Production Bios & Headshots

Brooke Munford

VASILISA (BABUSHKA)

Brooke Munford is thrilled to be back onstage for her second show with Merlyn Productions.

This is her first stage production in several years, following “The Beggar and the Wolf” with Merlyn in 2018, and “Zombies to the Left of Me, Survivors to the Right” with Red Lips Productions in the 2019 Winnipeg Fringe Festival.

When not acting, Brooke works as a child care assistant, where she channels her creative spirit into designing activities and games for her kids and making them laugh, both on and off the stage.

Chloe Crockford

MAROUSHA (SIRKO)

Chloe Crockford is thrilled to be making her community theatre debut with Merlyn Productions at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival!

Chloe has been a Teen Acting student at the Winnipeg Theatre School since 2018, and was previously seen performing in its year-end Drama Showcase presentations.

From the age of 6, Chloe has been involved in theatre, singing, and dance. More recently, her love of musical theatre has grown and she has been an integral part of her high school’s musical productions.

Chloe’s other passion is writing. She just had one of her short stories published in the collection “Lonely Planet”, and her dream is to one day write a best selling novel with her favourite author, John Green.

After Chloe finishes high school, her aspirations are to study Microbiology and Biochemistry in university.

Debbie Dann

ANYA (MASHA)

Debbie Dann is appearing for the first time with Merlyn Productions, and thrilled to be making her Winnipeg Fringe Festival début!

Debbie’s love of acting comes from her mother. In the 80’s, Debbie began taking theatre classes with Prairie Theatre Exchange, but put her dreams on pause to have a family and pursue a career in education. After many years, Debbie retired from teaching and now has the time to devote to acting in theatre and film.

She enjoys spending time with her family – especially her granddaughter – and taking walks with her dogs. Debbie loves working on her Jeep, baking, doing crafts, swimming, and travelling.

Devon Littlejohn

MYKHAILO (WOLF)

Devon Littlejohn is thrilled to be making his first appearance with Merlyn Productions.

As a child, Devon was inspired to pursue acting after appearing in church plays. Since then, Devon has found success in teaming up with several production companies, theatres, and groups across Steinbach, Winnipeg, Morden, Virden, and Winkler.

With Candlewick Productions, Devon recently played Curtis in “Sister Act” and Mr Collins in “Pride & Prejudice”. He also appeared as Gad in a local presentation of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”.

“No matter what role, whether big or small, you can always expect me to give it my all.”

Donny Baxter

BOYKO (YURI)

Donny Baxter is making his community theatre début with Merlyn Productions.

His previous live theatre appearances were long ago, in high school, where he appeared in several now-forgotten plays.

Donny left acting behind to raise a family, but always clung to a stage presence by appearing as both a drummer and singer-songwriter on stages across Western Canada.

Retirement has re-awakened Donny’s thirst for live theatre, and he is honoured to have been cast in “The Blabbermouth, the Puff Monster, and the Wolf”.

Heather Forgie

IVANUSHKA (GURI)

Heather Forgie has been the Property Mistress at Merlyn Productions since 2014, and is making her thirteenth onstage appearance with the company.

She last reprised her role as the Red Queen in “Through the Looking-Glass” (2019), and is also known for her portrayal of the Wicked Queen in the company’s past four runs of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”.

Heather’s other appearances include “Wind of a Thousand Tales”, “The World of The Brothers Grimm”, “Ming Lee and the Magic Tree”, and “Nightingale”. She stage managed for the first time while working on “The Anniversary” for ChekhovFest 2014.

In addition to being an actress, Heather is a playwright and the Artistic Director of fellow local theatre company R-G Productions. She is a graduate of the University of Winnipeg’s theatre and dramatic arts program, and currently employed as a high school Drama and English teacher.

Having once upon a time taken a few years off from the acting scene to have children and establish herself as a teacher, Heather is now back full-force. She looks forward to many further creative endeavours with the company!

Jensen Glover

DUNYASHA (GRANDMA BABUSHKA)

Jensen Glover is making her sixth appearance with Merlyn Productions. She was most recently seen as Alice in “Through the Looking-Glass” (2019), and is an alumna of the Winnipeg Theatre School.

Her other appearances include “The Beggar and the Wolf” (2018), “Wind of a Thousand Tales” (2017), and two runs of “The World of the Brothers Grimm” (2015, and 2016 Winnipeg Fringe Festival).

From a young age, Jensen has been involved in musical theatre, jazz, tap, ballet, singing and piano. She has a keen interest in theatre, loves being on stage, and is an eager participant in all her school’s productions.

When she can find spare time, Jensen loves reading, and hopes to publish her own works one day.

Ken Stone

BORIS (SASHA)

Ken Stone is thrilled to be making his sixth appearance with Merlyn Productions, and was last seen playing the King in the 2018 Winnipeg Fringe Festival hit “Puss In Boots”!

In addition to various roles with Merlyn, some other highlights are: the roles of Drew, Reggie, Harry Woolworth, and Paparazzi in “Show Choir! - The Musical” with the Adult Ensemble class at Winnipeg Studio Theatre, the roles of Haberdasher, Tailor, and Officer in “The Taming of the Shrew” with Winnipeg Mennonite Theatre, and the role of Avram in “Fiddler On The Roof” with North Kildonan Community Players.

