The Invisible - Agents of Ungentlemanly Warfare

Jonathan is a director, writer and composer who has spearheaded the creation of twenty-two original Canadian productions, many of which have had an international reach. He has directed at more than 85 theatres across Canada, England, Scotland, Wales, Australia and the United States, including in London's West End and New York's Broadway district. Select works include Vigilante, Nevermore – The Imaginary Life & Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe, Fortune Falls, The Soul Collector, Hunchback, Frankenstein, The Blue Orphan and The House of Pootsie Plunket. His work has been recognized with nearly 60 British, Canadian and American awards and nominations. He has also been shortlisted for the Siminovitch Prize in Directing, was named one of “Alberta’s Fifty Most Influential People” by Venture Magazine, and was chosen as one of Alberta’s one hundred most significant theatre artists of the past one hundred years by Alberta Playwrights Network. He is published in the United States by Playscripts, and in Canada by Playwrights Canada Press, Newest Press and Bayeaux Arts. Jonathan’s productions have also been featured in such magazines as American Theatre, Maclean’s, Canadian Theatre Review, and PRISM International. Jonathan is delighted to be back in London, where he lived as a child, and especially happy to be back at the beautiful Grand Theatre, having been here in 2017 and 2019 with his production of Vigilante. Original Cast Recordings of Nevermore, Vigilante, and The Invisible are all available for sale in the lobby. Enjoy the show!

Bretta Gerecke is a Lighting, Set, Costume and Projection designer for Theatre, Circus, Opera, Film and Installation Art. She is the resident designer at Catalyst Theatre where she co-creates and tours new work across North America, the UK and Australia. Bretta also designs for Cirque du Soleil, The National Theatre, The RSC, The National Arts Centre, The Stratford Shakespeare Festival, Birmingham REP, Edmonton Opera, Calgary Opera, The Citadel Theatre and The Grand Theatre. She is the recipient of over 25 awards in addition to Avenue Magazine’s Top 40 under 40, Global Television’s Woman of Vision, IPL Best Emerging Artist, the Lucille Lortel Award (Best Costume Design, Off Broadway). She recently represented Canada in Prague at the Scenography Quadrennial and her costume designs were exhibited in Moscow, Beijing, and Taipei. Bretta lives in London (UK) she is a marathon runner and an Archaeological Illustrator.

Music Producer, Sound Designer, Additional Music & Music Programming

Recent Design/Composition/Production: Vigilante, Fortune Falls, Nevermore - The Imaginary Life and Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe, The Soul Collector (Catalyst Theatre/Citadel Theatre/Persephone Theatre/National Arts Centre/The Grand Theatre); Hamlet, Merchant of Venice, Romeo & Juliet, Titus Andronicus, As You Like It, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Richard III, Twelfth Night (Freewill Shakespeare Festival); Once (Citadel Theatre); The Humans
(Citadel Theatre/Canadian Stage); Shakespeare In Love (Citadel Theatre/Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre); Shakespeare’s R & J (Kill Your Television); Playing With Fire: The Theo Fleury Story (Citadel Theatre/Persephone Theatre/Alberta Theatre Projects/Neptune Theatre/Centaur Theatre); Enron (National Arts Centre); Whisper (Studio Theatre/Catalyst Theatre).

Laura has choreographed Nevermore, Vigilante, Frankenstein, Hunchback, and Fortune Falls for Catalyst Theatre as well as until the next breath as part of Grand Acts of Theatre through the National Arts Centre. Other credits include Candide (Edmonton Opera), Mamma Mia!, West Side Story, Spamalot, A Christmas Carol and Shakespeare in Love, (Citadel Theatre), Made in Italy (Western Canadian Theatre), Enron (NAC), Home is a Beautiful Word (The Belfry/Persephone Theatre) Jesus Christ Superstar, Chicago and Footloose (The Mayfield), Next to Normal (Citadel/Theatre Calgary), The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Belfry/Arts Club), new musicals RICH and Rapa Nui (MTYP), and The Penelopiad, Cabaret, and Spring Awakening for Canadian College for the Performing Arts. As an independent artist, Laura produced and choreographed FreeFall, Jazz Playground and a movement adaptation of The Yellow Wallpaper for the Chinook Series.

