Wednesday, November 23, 2011

My Theatre Watch List: 18 Under 25

by Kelly Bedard

We at My Entertainment World have a long history of predicting the future. For instance, My TV sang the praises of 2011 Emmy winner Ty Burrell as early as March 2008, and current it-girl Emma Stone first hit the site in early 2009. At My Theatre we've been placing our bets on early-spotted favourites like Jesse Nerenberg and Jessica Moss for over a year now and they're yet to disappoint.

One of the greatest pleasures in growing up around aspiring theatre artists is seeing people you've known since they were 15 take to the stage and blow the audience away. I experienced just that this week when two actors I'd known separately years ago ended up playing Romeo and Juliet opposite one another.

So I got-to thinking about some of the most incredible performers I've ever encountered outside of my reviewing chair. They're alumnists of schools and programs I used to attend myself, all still performing, all under 25, all so brimming with talent that it's just a matter of time until people take notice even more than they already have. Two are singers I first heard when we sang operettas together at age 15; one travelled with me to Ireland 8 years ago; there are six university classmates, four high school castmates, three alumnists of a company I created and one from a company I volunteered for; and there's one current all-star student who impressed me when I went back to my old high school for a performance. (And some people fall into more than one of those categories). Some are my close friends, some I haven't talked to in years, some I've never really met, some I've already profiled on this site, some have yet to land their first real gig. But they all stood out as the best of the best of the talented crowds I've encountered over the years.

So without further ado, in alphabetical order, here are 18 names you WILL be hearing again:


Kaleb Alexander- 24- Toronto, ON

Christopher Behmke- 22- New York, NY

Michael David Blostein- 24- Toronto, ON

Nicanor Campos- 23- Manila, Philippines

Borah Coburn- 21- Basking Ridge, NJ

Sarah Gazdowicz- 24- Boston, MA

James Graham- 22- Washington, DC

Elizabeth Johnston- 22- Toronto, ON

Shruti Kothari- 22- Toronto, ON

Jonathon Lerose- 21- Toronto, ON

Marguerite McHale- 21- Boston, MA

Matthew McKay- 24- Toronto, ON

Emma Robson- 17- Toronto, ON

Kate Ryan- 19- Vancouver, BC

Shaina Silver Baird- 22- Toronto, ON

Chris Tsujiuchi- 23- Toronto, ON

Rebbekah Vega Romero- 24- New York, NY

Fraser Woodside- 20- Toronto, ON

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