In life, Ken enjoys the opportunity to learn and to have as much fun as he possibly can.

“Special thanks to family and friends for their continued support. Thank you for coming and enjoy the show!”

Kim Kakegamic

OLGA (NADYA)

Kim Kakegamic is making her first appearance with Merlyn Productions, and happy to be back on stage after a three-year hiatus.

She was last seen in “Cabaret of Monologues” with Sarasvati Productions, a company she performed with numerous times (RIP). She has also worked with many other independent and community theatre groups across the prairies including The Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Winnipeg, Crosswalk Players, Regina Little Theatre, Regina Lyric Musical Theatre, and Edmonton’s Theatre YES.

This show marks her 15th Fringe Festival appearance, and she hopes you enjoy the tales from Ukraine!

Krissadie Armstrong

GRUSHA (MANYA)

Krissadie Armstrong is making her fourth appearance with Merlyn Productions, and excited to be back at The Fringe!

In 2018, she appeared in “The Beggar and the Wolf” and both runs of “Puss in Boots” — making her Winnipeg Fringe Festival début that Summer, after dreaming of being a Fringe performer for many years.

Sadie started acting classes at the age of six, and was forever hooked! Most recently, she appeared in “Frozen Jr” with JMTC and “The SpongeBob Musical” with StudioWorks Academy.

Sadie has been in competitive musical theatre, tap, and jazz with Shelley Shearer School of Dance since she was seven years old. She has been with The Brady Academy of Irish Dance since age six, and can be seen performing annually at the Celtic Ireland Pavilion during Folklorama. Sadie was honoured to be selected as a dancer at the closing ceremonies of the 2017 Canada Summer Games.

Outside of the performing arts, she is most proud of being chosen as Winnipeg’s Kid Mayor 2019.

Philip Paley

FYODOR (VANYA)

Philip Paley is making his first appearance with Merlyn Productions, and his Winnipeg Fringe Festival début!

Philip is a cheerful person with a curious spirit. He is musically inclined, and loves to dance. His past training includes hip-hop, musical theatre, jazz, and tap dancing classes with the RWB, and acting classes with MTYP. Philip also sings with the Winnipeg Boys’ Choir.

Philip is sociable and loves to perform with other people. He is actively seeking opportunities to perform on stage!

Tim Sayeau

OLEK (KOSTYA)

Tim Sayeau is making his eighth appearance with Merlyn Productions, and was last seen as Mayor Gasbaggio in “The Beggar and the Wolf” (2018).

He also appeared in both of the 2018 runs of “Puss in Boots”, as Bluster in “Wind of a Thousand Tales” (2017), The Announcer in “The Princess and the Pea” (2017), multiple roles in “Ernie’s Incredible Illucinations” for AyckbournFest 2016, and as a Director of the Bank in “The Anniversary” for ChekhovFest 2014.

In 2014/15, Tim took a year of Adult Acting classes at the Winnipeg Theatre School, with which he portrayed both a layabout and a philanthropist in Dramatic Showcase 2015.

His previous experience included being a page in a grade 1 production of “Cinderella”, and a lobster salesman in the film “Exiles”.

Steph Blanchette

STAGE MANAGER

Steph Blanchette is the Company Stage Manager at Merlyn Productions. She is excited to be back in the booth after her previous work on “Through the Looking-Glass”, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, and “The Beggar and the Wolf”.

Steph spends her days working as an EA. While shying away from being on stage in the spotlight, she finds passion working behind the scenes, shining the spotlight as stage manager.

Steph’s beginnings in theatre came in the form of “The Spikey Series” in 2008. Since then, she has been part of dinner theatre fundraisers, Folklorama, community theatre groups, and film projects.

Steph co-produced “Mulligan’s Island” (Winnipeg Fringe 2015), “Once On This Island” (Shoe In Productions 2017), and “Audition Deficit Disorder” (Winnipeg Fringe 2022). Other highlights are “Weirder Thou Art” (Winnipeg Fringe 2016, Toronto Fringe 2017), “Your Brain On Anxiety” (Winnipeg Fringe 2018), “The Weight of Shame” (An Seanchai Theatre Company 2023) and “9 to 5 The Musical” (RMTC Lawyers Play 2023).

Steph enjoys working with a variety of people, learning something from everyone she meets. She is always looking to be part of the next project.

John Chase

DIRECTOR

John Chase is the Artistic Director of Merlyn Productions, and the Chief Instructor at the Winnipeg Theatre School. As an actor, director, producer, and stage manager, he has worked on more than 130 local productions.

John picked up the torch of producing classic children’s tales after working extensively with Fantasy Theatre for Children for twenty seasons (1991-2011).

An alumnus of The Theatre School, John studied acting and directing in the 1990s under founder Tony Frost, from whom he inherits his methods today. While at FTC, he also directed multiple shows for its adult arm, G.D. Productions.

John began producing local theatre independently in 1997, and staging annual seasons of plays with Merlyn Productions in 2009.

His first Winnipeg Fringe Festival appearance was 30 years ago with FTC in “Ming Lee and The Magic Tree”.