KEYNOTE PRESENTATION #1
Monique Pascall
Monique Pascall is a Toronto born dancer, choreographer and educator currently based in Ajax, Ontario. Monique is a graduate of Wexford Collegiate school of the arts and a bachelor’s degree for performance dance at Toronto Metropolitan University. Monique has performed in various productions around Canada and internationally for events such as ManifesTO, Dance Ontario DanceWeekend, AfroFest and was an invited guest performer at the Prime Minister’s Best Village Trophy Competition in Trinidad & Tobago. She has collaborated and performed with many choreographers for original works such as Andrea Nann, Emilio Colalillo, Percy Anane-Dwumfour, and Patrick Parsons. Monique has had the opportunity to perform in many music videos and backup dance for Canadian Artists such as Akil Elijah, Charmaine, Shopé and Shad.K. Recently, Monique was selected to work with Artistic Director Natasha Powel of Holla Jazz for her residency with Fall For Dance North partnered with the Orillia Centre of the Arts and Culture titled “Together Again”. Monique has been teaching Hip-Hop, Jazz and Afro-Caribbean dance for 5 years and continues to focus her teaching on African influence styles and cultures. Monique’s passion is to educate black youth within their roots, culture and expression, she continues to aim for authenticity and acceptance of artistic expressions.
KEYNOTE PRESENTATION #2
Heather Caplap
Heather Caplap
Heather Caplap
Photo credit: Cylla von Tiedemann
Heather Caplap (she/her) is a disabled queer arts administrator and Tarragon Theatre’s Education and Community Engagement Manager. Her practice focuses on fostering lasting community connection by creating spaces where artists and audiences can come together in a spirit of generous exchange and supportive experimentation. She is a puppet nerd and has co-founded two experimental puppetry events in Toronto; Concrete Cabaret and OBJECTO: Toronto’s Festival of Puppetry and Performing Objects. She also is a proud member of the Montreal-based Café Concretcuratorial collective. Heather is grateful for the mentorship she received during her time working with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Tangled Art + Disability, and AccessArts. She holds a postgraduate degree in Arts Administration and Cultural Management from Humber College and a BFA from Concordia University.
Myekah Payne
Heather Caplap
Heather Caplap
Myekah Payne is a developmental / production Dramaturg born based in the city of Toronto. She completed a two-year specialization of new play dramaturgy at York University, and also possesses a diploma in Musical Theatre Performance. Since, Myekah has fostered a significant and varied dramaturgical practice, working with companies that support new creation in roles that include Obsidian Theatre’s Company
Dramaturg, Driftwood Theatre’s Production Dramaturg, and as Associate Dramaturg with Nightswimming Theatre. Myekah continues her artistic journey with Tarragon Theatre as their current Associate Artistic Director.
Outside of theatre, Myekah enjoys hiking in the wilderness, swimming in large bodies of water and reading unnecessarily thick paperback books (usually sci-fi and/or fantasy.)