Terra Bruce Productions
  • The Company
  • Productions
    • Upcoming Productions
    • Past Productions
  • Venues
    • The Majestic Theatre
    • The Regent Theatre
  • Recording Studio
  • Casting
  • Contact
  • News

BIG THINGS COMING

We are Terra Bruce Productions, dedicated to developing and producing original Musical Theatre productions in Canada and beyond. Born out of a love of music and culture, this company was formed to hire within the incredible talent pool of Canadian artists, writers and musicians and build a repertoire of high-calibre, world class shows.

Based in St. John’s and Toronto, we have huge plans on the horizon. Following the success of our last touring production No Change in The Weather, we now have multiple shows in development, a roster of resident artists and a full 2023 season with touring productions in St. John’s, Halifax and Toronto. We have purchased two historic theatres, The Majestic Theatre in downtown St. John’s and The Regent Theatre in Toronto, and plans are now underway to revive these incredible buildings.

Formed by Walter Schroeder and under the leadership of Bob Hallett, we intend to be a cultural hub of creativity on the Canadian Musical Theatre scene.

Leadership

Bob HallettChief Operating Officer

 

OUR COMPANY

The talent in our country is world-renowned. And with so many incredible musicians, actors, dancers, story-tellers, we knew we wanted to build a place where they could create magic together. Terra Bruce brings together a cultural force of artists, and a network of the most sought-after professionals to create and execute new, exciting, original, shows. We’re also renovating two incredible theatres – The Majestic in downtown St. John’s and The Regent in mid-town Toronto, where exciting things are coming!

Resident Artists

Melanie O’BrienResident Artist
Josh WardMusical Director
Steve MaloneyResident Artist
Chuck BucketResident Artist
Paul KinsmanResident Artist
Vicki HarnettResident Artist
Kelly-Ann EvansMusical Director
Julia DunneResident Artist
Philip GoodridgeResident Artist
Alex AbbottAssistant Musical Director

Production Company

Brendan AgnewProduction Manager
Courtney BrownArtistic Associate
Caroline NgarachuOffice Manager
Pat DempseySound Designer / Technical Director
Nefren Feizo-GasCompany Manager
Jaimie TaitStage Manager
Josh WardMusical Director
Mark WhelanDramaturge
Sara HodderWardrobe/Aesthetics Manager

Julia Dunne

Resident Artist

Julia Dunne is a Singer, Actor, Dancer and Choreographer from St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. She’s a graduate of Sheridan College with an Honours Bachelor’s Degree in Music Theatre Performance. She is a performer with Red Hot Productions and continues her dance training in Jazz Funk, Heels and Hiphop.

Julia has had the opportunity to play a few of her dream roles, including Belle in Beauty and the Beast for Rennie’s River Foundation, Mary Poppins in RuBarb Productions’ Mary Poppins, and Sophie in Mamma Mia! with Theatre St. John’s. When she’s not on stage, Julia runs her own Online Coaching business, Journey to Joy. Helping people create a healthy lifestyle they enjoy, through wellness practices to achieve more joy and abundance in their life!

Caroline Ngarachu

Office Manager

cngarachu@terrabruce.com

Steve Maloney

Resident Artist

Steve Maloney is a Musician and Actor hailing from St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. This contemporary crooner is known for his velvet-tinged baritone and expansive range. He has been touring eastern Canada with his own music for the past several years, with excursions south to Barbados (Bell/Flow Networks) and north to Dawson City (DCMF Songwriter in Residence 2017). Steve took home three 2017 MusicNL awards, including: Country Album of the Year, Alternative Album of the Year, and the Ron Hynes SOCAN Songwriter of the Year. In January of 2018, The Memory Game was awarded the Borealis Music Prize, a triple juried award for Album of the Year from the NL arts community. He was also nominated for ArtsNL’s 2018 Artist of the Year.

Steve appeared in TaDa Event’s production of Rent as Roger Davis, and continues to perform and tour with Artistic Fraud’s production Between Breaths. Maloney has also appeared on CTV’s Hudson & Rex, and can be seen in the upcoming run of the hit Terra Bruce production, No Change in the Weather, as Johnny Power.

