Marcus Youssef, Artistic Producer

Marcus Youssef is best known for his plays, which include Ali and Ali and the aXes of Evil, Adrift, and A Line in the Sand. They have been produced across North America and Europe, from the Kennedy Centre to Ca'Foscari in Venice, been translated into Czech and Italian, and are published by Talonbooks. His fiction and non-fiction have appeared on many CBC radio and TV programs, including the Roundup where he was Writer in Residence; in Coming Attractions (Oberon), Grain, the Vancouver Sun, This Magazine, Vancouver Magazine, the Globe, as well as Crank Magazine, which Marcus co-founded with Matt Hern in 1999. Marcus is a recipient of both the Alcan Performing Arts Award and the Chalmer’s Canadian Play Award. He also hosts, teaches, and reads at universities and literary and political events across the country, most recently interviewing American author Richard Rodriguez, actor Sandra Oh, and activists Cindy and Craig Corrie. He has been an Assistant Professor of Community Based, Political and Activist Theatre at Concordia University in Montreal, and currently teaches at Vancouver’s Studio 58 (Langara College) and the Playwrights Theatre Centre. And on a good day, despite being about to turn 40, he’s sort of hot. 

Adrienne Wong, Artistic Producer

Adrienne Wong creates, performs and produces new work for theatre and radio. Projects for Neworld include performing in My Name is Rachel Corrie, co-creating two pieces for two Hives, and performing in the first draft of Adrift on the Nile. Recently Adrienne has collaborated with battery opera, Shakti Dance Collective, Shifting Point Theatre, Theatre Replacement, Firehall Arts Centre and Rubicon Equity Co-Op. Favourite projects include performing in the former Vancouver Morgue, devising a miniature play for Box Theatre, co-writing on the Downtown Eastside Community Play, playing Scrabble the radio (North by Northwest, CBC Radio One), and creating interactive letter-writing projects. Adrienne is a graduate of Simon Fraser University's School for the Contemporary Arts.

Kirsty Munro, Managing Producer

Kirsty Munro moved to Vancouver from Montreal in 2002 and has since worked as a Front of House Manager, grant writer, box office manager, translator and stage manager. Before being enlisted by Neworld, Kirsty spent four years as Operations Coordinator for Rumble Productions. She also took on the role of Assembly Associate Producer for the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival 2008 and was the Industry Series Associate Producer for the Magnetic North Theatre Festival 2008. Kirsty is a graduate of McGill University.

Camyar Chai, Founding Artistic Producer (Obi-Wan Kenobi)

Recent Acting Credits: The Adventures of Ali and Ali (Neworld Theatre), A Christmas Carol (Vancouver Playhouse), Intelligence (television, recurring role), Masters of Science Fiction (television), Everything's Gone Green (Film), Hedda Gabler (Rumble Productions), Zadie's Shoes (Arts Club Theatre),
Recent Directing Credits: Mother Courage And Her Children (UBC), Adrift On The Nile (Neworld Theatre), Bringing It All Back Home, King Richard And His Women (UBC)
Recent Writing Credits: Eljijah's Kite (Opera libretto composed by James Rolfe - premiered at the Manhattan School for Music and and Rideux Hall by invitation of the Governor General), The Adventures of Ali and Ali (with Guillermo Verdecchia and Marcus Youssef), Asylum of the Universe
Selected Awards: University Graduate Fellowship (Masters Of Fine Arts - Theatre Directing), Ray Michal Award for Most Promising New Director, two Jessie Richardson Awards for writing and a Jessie Richardson Award for Acting (with the ensemble of Western Theatre Conspiracy's Mojo.)

James Fagan Tait

The visionary artist behind Crime and Punishment, Jimmy is a native of Cornwall, Ontario and trained at Ryerson Theatre School and the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, where he worked as an actor and director for several years.  He also studied theatre at Ecole Jacques Lecoq in Paris where he worked as an actor and director for four years.  He is one of Vancouver's busiest actor/writer/directors, creating, directing, and/or performing in shows for numerous professional and community-based companies, including boca del lupo, Western Gold, the Vancouver Playhouse, the Caravan, Vancouver Moving Theatre, the World AIDS Group, the Electric Company, Runaway Moon, Bard on the Beach and many others.