FireWorks Festival 2025
The Green House
by Krista Marushy
Directed by Valeria Venturo Esaine
Produced by Aleksandra Maslennikova
Mainstage Theatre/May7-11, 2025
Susanne wades into uncertain terrain when she unravels a family mystery involving a daring escape, a foreboding dream, a sole survivor, and a trial by fire. Facing off against her formidable mother and a fiercely loyal sibling, she forces herself to navigate the fantastical story of her childhood. As inexplicable events come into focus, missing pieces align themselves to reveal a narrative she somehow missed the first time around. A bold new play about looking back to see who you’ve become and reexamining life’s most defining moments.
FireWorks Festival 2025 is generously supported by
To hear Radio-Canada's interview with Robyn Shepherd and Aleksandra Maslennikova
The Playwright
KRISTA MARUSHY
Krista Marushy is an award-winning actor and playwright based in Calgary, AB. She holds an MFA in playwriting from Hollins University, and productions include Evergreen (Fire Exit Theatre, Burnt Thicket Theatre), Cultivation (Pacific Theatre), and The Curiosity Cabinet (Winner: Best of Fest, Calgary International Fringe Festival). Her radio plays A Dangerous View, The Xeno Station, and Middle Ground are available through Jupiter Theatre: Explore Series and Burnt Thicket. Secret Life Under the Stairs, a touring show for kids, has been produced across the United States and is published by Youthplays. Follow her creative adventures on Instagram @krista_marushy.
The Production Team
VALERIA VENTURO ESAINE/DIRECTOR
Valeria is a Peruvian theatre artist with a multidisciplinary background – who always comes back to directing, her one true love. She graduated from the Drama Specialist program at the University of Toronto in 2023, where she was an executive member of UTSC’s Drama Society and the Drama Coalition. Selected directing credits include Cagebirds (2019, Best Director Baby Oscar Award), A Terrible Beauty is Born (2020, Robert Gill Award for Best Direction), and A Number (2022, CDTPS Directors’ Showcase). She is honoured to be part of this festival and grateful to Alumnae for championing artists at all stages of their journey.
ALEKSANDRA MASLENNIKOVA/PRODUCER
This is Aleksandra’s first venture into producing, and she is eager to embrace this new challenge! She is particularly excited to help bring the captivating story of The Green House to life. With a deep passion for the performing arts and long-standing involvement in theatre, Aleksandra has been a dedicated Alumnae member for many years. Some of her recent credits are Shadows in The Nooks (Alumnae); Back Mirror in New Ideas (Alumnae); and No Exit (Aurora Theatre). By day, Aleksandra works at a dance company; you’ll often find her outdoors playing/battling with her furry demonoodle. IG: @imagerytales
ROBYN SHEPHERD/STAGE MANAGER
Loving all things backstage, Robyn Shepherd is devoted to bringing stage productions to life as a stage manager. She is delighted to work with the talented director, cast, and crew on The Green House. Her stage management work includes ATC’s 2024-25 Season: Other Desert Cities and Low Pay? Don’t Pay!. Other productions include Shadows in the Nooks: Spirited Women in Theatre and Just For Tonight, NIF 2024.
MARNIE BRUNTON/ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER
Marnie Brunton is a multi-ethnic Canadian actor, singer, writer, poet, and visual artist raised in Port Stanley, Ontario, and educated at the University of Toronto and the Ontario College ofArt. Marnie arrived in theatre recently, after a successful career in film and television in ads for Roots Canada and recurring roles in award-winning commercials for IKEA – as the doting mom. Look for her in Guillermo del Toro’s The Strain, the Coppola-produced film Dream Scenario, and Apple TV’s JANE, playing Lauren. You can often find Marnie painting in her studio in preparation for her solo exhibit at the Leaside, Toronto, Library this July or at Alumnae Theatre in various behind-the-scenes adventures.
The Cast
ALEXANDRA ROMANESCU/AVA GREEN
Alexandra Romanescu is thrilled to be inhabiting the presence of Ava Green in this production of The Green House as her debut to the Alumnae Theatre. Alexandra is a Toronto-based stage and screen actor who has performed in over fifteen short films and theatrical productions in the past few years. She received her Honours Bachelor of Arts in Theatre & Performance Studies as well as Sociocultural Anthropology from the University of Toronto (UTSC) and has trained in several Toronto studios for screen acting. Alexandra is excited to continue bringing complex characters to life on stage and on screen!
JESSICA ROSE/SUSU ELOISE
Jessica Rose is an actor, performer, and theatre creator based in Toronto and Montreal. She has been performing in projects since the age of 15, specializing in devised and physical theatre. She just recently graduated from the National Theatre School of Canada in acting. She is interested in continuing in devised work, as well as acting in a variety of genres, including classical, contemporary, musical theatre, and film/tv. She plans on training to become an ASL interpreter to translate live shows for hearing impaired audience members. Openness, playing and diving into the unknown, gives her a great sense of joy in her work. Selected theatre credits include Trojan Kids, Macbeth, Antigonick, As You Like It (NTS), Art Ambulance (Clay and Paper Theatre), The Stranger 2.0 (DLT), and Queen Marie (Alumnae Theatre).
NATALIE STEPHENSON/KIT CORINNE, SUSANNE
Hailing from the merry old land of Oz, Natalie has made Toronto her home since January 2022. She is a graduate of QUT (Theatre Studies) and The Actors Class (London UK), and her recent credits include Shadows in the Nooks (Alumnae), Terror by Gaslight (Bloor Village), and Age of Arousal (Alumnae). Natalie is delighted to be a part of the FireWorks Festival again.
KAY WONG/JAMESON SEYMOUR
Kay Wong (he/him) is a Chinese-Canadian actor, producer, singer, and writer from Scarborough, Ontario. A graduate of George Brown Theatre School’s acting conservatory program, he has produced shows across Ontario and Saskatchewan and is excited to make his return to performance with Alumnae Theatre in 2025. Kay is passionate about making more equitable spaces for artists and creating new productions that break barriers faced in his home community of Scarborough-Agincourt and beyond. When he’s not in the theatre, you can find Kay going through the greatest hits of the 2000s at karaoke or theorycrafting his latest D&D character.
DAVID PLANCHE/STRUTHERS
David is excited to make his return to the Alumnae Theatre for his second time after previously acting in the FireWorks Festival production of Romeo Ciolfi’s Animal. After stepping into the behind-the-scenes world of film, David has also returned to his first love with performances in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The Rainmaker, and, most recently, Neil Simon’s Rumors.