Tamsyn Russell

Resident Artist

Tamsyn Russell plays button accordion and also enjoys singing and playing guitar. She has performed extensively with the family group Russells in the Corner, most notably in A Time in Pigeon Inlet, a dinner theatre show which ran for five summers in Bay Roberts, Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as the family’s Dance Up events. Other credits include her special guest performance at A Feast of Cohen in 2017, and many years performing in Young Folk at the Hall and on the Neil Murray Stage of the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival. Tamsyn is a regular performer each year at The Beaches Accordion Festival in Eastport and is invited annually as an opening act youth performer at the Lunchtime Concert Series at Harbourside Park in St. John’s. Tamsyn will be performing with her father Kelly Russell on the Main Stage of the 2019 Folk Festival in St. John’s. She also enjoys accompanying her father in his Tunes and Tales show in downtown St. John’s. Tamsyn is currently a student at Memorial University of Newfoundland, pursuing her keen interest in Political Science and Communications.

Kelly Russell

Resident Artist

A Professional Musician since 1975, Kelly has been a member of landmark groups Figgy Duff, The Wonderful Grand Band, The Plankerdown Band, Bristol’s Hope, The Irish Descendants, The Punters, and Kelly Russell & The Planks. Working closely for many years with legendary fiddlers Rufus Guinchard and Emile Benoit, learning, recording and documenting their music, Kelly has inherited genuine status as one of Newfoundland and Labrador’s leading traditional music promoters and performers. His record label, Pigeon Inlet Productions, released over 30 LPs and CDs from 1979 to 1997. Kelly performs his solo show Tunes & Tales of Pigeon Inlet weekly in summer at The Crow’s Nest in St. John’s, featuring Tales from Pigeon Inlet by his father, Ted Russell, and the unique fiddle music of Newfoundland and Labrador. He has been recognized with The Marius Barbeau Award for his significant contribution to Canadian folklore, designated as the Province’s first Tradition Bearer, awarded The Queens Diamond Jubilee Medal, and named to The Order of Canada.

Josh Ward

Musical Director

Josh Ward is a Performer. As part of a musical family, he was exposed from a young age and, feeling that he was probably not much good at anything else, eventually decided to pursue performance as a career. The early years found him playing electric bass in several terrible rock bands, and occasionally jamming traditional music with his family. He later went on to study double bass at Memorial University of Newfoundland, and joined as many ensembles as possible, including the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra. During this time he implemented a policy of never ever turning down a gig, and was fortunate to get tons of playing opportunities on stage and in studios, churches, barns, etc. He eventually settled into a life in a van with the band Hey Rosetta! and spent ten years continuing to not ever turn down a gig. Be it jazz, funk, soul, country, bluegrass, traditional, heavy metal, prog, electro, world, or rock. Whatever. Nowadays you can still find him on stage in studios, churches, barns, etc., still not ever turning down a gig and still with a smile on his face.

Chuck Bucket

Resident Artist

Sultan Dharamshi, AKA Chuck Bucket, is a Drummer/Percussionist, Teacher, Performer, and Music Director with over 20 years’ experience, dedicated to providing quality. He has been employed for studio session work and live touring performances across Canada, Europe, and the U.S. with many acts including Ria Mae (Sony Music recording artist), DRUM! (musical theatre production nominated for a Juno), Ouroboros, Paul Reddick (Juno Award winner), Garrett Mason (Juno Award winner), Steve Marriner (Monkey Junk), Jim Henman (April Wine), The Junkbeats, Bill Durst (Thundermug), Keith Hallett, Blue Rodeo, and Dolly Parton.

