Playwrights - Hengameh E. Rice
Hengameh E. Rice are a writing team, with Hengameh born in Shiraz, Iran and Rice born in Edmonton, Alberta. Hengameh brings stories full of passion from Iran to the partnership, and Rice brings the experience of thirty years in the arts and communications. Together they create and produce exciting, compelling stories from Iran that illuminate layers of the complex society at the centre of news stories today. Anahita’s Republic is one story among many of the struggle for women’s rights in Iran, a struggle that has been ongoing for generations.
Director - Brian Dooley
Brian Dooley is an award-winning actor and producer. For over 40 years Brian has worked throughout the country and abroad. His skills include directing, writing, producing and performing in a variety of media including radio, animation, film, television and the theatre. Brian was trained and educated at the National Theatre School and Bishop’s University. He is delighted to return to Edmonton to work on Anahita’s Republic. New plays promise challenges - challenges which prove illuminating and rewarding. While he may have relocated to Montreal, Brian continues to hold Edmonton and its community close at heart; and continues to draw inspiration form Victor Banda’s fervent message: “The theatre moves, illuminates, disquiets, disturbs, lifts the spirit, reveals, provokes and violates conventions. It is a conversation shared with society. Theatre is the first art to confront emptiness, shadows and silence to make words, movement, lights and life surge forth.”
Production Manager/Stage Manager - Kat Evans
Kat Evans (she/her) is a freelance professional Artist, Designer, Creator, Producer, PM/TD, Technician and Stage Manager based in Amiskwaciy-Wâskahikan (Edmonton, Alberta) on Treaty 6 Territory, Metis Regional Council 4. She holds a BFA in Theatre Design from the University of Alberta, and is the Co-Founder of The October People Productions, who specialize in practical SFX and immersive design for theatre, film, and escape room experiences. https://www.facebook.com/TheOctoberPeopleProductions/
Mentor Producer -Kristi Hansen
Kristi Hansen is a disabled theatre artist who has called Edmonton home for the past 22 years. Kristi is the co-founder and co-Artistic Director of The Maggie Tree and the former co-Artistic Producer of Azimuth Theatre in Edmonton, AB. She is currently working with the Citadel Theatre as an Associate Artist and is a researcher and budding technologist with Moment Discovery, a body-art tech company that specializes in the human body in tech. https://www.kristihansen.ca/
Scenographer - Whittyn Jason
Whittyn Jason (they/them/theirs) is a queer, mixed-race scenographer of South African and Ukrainian descent. They primarily work in amiskwacîwâskahikan (colonially Edmonton, Alberta). Recent credits: The Hooves Belong to the Deer (Tarragon Theatre), The Royale and The Fiancé (Citadel Theatre), and Little Women (Theatre Calgary). Upcoming credits include Heaven (NAC).
Original Music - Farhad Khosravi
Farhad is an Edmonton-based composer and santur (Persian dulcimer) player, originally from Iran. He is the winner of the 2020 Edmonton Music Prize for his sophomore album Mosàfer. Farhad’s compositions naturally weave together elements of Persian and Western classical music into a seamless musical journey. http://www.farhadkhosravi.com/
Anahita - Roya Yazdanmehr
Roya is an actor, songwriter, dancer, and sound healer with a passion for creative collaboration. Roya is currently exploring the transcendent role that music, dance, and theatre play in individual and collective healing. She is honoured to join the cast of Anahita’s Republic. https://royamusic.ca/
Omid - Jennie George
Jennie George (@thejenniegeorge) is an MBA Valedictorian and has worked at Goldman Sachs and LinkedIn. She escaped her corporate cubicle thanks to the siren song of the Stage. After successfully co-founding and running a musical theatre company in India for 7 years, she moved to Canada to make her artistic dreams a reality. Trained in Vancouver, she is excited to make her Edmonton theatrical debut with AuTash Productions. All glory to God! (Proverbs 3:5-6) Much love and gratitude to Hengameh E. Rice, Brian and the team for the opportunity to tell Omid’s story.
Cyrus - Yassine El Fassi El Fihri
Yassine El Fassi El Fihri (he/him) is incredibly grateful and excited to be sharing this important story. He is a recent graduate of the University of Alberta’s BFA in acting program. Recent credits include: Much Ado About Nothing, Measure for Measure, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Freewill), Macbeth, Weasel, Rhinoceros, The Devils (University of Alberta).
Masood - Michael Peng
Michael’s been a theatre artist for 30 years.. He’s toured internationally and worked across Canada, including many leading theatres in Alberta. He holds a Master of Fine Arts, Directing from the University of Alberta, has founded a couple independent theatre companies, and teaches at Concordia University Edmonton. He's also excited and humbled to work with this stellar creative team, helping to breathe life into this brave and beautiful new play.
Still Photography - Scott Henderson
Scott Henderson has been a professional photographer for over ten years. Although he has always lived in Edmonton, Scott loves to travel and loves learning from other cultures. When not doing photography, Scott works as a Business Analyst, spends time with his family, and enjoys singing and astronomy. https://www.hendersonimages.ca/
Social Media Consultant - Nahid Bandi
My name is Nahid Bandi and I am a fully funded graduate student and a research assistant at University of Alberta. My major is Genomics and Bioinformatics. I love working in a genetics lab. Outside of work and study, I volunteer for the Woman, Life, Freedom democracy movement in Edmonton. I also love makeup because it allows me to visually express my personality and mood. https://www.instagram.com/nahid__bandi/
Social Media Artist - Asal Andarzipour
I identify as an immigrant artist walking in my nomad ancestors' shoes. My long journey across the ocean from Tehran to New York and then Alberta continues to inform and form my creative profile. Since 2015, I have actively served in arts and culture non-profits. My artistic career and activism as an Iranian woman in the diaspora are integrated into my daily life. www.asalandarzipour.com