Princess' Pride 'n' Joy 

THE TEAM 

Aaron Collier

Princess Edward / Director / Co-Writer/ Lead Designer  

Aaron Collier was born in Prince Edward Island in 1981 and is an  award-winning multi-talented musician/composer, sound and video  designer, performer and theatre creator. His composition, sound,  production, and video design work has toured throughout Canada,  Ireland, the UK, and India and he has 14 years of touring and  performance experience throughout the world with his previous bands  The Jimmy Swift Band and Scientists of Sound. He is the co-founder  and technical director of Halifax-based live art company Heist and is the  co-creator of their lauded productions The Princess Show, New  Waterford Boy, Nature Vs Nation, FACE, and Princess Rules.

Richie Wilcox 

Abel T. Suckizone/ Co-Writer

Richie Wilcox is an educator, a fiercely queer artist, and a creative collaborator. He is the  founding artistic director of the live art company Heist based in K’jipuktuk/Halifax. In four short  years, Wilcox has helped create The Princess Show, Princess Rules, Nature Vs. Nation, New  Waterford Boy, FACE and Frequencies. With Heist, Wilcox has also produced and curated the  Creative Nova Scotia Awards for the past two years. Wilcox has worked with numerous  companies across the Maritimes including Neptune, Festival Antigonish, 2B Theatre, Kazan  Co-Op, Opera Nova Scotia and more. Wilcox served as Artistic Associate of Theatre Outre in  Lethbridge, Alberta for three years where he helped create numerous original works including  the hit play Unsex’d. Wilcox is also currently the artistic director of the 36 year old Ship’s  Company Theatre in Awokun/Parrsboro. Wilcox is a recipient of the Mayor’s Award for  Emerging Theatre Artist and a Merritt for outstanding performance in a supporting role.

Sylvia Bell

Penny/ Show Runner 


Sylvia Bell is a freelance Stage, Production and Event Manager with more than twenty years of professional experience. Throughout her career, Sylvia has participated in the growth of some of Atlantic Canada’s most dynamic theatre companies and has toured internationally. Sylvia has proudly dedicated her career to the promotion of new voices and has assisted in the development of more than 20 world premieres. At present, Sylvia serves as the Managing Director for Heist, a Nova Scotia based live art production company and studio.


Lara Lewis

Valet Girl - Part One

Lara Lewis is a queer mixed Mi'kmaw/settler theatre artist living in Kjipuktuk. Lara made her professional  acting debut in 2017 as Valet Girl in Princess Rules, for which she was nominated for Outstanding  Supporting Actor at the 2018 Merritt Awards. Recent acting credits include work with the Villains Theatre  & Phyllis Rising Productions. Most recently, Lara co-created a devised Theatre for Young Audiences piece  with Theatre New Brunswick earlier this year.  

Lara currently works for Mayworks Kjipuktuk/Halifax & has been apprenticing at Playwrights Atlantic  Resource Centre since 2020. She is the Vice-Chair of the Bus Stop Theatre Co-operative, and will be  acting as dramaturge on a new adaptation of Peter & the Wolf presented through her alma mater, the  Fountain School of Performing Arts, later this year.

Jay Whitehead

Didi d'Edada - Part Two

Whitehead is the creator or co-creator of shows including UNSEX’d, Tab & Landon and Castrati - An Electro Drag Opera.  For Theatre Outré Jay has appeared in and/or directed productions of Montparnasse A Streetcar Named Desire, The Curing Room, The Confession of Jeffrey Dahmer, How to Leave, Late Company, Like Orpheus and My Funny Valentine.  He has worked as an actor, director, choreographer and teacher in cities across Canada and abroad.  He is the recipient of the Michael Mac Liammoir Award for Acting and the Hilton Edwards Award for Directing at the Dublin Gay Theatre Festival in Dublin Ireland. He is currently the Co-Artistic Director of Theatre Outré in Lethbridge, Alberta and an Associate Professor of Acting at the University of Lethbridge.

Chris Cochrane

Joi de'Vivre - Part Three/  Make-up Consultant

Chris Cochrane is a Black Trans Activist and Educator. Teaching trans awareness and Queer Inclusivity .With 13 years in the beauty industry as an MUA and 6 Years as an esthetician she can beautify you for head to toe. For the last 16 years Chris notably known as her drag persona Elle Noir. Sometimes referred to as "The Beyonce of Halifax" she is known for her over the top high energy performances. Originally from Cape Breton, she has been an active member of the Halifax Queer community for over 16 years. Wether it be with her educating or her public speaking. As well as for originating trans characters on stage and screen. Such as TV series Sex & Violence to bigger roles in Films like Stage mother. Chris is a well rounded performer and will give everything you need and more.

Rachel Forbes

Costume Designer 

Rachel is an award-winning set and costume designer creating for theatre, dance and film. Her work has been seen across the country at Buddies in Bad Times, Shaw Festival, Obsidian Theatre, Neptune Theatre, Young People’s Theatre, Centaur Theatre and many more. Rachel received a Dora Mavor Moore award for her costume design for The Brothers Size (Soulpepper 2019) and a Merrit Award for her set design for The Bridge (2B/Neptune 2019). Rachel is invested in exploring the artistic expressions of the African diaspora in North America and is dedicated to the creation of new works and interdisciplinary explorations. 