Philip Goodridge

Resident Artist

A graduate of York University’s Theatre program, Philip has had the privilege of working with several Newfoundland companies including Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland, TaDa! Events, Resource Centre For The Arts, Atlantic Light Theatre, Rising Tide Theatre, Untellable Movement Theatre and many others. He has written several plays and is a co-founder and head writer of Ladies Who Lunch Productions (ladieswholunchproductions.com) who produce the annual Hallowe’en series Three Tales of Terror: Old Time Radio Drama, original live radio plays presented on the theatrical stage. He is also one half of the MusicNL nominated duo The Duds with Melanie O’Brien (duds4life.com). You can stream and download their music everywhere.

Vicki Harnett

Resident Artist

Vicki Harnett is a singer, actor, and a proud and passionate supporter of the creation and development of new musical theatre work. She has trained with West End star Kerry Ellis, and also with Tony Award winner Lindsay Mendez, and Ryan Scott Oliver, taking part in their Actor Therapy program in New York City. No stranger to St. John’s audiences, her stage credits include No Change in the Weather (Terra Bruce Productions/Mirvish), Fun Home (Best Kind Productions), Beauty and the Beast (QVRRDF), Fear of Flight (Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland), Underwraps (Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland), and The Who’s Tommy (MUN Musical Theatre Society). When not onstage or in a rehearsal studio, she can usually be found in and amongst her stockpile of yarn, dreaming up ideas for her next crochet project!

Paul Kinsman

Resident Artist

Paul is a fifth-generation Newfoundlander and first-generation Canadian. He was classically trained from age five to sixteen but upon discovering Nicky Hopkins, Rick Wakeman, and Billy Preston as a teenager his musical style soon diverged from his early training. Paul has been contributing to the Newfoundland contemporary music scene for almost 40 years, composing and performing for TV and film, and playing piano, Hammond organ, synthesizers, and accordion on 103 commercially released albums at last count. Selected credits include Dooley Gardens television series, Co-Composer (Rink Rat), Man of a Thousand Songs movie, and performer (Picture Plant). Paul recorded and toured Canada and the U.S. with Alan Doyle, recorded and performed for many years with artists such as Cory Tetford, Sandy Morris, The Ennis Sisters, Barry Canning, and with arguably Newfoundland’s greatest songwriter, Ron Hynes, for the last 20+ years of Ron’s life. Paul is grateful for the opportunity to work with this elite team of professionals, and thanks his loving and supportive family, Phyllis, Thalia, and Wesley.

Melanie O’Brien

Resident Artist

Melanie O’Brien is a singer, actor and songwriter from St. John’s, Newfoundland. She is a Sheridan College Honours Graduate and scholarship recipient. Melanie has worked with many theatre companies at home and in Ontario such as Canada’s Wonderland, TaDa Productions, The Spirit of Newfoundland and more. Melanie released her debut album of original music in 2016 titled, Shining in the Blue. Melanie was subsequently nominated for MusicNL’s Female Artist of the Year and Rising Star. In 2018 Melanie released more music and toured all across Newfoundland and Atlantic Canada. Melanie operates her own vocal coaching studio and in 2017 was awarded MusicNL’s Educator of the year. She is also part of the stylized duo The Duds with Philip Goodridge. Their debut album and several recording projects are available on streaming platforms along with her solo works.

Mark Whelan

Dramaturge

Originally from Dublin and a graduate of the Irish College of Music, Mark is an Actor, Writer, Producer, and is a regular performer in film, television, and theatre. Past theatre credits include Stones in his Pockets (Irish Stage company), A Number (Cart/Horse), A Delicate Balance, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf (Alumnae), Of Mice and Men (Tribal), A Skull in Connemara, James Joyce’s The Dead, Da (TIP), Sunshine Express and Separate Beds (Globus), and Falling A Wake (Lost and Found), to name a few. TV credits include appearances in Republic of Doyle, Mayday, Murdoch Mysteries, The Divide, The Listener, Being Erica, and Breakout Kings among others. Film credits include Crossmaglen, Love and Savagery, Sunday at Tiffany’s, Knights of the South Bronx, Pompeii, and Adam Sandler’s Pixels.