Courtney is a professionally trained dancer, choreographer and movement instructor. Specializing in commercial dance and musical theater, her contemporary style emerges from training in jazz, hip hop and ballet. Courtney has worked with notable organizations, including; Theatre New Brunswick, St. Thomas University, Connection Dance Works, The New Brunswick Drama Festival, and Opera Nuova. Courtney is currently instructing dance technique for the Music Theater Performance Program at Grant MacEwan University.

Ruth is an actor/musician from Scotland. Credits as an actor include: Once the Musical, A Christmas Carol (Citadel Theatre), Dead in the Water (Varscona Theatre), TWO, The Birthday Party (Edmonton International Fringe), Les Misérables (UK and Dublin tour), Sweeney Todd (Manchester). Ruth also had a recurring role on the long running British series Coronation Street and was a regular member of the BBC radio drama team. Credits as a musical director include: Little Shop of Horrors (Citadel Theatre), Urinetown the Musical (Grant MacEwan Theatre Arts program), Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris (London UK revival and cast recording), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Vienna’s English Theatre). For Catalyst Theatre she has worked on Vigilante (in concert and cast recording), and Nevermore for which she won the Betty Mitchell award for best music direction. Ruth moved to Canada from the UK in 2017 and now lives in Edmonton, Alberta with her husband, son and their dog Jolene.

Sarah/SGS is VP of Programming at Arts Commons in Calgary. Formerly the Artistic Producer for the National Creation Fund (NAC), and Creative Consultant to Richard II at the Stratford Festival. She co-stewards the Historic Birchdale, and is Ph.D. Candidate in Cultural Studies at Queen’s University. She is co-founder of SpiderWebShow and FOLDA, and the Baby Grand Theatre, was the first female Artistic Director at Buddies in Bad Times and was the inaugural Artistic Associate for The Magnetic North Theatre Festival. SGS is co-authoring Manifesto for Now with Owais Lightwala. SGS is on the board of Theatre Alberta, the National Advisory for the National Creation Fund, and the Steering Committee for the Canadian Arts Summit and the Leadership Advisory for Buddies in Bad Times.

Jeff (he/him) is a Lighting & Video designer and Technical Director for live performance across Ontario. He is also a hobbyist astrophotographer and cat Dad. www.jeffpybus.ca

Select Credits: La Bête, The Judas Kiss, Herringbone, The Yalta Game, Hedwig & The Angry Inch (Talk is Free Theatre); Beautiful Renegades (Peggy Baker Dance Projects); Seagulls, The Killing, The Madness of Lady Bright (Shaw Festival Director’s Projects); Tales of an Urban Indian (TiFT, Tour Manager); Prince Caspian, The Shadow of a Doubt, Gaslight, Chitra, Desire Under the Elms, Victory (Shaw Festival; Assistant Lighting Design); Angels in America (That Arts Group; Assoc. Lighting Design); The Runner (Human Cargo; Assoc. Lighting Design); Musik für das Ende (Soundstreams, Touring Lighting Director); Mahabharata (Why Not; Assistant Lighting Design).

Frank Donato is a lighting and projection designer currently based in Sudbury, ON. Recent credits include: Matilda, Jersey Boys, Ride the Cyclone (Sudbury Theatre Centre), Wakey Wakey (County Stage/Stratford Festival), Redbone Coonhound, Orestes (Tarragon Theatre), The Guide to Being Fabulous, Detroit, Billie, Sarah and Ella, The Golden Record (Soulpepper), Home, Ways of Being (Festival of Live Digital Art), Daisy (Great Canadian Theatre Company). Recent credits as an associate designer include: Disney Animation Immersive Experience (Lighthouse Immersive), A Christmas Carol (Citadel Theatre), Tell Tale Harbour (Charlottetown Confederation Centre), Blindness (Mirvish), The Barber of Seville (Canadian Opera Company), Paradise Lost, The Neverending Story, Little Shop of Horrors (Stratford Festival). Frank is a graduate of the production program at the National Theatre School of Canada.

