Next Generation Showcase Panel 2018

The Business of Casting

Sunday, January 14th, 2018
7:30pm to 9:00pm
Al Green Theatre

All Next Generation Showcase participants are invited to join us following the networking party for a discussion about the business of casting in the entertainment industry. We will be joined by a group of esteemed professionals, all working in theatre, film or television, who will discuss their artistic journeys; the challenges that exist in the industry; and tips for navigating the ever-evolving world of early-career acting. Bring your most burning questions!

This panel discussion was moderated by Andrea Scott.

Kevin Frank, Karen Glave, Kishwar Iqbal, and Beth Russell joined us as panelists.

The panel was sponsored by Meridian Artists.

Moderator: Andrea Scott

Andrea is a London Ontario native with a Masters’ degree in Theatre from the University of Toronto. A professional actor for the last 20 years she made the transition to writing plays in 2010 with the one person play, Damaged, which had a reading at the rock.paper.sistahzfestival at bcurrent theatre. Since then she has written several plays including Eating Pomegranates Naked, Frenemies, Swings & Roundabouts, and Better Angels: A Parable which was in the 2015 SummerWorks Theatre Festival in August. Recent projects include teaching script writing class for the Young Voices Conference at the Toronto Public Library in October and her new TYA play, Princesses Don’t Grow on Trees at Solar Stage in 2016. She is currently completing a PTTP mentorship with David Auster at the Stratford Festival.

Panelist: Kevin Frank

Kevin has been an actor/writer/musician for the last 30 years. He began his career studying improv comedy in 1984 with the Second City in Toronto and joined the faculty as a teacher in 1988. For the past nine years he has served as the Artistic Director of the Second City Training Centre. During this time, he has performed in over 60 television commercials and has had countless  appearances on popular series television. Kevin hosted the popular children’s game show Kidstreet for five years, co-starred with Walter Matthau and Carol Burnett in The Marriage Fool, and hosted Life Networks' Pet Project, which received four Gemini nominations. He can also be heard as many of the voices in the Thomas the Tank Engine first feature movie.

Panelist: Karen Glave

Karen Glave is a Canadian actress who grew up just outside of Montreal, in Chateauguay, Quebec. She studied acting at George Brown Theatre School in Toronto, and, since graduating, has been cast in numerous film and television roles including The Day After Tomorrow, Suits, Crimson Peak, and The Strain. On stage she has performed for numerous companies including Mirvish Productions, The Citadel, Soulpepper, Panamania 2015 and the Stratford Festival. Karen has also been an instructor for TV and Film acting at George Brown Theatre School and Armstrong Acting Studios.

Panelist: Kishwar Iqbal

Kishwar moved to Toronto in 1987 to pursue a career in the theatre after spending too many years in various departments in University, eventually ending up in the theatre department. After graduation, he ended up as GM of Crow’s Theatre and practically lived at the Poor Alex Theatre for a few years. This experience led to a string of administrative jobs interwoven with travel stints to Asia, Europe, South, Central and North America. He has worked at Theatre Ontario as Cross Cultural Coordinator where one of his responsibilities was to promote cultural diversity in the theatre community; at the Canada Council as a theatre officer; and at ACTRA as the Branch Representative for Ottawa. He is co-founder and Producer of the first Ottawa Fringe Festival (July 1997) and once inaugurated, he left the Ottawa Fringe in good hands and joined the Gary Goddard Agency as a talent agent in August of 1997. During his time as an agent, Kishwar has worked with the likes of Luke Kirby, Allan Hawco, Stephen Amell, Gavin Crawford, Ellen Page, Sarah Polley, Scott Speedman, and many other recognizable Canadian names. He became a partner at the Agency in 2002 where he can, of course, still be found.

Panelist: Beth Russell

Beth has been the Casting Director of the Stratford Festival for the past 10 seasons. In addition to casting, she has also been an artists’ agent, representing actors and creative team members; Co-Producer of CBC-TV’s Triple Sensation; Senior Vice President: Casting and Creative Development for theatrical producer Livent; National Casting Director for CBC Radio Drama and Artistic Associate for Toronto Arts Productions (now Canadian Stage). As casting director, Ms. Russell has been responsible for Broadway and West End premières of productions including Parade, Ragtime, Show Boat and Kiss of the Spider Woman, as well as productions of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Show Boat, Sunset Boulevard, Aspects of Love and The Phantom of the Opera in Canada, the United States, Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong.

For More Information

Contact Rachel Kennedy, Professional Theatre and Education Manager, at programs@theatreontario.org or 416.408.4556 x.12