Brendan Agnew

Production Manager

bagnew@terrabruce.com

Pat Dempsey

Technical Director

pdempsey@terrabruce.com

Jaimie Tait

Resident Stage Manager

jtait@terrabruce.com

Courtney Brown

Artistic Associate

cbrown@terrabruce.com

Kelly-Ann Evans

Musical Director

Kelly-Ann Evans is an award-winning performer, producer, director and music arts educator. Based in St. John’s, NL she is owner/operator of Rock City Studio where she teaches voice, piano, facilitates performance workshops and directs the women’s community choir, Earth, Wind & Choir. She is also the owner/artistic director of Red Dress Entertainment, which produces and tours pop/rock and soul reviews. Kelly-Ann is a faculty member of The Graham Academy in Corner Brook, NL teaching musical theatre and assisting in the choral program. She has a BMUS from Memorial University, studied Musical Theatre Performance at Sheridan College (James Award recipient) and is a multiple MusicNL award winner (Pop/Rock Artist of the Year, Female Artist of the Year) and ECMA nominee. Select theatre credits include the original Canadian company of Queen’s musical We Will Rock You (Mirvish), Cabaret (Stratford), The Trojan Women (Stratford), Into the Woods, Phantom of the Opera (Opera on the Avalon), Kiss of the Spider Woman (Talk is Free Theatre) Jesus Christ Superstar (Beothuck Street Players/Tada Events), Next to Normal (Best Kind Productions), The Little Mermaid, Grease (Theatre St John’s), Evita, Cats, Rock of Ages and Chicago (Tada Events). Television appearances include host of Out of the Fog (Rogers Television) and Republic of Doyle. Kelly-Ann is also a regular featured soloist with the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra and can be seen up in flames on vocals and keys with Newfoundland’s premier circus band SMOKESHOW.

Bob Hallett

Chief Operating Officer

A native and resident of St. John’s, in 1993 he and some friends started Great Big Sea, a legendary band that went on to sell over a million and a half records around the world over a 20-year career. Among other accomplishments, the band had twelve gold and multi-platinum albums, including several number one albums in Canada. A master musician steeped in Newfoundland traditional styles, Bob can play a dozen instruments, and wrote and sang many songs with the band. He has played thousands of concerts with Great Big Sea and other artists, and made countless appearances on television and radio. His company Kilbride Music, has managed bands, produced records, created radio specials, and promoted many live concerts. He works with the producers of the Tony & Olivier award-winning Broadway musical Come From Away as a Music Consultant and has also worked at the Stratford Festival as a Composer & Music Director. As an author he has written dozens of magazine articles, essays and several books, including the best-selling memoir Writing Out the Notes, and as an arts entrepreneur he is a frequent commentator on public affairs.

Nefren Feizo-Gas

Company Manager

Nefren Feizo-Gas is a Theatre Manager based out of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. Selected credits include Festival Coordinator of The St. John’s Short Play Festival, Festival Manager and Co-Founder of The Norstead Theatre Festival, Manager for The Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival, Production Manager and Co-Founder of The Serious Sketch Comedy Troupe, and performing as part of the 2009 Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival. Credits also include Production Assistant with Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland and Kingdom (White Rooster), Stage Manager with The Festival of New Dance, Feast of Cohen, Poison by Lot Vekemans (Director Charlie Tomlinson), Blue Box (Nightswimming Theatre), Jewel (C2C), Stones In His Pockets, Glen Garry Glen Ross (Rabbittown Theatre), Top Girls (White Rooster), Winter’s Tale (Shakespeare By The Sea), Assistant Stage Manager for …float… (Choral Canada), and The Pope and Princess Di (Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland).

Sara Hodder

Wardrobe/Aesthetics Manager

shodder@terrabruce.ca

Alex Abbott

Assistant Musical Director

Alex Abbott is a musical theatre performer, music director, arranger, and teacher from St. John’s, NL. He studied voice at Memorial University and Musical Theatre Performance at Sheridan College. A jack of all trades, Alex has worked as a dancer, actor, and vocalist across Canada. Select performance credits include La Cage Aux Folles (TaDa), The Wizard of Oz (Lower Ossington Theatre), Les Miserables (Atlantic Light), Annie (Peter MacDonald Productions), Pursuit (Lynn Panting Dance), The Bog of Cats (Xchange Theatre Works), No Man’s Land (Rising Tide), and Haydn’s 7 Last Words of Christ (Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra).

