Catherine Frid – Playwright

Catherine Frid co-creates and presents new work with communities, including Living Below the Line, AfterWhys, and Our Voices: Senior Selfies. Catherine’s other produced plays include Spend Your Kids’ Inheritance (Toronto Fringe – Patron’s Pick), What I Gave I Have (Guelph Museums), Half Full (Mixed Company Theatre school tours), Burying Toni (Alumnae), The Bold Canadian (Arts and Letters Club), Homegrown (SummerWorks and others), GuineaPigging (Alumnae), Dead Cat Bounce (Toronto Fringe and others), and many short works in Canada and the United States. 

Publications include Our Voices: Senior Selfies (Art Age Publications); This Isn’t Toronto in Long Story Short, (Playwrights Canada Press); Community with Strangers in Scenes from a Diverse World (ICWP Press); and Us and Them in Thirtysomethings: Mother-Daughter Monologues (ICWP Press). 

She has been Playwright in Residence at Mixed Company Theatre, and Artist in Residence at Osgoode Hall Law School. 
Catherine is Artistic Director of Watercourse Theatre, and she teaches dramaturgy at Ryerson University’s Chang School.  www.catherinefrid.com 
Upcoming: Living Below the Line (remount); Thistlepatch (Alumnae Theatre) 

Simon Malbogat – Director

Simon Malbogat co-founded Mixed Company Theatre in 1983 and has been the Artistic Director since 1989. In 1992 Mixed Company Theatre became a CTO (Centre for Theatre of the Oppressed). Simon has over thirty years’ experience as a director, dramaturg, teacher, actor, and workshop facilitator. Teaching highlights include University of Toronto, Concordia University, York University, Humber College, Brock University and Queen’s University. Simon has facilitated hundreds of workshops for youths and adults in Europe, South America, USA, and Canada and has facilitated over 1,000 Forum Theatre presentations. Simon has led workshops in Turkey, Brazil, Finland, and the Ukraine. In Toronto, Simon has been involved in developing the arts in the community with programs for families, women, seniors, youth, homeless adults & youth and persons with disabilities. 

Flavia Martin – Stage Manager

Flávia F. Martin (she/her) is a Portuguese Stage and Assistant Stage Manager based in Tkaronto. Recent credits include Beautiful Renegades (Peggy Baker’s Dance Projects), Cacao| A Venezuelan Lament, Light: A Tribute to Toni Morrison (Luminato Festival), The House of Bernarda Alba (Modern Times and Aluna Theatre), Songs for a New World (Randolph College For the Performing Arts), Lätt Lûtf (Teatro de Creación Remota), Never In the Room (Mixed Company Theatre) and The Cherry Orchard (Modern Times Theatre). 

Jessica Balyk – Set Designer

Jessica Balyk is an emerging scenic and event designer based in the GTA. In 2020, Jessica graduated from York University’s Theatre program, where she studied Devised Theatre and Set and Costume Design for the stage. Shortly after graduating from York, she attended Humber College to pursue another passion, and it was there she received a diploma in Interior Decorating in May of 2022. Jessica is passionate about design of any medium or form and, most recently, designed the lobby at the Meridian Arts Centre for Nuit Blanche. She is delighted to be working with Mixed Company on their production of Two-Sided Mirror. 

Christopher Jacobs – Costume Designer

Christopher Jacobs is a recent graduate of the Theatre Production and Design program at York University, and their current focus is as a Set & Costume Designer, as well as a Costume Technician, across the GTA. After working as a designer on a variety of shows, including The Munschables (Directed by Dawn Ward at the Confederation Centre of The Arts) and The Late Wedding (Directed by Jamie Robinson at York University), they are excited to be back to work as the Costume Designer on Two-Sided Mirror. When it comes to the designs for this show, as well as many other personal projects and festival shows, Christopher is always willing to face new challenges head-on with the help of their fellow crew members. Since they began this project, Christopher has had a wonderful time collaborating with all of the performers and the rest of the creative team, and is excited to share this amazing process with all of you. 

They would like to extend their gratitude to the close friends and family that have supported them in their journey through the theatrical arts, along with a special thank-you to Nancy Sanvido; they wouldn’t be where they are today without you. 

Tony Babcock – Sound Designer

Tony Babcock is an award-winning actor, director & acting coach who has worked in the entertainment industry for over 20 years. Tony has worked on multiple shows with Mixed Company Theatre both in-person and virtually for the past 10 years and really believes in the power of Theatre for social change. His work spans theatre, voiceover, film/tv and improv. He has a recurring role on The Cartoon Network’s BAKUGAN, recently starred in the new comedy series LEADING DAN, and was in NYC at the Tribeca Film Festival for his movie Bunker Burger with Veronica Mars’ Enrico Calontoni. Tony also runs IYA Studio for Actors, combining acting with improv and life coaching. IYA offers weekly classes, weekend intensives, guest workshops, 1:1 coaching and online masterclasses worldwide.

Heather von Atzigen as MARISSA

Heather Cherron has been acting, facilitating and writing for Mixed Company Theatre for 25 years as an associate artist. During this time, she was part of the cast of DISS, which was nominated as an ensemble for a Dora Mavor Moore Award for outstanding performance in a theatre for young audiences’ production. This year she added directing to her list with her play PUSH. Heather has combined her love of Theatre of the Oppressed with her advocacy for Injured Workers in the direction and co- creation of three short pieces for Dan’s School of Drama and Music: Drama 239 at Queens University. Her song, “Bills to Pay” and you Can’t Change was heard on LUMI radio at the Luminato Festival. “Bill to Pay” has been heard at various events for the USW, 15 and Fairness, Injured Workers and is the official theme song for “Precarity U” which recently received honorable mentions in the NYC Labor Film Festival 

Luciano Iogna as JIM

Luciano Iogna has been a professional Theatre practitioner for almost 45 years and for over 35 years has specifically worked using Theatre for Social Change. Luc has had the privilege to work across Canada and internationally with diverse cultures as a facilitator, actor, writer, director and instructor; working with Labour, institutions, government agencies, schools and communities.  

Jane Smythe as BRENDA/DOCTOR

Jane E Smythe (Brenda/Dr. Pabel Two Sided Mirror) is a film/television and theatre actor. Most recently, she was in Mixed Company Theatre’s Knocking On Doors, a virtual production. Other work with MTC includes Never In The Room. She co-wrote and performed in The Collagen Letters – both at The Social Capitol Theatre, and at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre.  

Other roles include: Laura in the Glass Menagerie (Nova Theatre), Mrs. Smith in The Bald Soprano (Tantramar Theatre), Meg in The Birthday Party (Rhino Theatre Collective – also produced), Brenda in Pogie (Tantramar Theatre), Sex Therapist in In Your Dream’s Freud (Theatre at York). Toronto Fringe work includes: Dr. Vera Peters in Radical, MC in The Make Over (at the Monsieur Barber Shop) and Mona the psychic in Society of Skeptics.  

Film and Television work includes The Handmaid’s Tale, and American Gods, as well as Canadian Independent productions White Night and Lucky 7. 

Kelsey Rideout as CORRINE

Kelsey Rideout is an actor, spoken word poet and writer originally from Ottawa. Recent theatre credits include her role as #11 in the production of “The Wolves” which won the Prix Rideau Best Direction and Jury Award. Her writing has been published in Above & Beyond Magazine, GUTS Magazine, rabble, and Northern News Services Online. She’s grateful to revisit her angsty, athletic teenage past with the role of Corinne in Two-Sided Mirror.