenges. She would like to thank her family and friends for supporting her, as well as the cast and crew for being such a pleasure to work with.
Victoria is an actor and director born and raised in Caledon and trained in the University of Windsor's B.F.A. Acting Program. She is also the artistic director of the Spur-Of-The-Moment Shakespeare Collective and the Curator for the Shakespeare-In-Hospitals Program. She is a Toronto fringe-frequenter, having come off of a well-received run of Chameleon Productions’ The Girl In The Photograph (3 N's from NOW magazine and Mooney on Theatre's Hot Ticket list). Other credits include: Sheri in Theatre Artaud's Grab 'Em By The Pussy, Crystal in Theatre By The Bay's The Five Points, and Pompey in Thought For Food Theatre's Measure For Measure. She is very excited to get to explore The Dutch Courtesan and to play Tysefew. Film appearances include: Nicole in Bristow Globe Media's Haunted Hospitals, Lauren in Blackout Media's That's Not Me (Blood in The Snow Festival). You can find her dancing in youtube commercials very soon. Follow her on twitter and instagram at: @G_nitenet
George studied drama in his hometown of Dublin, Ireland and has also attended the Stella Adler Studio in New York City. He has spent many years working on both stage and screen in Ireland, New York, and within Canada, including a run this past summer at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival. George is also a talented musician and songwriter, playing guitar, mandolin, bass, keys, and banjo.
Denise Anderson (Choreographer)
Dance/Choreography: Oliver! (Centaur Theatre/Dance Captain); Kiss Me Kate (McMaster Musical Theatre/Choreographer); performer with Dave Wilson's dance/theatre ensemble, The Parahumans. As an actor, Denise has performed on stages across Canada. She has also created/produced two original plays (The Amazing Fox Sisters, with Phat Phoenix Productions; Shapeless, with Weird Sister Productions). She is a dance fitness instructor (Nia Technique and Groove Method), half of the folk duo William & Polly (with husband, Andrew Merzetti), and the Education, Outreach & Accessibility Manager for Mirvish Productions. Many thanks to Noam, Linda, and the cast for sharing this great experience with her.
Additional members of the production team:
Linda Phillips – Producer & Costume Designer
Paul J. Stoesser – Lighting Designer
Glenna Sims-Bonk – Stage Manager
Kristen Kephalas – Front of House Manager & Production Assistant
Christopher Sullivan – Theatre Technician
Tiffany Yaw – Theatre Technician
Nicole Eun-Ju Bell – Production Assistant
Holly Wiersma – Production Assistant
Tara Costello – Production Assistant
Sam Qingyue Zhu – Communications & Programme Editor
Aidan Flynn – Graphics & Poster Designer
Erin Julian – Dramaturge
Helen Ostovich – Dramaturge