When he’s not on stage, Alex spends his time behind the scenes creating sheet music and vocal arrangements. He has Music Directed several shows including Into the Woods (Theatre St. John’s/Rising Tide), The Nobleman’s Wedding (Rising Tide), and assisted on No Change In The Weather (Mirvish/Terra Bruce). Alex can also be seen singing and playing keys for NL’s best 90’s throwback band, The Singles.

 

Land Acknowledgement

We respectfully acknowledge the land on which we gather as the ancestral homelands of the Beothuk [bee-oth-uck], whose culture has been lost forever and can never be recovered. We also acknowledge the island of Ktaqmkuk [uk-dah-hum-gook] (Newfoundland) as the unceded, traditional territory of the Beothuk and the Mi’kmaq [mee-gum-maq]. And we acknowledge Labrador as the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Innu [in-new] of Nitassinan [ne-tass-eh-nen], the Inuit [in-new-eet] of Nunatsiavut [nu-nat-see-ah-vut], and the Inuit of NunatuKavut [nu-nah-tuhk-ah- vut]. We recognize all First Peoples who were here before us, those who live with us now, and the seven generations to come. As First Peoples have done since time immemorial, we strive to be responsible stewards of the land and to respect the cultures, ceremonies, and traditions of all who call it home. As we open our hearts and minds to the past, we commit ourselves to working in a spirit of truth and reconciliation to make a better future for all.

Bob Hallett

Chief Operating Officer

A native and resident of St. John’s, in 1993 he and some friends started Great Big Sea, a legendary band that went on to sell over a million and a half records around the world over a 20-year career. Among other accomplishments, the band had twelve gold and multi-platinum albums, including several number one albums in Canada. A master musician steeped in Newfoundland traditional styles, Bob can play a dozen instruments, and wrote and sang many songs with the band. He has played thousands of concerts with Great Big Sea and other artists, and made countless appearances on television and radio. His company Kilbride Music, has managed bands, produced records, created radio specials, and promoted many live concerts. He works with the producers of the Tony & Olivier award-winning Broadway musical Come From Away as a Music Consultant and has also worked at the Stratford Festival as a Composer & Music Director. As an author he has written dozens of magazine articles, essays and several books, including the best-selling memoir Writing Out the Notes, and as an arts entrepreneur he is a frequent commentator on public affairs.

Ann Connors

Executive Director

Ann is an Independent Arts Consultant whose practice focuses on blue sky visioning, strategic planning, national and international touring, and representation of the work of female artists. She resides and works in Newfoundland and Labrador, the ancestral homelands of the Beothuk and home to the Mi’kmaq, Innu, Inuit, and Southern Inuit peoples.

Ann is the former Managing Director of One Yellow Rabbit, Curator of the High-Performance Rodeo, Calgary’s International Festival of the Arts, and is the former Managing Director of Canada’s Magnetic North Theatre Festival. Her career as a Administer, Producer, and Presenter in the performing arts in Canada spans over 20 years. She has produced over 30 new Canadian plays, has presented over 300, and has toured work throughout Canada and internationally.

Ann serves on the Board of Directors of the Association for Professional Theatres Newfoundland and Labrador and on the Board of Directors for Newfoundland’s Neighbourhood Dance/Festival of New Dance. She has served as a Board/Committee Member for many organizations across the country; on many national and international initiatives that serve the performing arts across the country, and on many peer assessment juries for the municipal, provincial, and federal levels. She is a passionate and outspoken advocate for the performing artists of Canada.

Let’s stay in touch. Shows, tickets, casting and more!

27 Mayor Ave., St. John’s, NL A1C 4N5 • 2nd Floor, 17 Prince Arthur Ave., Toronto, ON M5R 1B2

© 2021 TERRA BRUCE PRODUCTIONS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.