Lee is a production manager/technical director type, thrilled to be based in Edmonton since 2021, after an equally harrowing and delightful start in the US. By day, TD in the University of Alberta Drama Department; by night, Catalyst production manager (or vice versa). Past experience includes stints at Universal Beijing Resort, the Center Theatre Group in LA, and a veritable smorgasbord of summerstocks, regional theatres, dance incubators, circus tours, opera festivals, cruise ships, and the kinds of gigs where you have to zip tie lights to trees. Credit to Kalamazoo College (BA Theatre Arts) and the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale (MFA Technical Design and Production). Other favourite activities include crossword puzzles and collecting and racing bicycles and boats.

Lauren Rebelo is a theatre maker originally from Hamilton, Ontario, though she called London home for 14 years. She holds a BA in Media Studies from Western University and a Diploma in Theatre Production from Fanshawe College. Lauren went on to start her career as the Assistant Technical Director for the Grand Theatre, and is thrilled to be back making theatre in one of her favourite places. Lauren fell in love with Catalyst's work during their 2017 run of Vigilante, so working with the team on The Invisible has been a full-circle moment. Lauren is currently living in the Niagara region, working with established and emerging theatre designers at the Shaw Festival.

Rae is a freelance production manager, technical director, lighting designer, and technician based in Edmonton. She has been an active member of the Edmonton backstage community for over a decade. Additionally, she serves as a board member for the Canadian Institute of Theatre Technology (CITT/ICTS) Alberta Section, where she contributes to promoting professional development and the advancement of the theatre community.

Brian is grateful to Catalyst Theatre and the Company of The Invisible for welcoming him to this outstanding production. He has stage managed at the Stratford Festival for many seasons, and returns to the Grand having stage managed several productions here during Martha Henry’s tenure as Artistic Director. Brian would also like to thank and acknowledge stage manager John Raymond for all of his work on The Invisible. Please enjoy the performance.

Frances is a stage manager based in Edmonton where she also started ReadyGo Theatre Collective. She is thrilled to be on the team for The Invisible once again! Selected previous credits: Kinky Boots (Drayton Entertainment); The Play’s The Thing, Dead In The Water (Theatre Yes); Vigilante in Concert, The Invisible: Agents of Ungentlemanly Warfare (Catalyst Theatre); Pride and Prejudice, Network, Clue, A Christmas Carol (Citadel Theatre); Listen, Listen (Teatro Live!); The Wolves (The Maggie Tree); Hacking and Slashing, Lemon, I, Animal, Monster (ReadyGo Theatre). She would like to thank her parents for instilling in her a passion for art and Erik for being her rock every day.

Michael is very excited to be back behind the mixing console on The Invisible. He has been working as a sound designer, audio technician and composer since 1995. With a passion for collaborative theatre, he has a focus on site specific work and the use of interactive audio and sensor technology to activate non-traditional performance spaces. He is a graduate of the University of Alberta’s BFA in Technical Theatre program. In the summer you can find Michael mixing at Rainbow Stage in Winnipeg. When not touring with Catalyst or designing he spends his quiet time in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.

THEATRE CREDITS (Selected): Sound designer and composer The Spinsters (Small Matters Productions); Sound designer and live mixer Rent (Rainbow Stage); Sound designer and live mixer The Little Mermaid (Rainbow Stage); Live mixer Vigilante (Catalyst Theatre); Sound designer and composer The Object of Constellations (University of Alberta); Sound designer and composer Dracula (Studio Theatre); Sound designer, composer and operator Dead Centre of Town (Catch the Keys Productions, annual).