Avery Morris

Assistant Designer/ NS Costume Assistant 

Avery Morris is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice involves costume, food, and animation. They’ve  lived in Kjipuktuk / Halifax for the past four years where they’ve studied craft practices at NSCAD. They  are joining Heist this spring to collaboratively help realize the Princess Show’s costumes.

Deonie Hudson

Storm Designer/ Lethbridge Costume Assistant/ Closed-Captioning Co-Creator/ Grandmother Episode 3 

Deonie has been working theatre for more than 20 years, filling a variety of roles. She attended the University of Lethbridge where she took a BFA in Dramatic Arts  focusing primarily on the technical side of theatre, making her well versed in every  aspect of bringing a show to life. Deonie also worked for a number of years on the  technical end of numerous touring shows such as Cats, Riverdance, Alice Cooper,  Nickleback, Elton John, Motley Crue and many more. She has directed several  stage shows including Blood Relations, the Canadian premier of Starchild,  Hairspray and Peter Pan. She also worked as the lighting designer for Raymond  Playhouse Theatre, Carriage House Theatre, Lethbridge Musical Theatre and the  Center for Indigenous Theatre on shows such as The Wizard of Oz, Big River and  Apaanii. She also has an extensive background in costume design and  construction which can regularly be seen at various Comic Conventions in addition  to on stage. Deonie is currently the Resident designer for Theatre Outre where  she has expanded her design credits to include set, costumes, props, makeup and  more. She won the award for " Best Technical Aspect" at the Dublin Gay Theatre  Festival for her work on Like Orpheus.

Minori Morioka

Narrator 

Mino started her Princess journey back in 2016. She translated and recorded the narration for The Princess Show which has been seen and heard around Canada. She then translated and did the voice over for the sequel Princess Rules. Mino had so much fun she returned as the narrator and translator for this new Princess adventure. 


Matthew Downey

Digital Scenic Designer 

A queer non binary theatre artist from St. John’s Newfoundland.  freelance lighting/set designer, as well as the technical director and  house tech of the Bus Stop Theatre. Since the pandemic hit they have  shifted their focus to creating and supporting digital art and virtual  performances, with investment in making art accessible. This is their  first time working in the medium of augmented reality. This show falls on  their ten year anniversary of working and creating in The Bus Stop  Theatre. credits include: The Blazing World , The Changeling (Villains  Theatre) Rings Thru Water, Fatty Legs (Xara Choral Theatre) Tom at  The Farm (Work Shirt Opera House)

Rabbyt

Title Card Designer/ Intro Creator/ Assistant Digital Scenic Designer/ Closed Captioning Co-Creator 

Rabbyt’s funk factory has been operating since 2010. Tucked under a hill in YQL, the AI-powered studio is a constant flurry of music and visual arts. Born from the habit of listening to a song on repeat until the dopamine runs out, this critter is on a constant endeavor to recreate the feeling of nostalgia. Creator of Shambhala's annual LGBTea party, and already a staple on several western Canadian electronic music festivals, Rabbyt's light keeps getting brighter.

She’s rinsed her signature blend of modern funk music production and nostalgic samples on her own weekly local FM radio show, and brought her most magical tracks on the road; as far away as Costa Rica. Keep those ears up, Rabbyt is always working on something new.


Vie Jones

Production Assistant/ Zoom Bouncer

Vie is Anishinaabe from Bawaating "The Rapids," Garden River First Nation just outside of Sault Ste. Marie, ON. Their work is largely based on experiences as a Two-Spirit person growing up on reserve with some access to history, culture, and language. Based on these histories their work tends to look at the intersections of marginalization and is rooted in the impacts, recovery, and transformative nature of trauma. Their practice attempts to utilize drag as a uniquely queer expression, embracing notions of refuge, constructed worlds, and Anishinaabeg cosmologies, ontologies, and epistemologies. With drag quickly entering mainstream through entertainment directly into the living rooms of millions of dedicated fans, it becomes an access point to introduce these notions and complicate our own understandings of gender.   

Blaze Fraser

Social Media Manager 

Blaze Fraser is an event coordinator and drag performer based in  Halifax/Kjipuktuk. They focus on backstage and behind the scenes  event-related work with the goal to support and uplift the voices and  stories in queer and marginalized communities. After working in their  most recent position as an Events Coordinator at Volta, a local  innovation hub, they have shifted their focus to queer performance and  arts-based events. They recently worked on the Creative NS Awards 2020 with HEIST as well as on the HEIST production Frequencies. 

Brandon Tolliver

DJ Douvet 

Douvet’s music tastes were formed in his household with gospel, r&b and hip-hop  being played all day by both his parents and his older sister. The commonality he heard  was soul and rhythm and he attempts to translate those feelings into every one of his  sets. Mainly playing House, Disco, Techno and other forms of electronic music, Douvet  attempts to create a special vibe every time he plays.

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