Our Team - Nightwood Theatre

ANDREA DONALDSON

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

ANDREA DONALDSON

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Born and raised in Toronto, Andrea Donaldson has directed productions for theatres across the country including Soulpepper, Factory Theatre, Tarragon Theatre, Theatre Passe Muraille, Theatre Direct, Great Canadian Theatre Company, Festival Players in Prince Edward County, NTS, Summerworks, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, Shakespeare in the Ruff, Espace René-Provost, Toronto Fringe, Red Sky Performance, and Nightwood Theatre. For two decades, Donaldson has played a pivotal role in fostering new works for the stage, both in her role as Tarragon’s Associate Artistic Director and as the program Director for Nightwood Theatre’s Write From The Hip program – a unit for exceptional emerging playwrights, in which she developed Rose Napoli’s Lo (or Dear Mr. Wells), Grace by Jane Doe, and Every Day She Rose by Andrea Scott and Nick Green.

Andrea was invited into The Stratford Festival’s Michael Langham Workshop in Classical Direction, and was honoured with Stratford’s Jean Gascon Award for Direction. She won the Best Director Award at the International Youth Drama Month in Shenzhen, China for Mistatim, which has played to over 750,000 children internationally. Andrea has been nominated twice each for the Pauline McGibbon Award, the John Hirsch Directing Award and the Gina Wilkinson Award, as well as for several Dora Awards. Andrea received a Dora Award for Outstanding Performance & Outstanding Production for performing in the Urge Collective collaboration And By the Way, Miss (Theatre Direct).

[Image description: an illustration of a white woman in her early 40s, with red asymmetrical hair, smiling with blue eyes, wearing a blue dress with a pink background.

NAZ AFSAHI

MANAGING DIRECTOR

NAZ AFSAHI

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Naz Afsahi (she/they) is a settler 1.5 generation West Asian-Canadian immigrant arts manager with 14 years of experience supporting artistic creation and operations. Appointed Nightwood’s Managing Director in 2022 after six seasons with the company, Naz has served on multiple juries (Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts, Metcalf Foundation), and currently sits on the Toronto Arts Council’s Theatre Committee. Her sectoral leadership includes serving on the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres’ (PACT) Finance Committee (last three years), the 2023 PACT | ADC negotiation team, and on the PACT | ADC Anti-Oppression Working Group (last two years); in Fall 2024 she completed her second multi-year term as the Chair of Paprika Festival’s Board of Directors (seven years served on the Board). Naz is also a core member for RISING TIDES, a sectoral wide initiative to fill a gap in supporting and training emerging/developing IBPOC administrators and managers. For over fifteen years, Naz has been a volunteer writer/editor/Board member with the trailblazing feminist periodical Shameless Magazine. A vocal advocate for mental health awareness, Naz holds a Masters of Arts in Media Studies from the University of Western Ontario, and an Honours B.A. (double major) from Queen’s University.

[Image description: A light brown skinned woman of West Asian descent in her late-30s, wearing a cream top against a grey background. Dark hair is parted to one side. She has brown eyes and is smiling with her mouth closed, looking at the camera.]

JADE SILMAN

ARTISTIC ASSOCIATE & HEAD OF COMMUNICATIONS

JADE SILMAN

ARTISTIC ASSOCIATE & HEAD OF COMMUNICATIONS

Jade (she/her) is an emerging theatre creator, director, and dramaturg who foregrounds collaboration, equity, and passion in all her work. Since graduating from York University's Theatre BFA, she has continued to learn through the Nightwood Innovators Program, Theatre Gargantua’s Emerging Artists Roundtable, and Toronto Fringe Festival’s TENT producers training program. In addition to working as a freelance dramaturg and creator, Jade has been working in arts administration for companies including Theatre Gargantua, Crow’s Theatre, Dusk Dances, Arts Commons and CBC/Zone 3.

Email:jade@nightwoodtheatre.net

ASHLEY ELLIOTT

ADMINISTRATOR - OPERATIONS & PARTNERSHIPS

ASHLEY ELLIOTT

ADMINISTRATOR - OPERATIONS & PARTNERSHIPS

Ashley Elliott (she/her) is a versatile theatre professional with a rich background in arts administration, stage management, marketing, directing, writing, and performing. Originally from Windsor, ON - Ashley has made her mark in the theatre industry in Orlando, FL, and Boston, MA before settling comfortably in Toronto. A graduate of York University with a BA in Theatre & Communication Studies, Ashley co-founded Theatre Insomnia, an indie-theatre company in Toronto. In 2018, she showcased her talents as a playwright and director with her debut play, All of Me (Toronto Fringe Festival), which delved into the profound impact of living with anxiety and depression. Her extensive background in stage management includes five Lawyer Show musicals, three Toronto Fringe Festivals, two Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, and a memorable stint at Canada’s Wonderland for Cirque Canadien. Ashley has always held space in her heart for Nightwood Theatre, a connection that dates back to 2017 when she started as an intern with the company, then transitioned to stage management for the annual Lawyer Show fundraiser. Ashley continues to contribute to the industry with her passion, dedication, and diverse skill set.

During her downtime, she cherishes cuddle moments with her three cats (Ruby, Espresso & Millie) and her adorable dog (October).

[Image description: a photo of a white woman with mid-length blue/purple hair, wearing a pink top and standing outdoors against a wood panel background]

Email:ashley@nightwoodtheatre.net

ISA CHIU

DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS ASSOCIATE

ISA CHIU

DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS ASSOCIATE

Isa Chiu (she/her) is a HongKongese actor, multi-disciplinary artist, creator, writer and social media marketing specialist with experience performing in theatre, film and television. Having just moved to Toronto to pursue an acting career, she was Marketing Coordinator for SummerWorks 2024 and has experience with the Paprika Theatre Festival and The Theatre Centre. She graduated CUHK with a BA in English (Creative Writing Stream) and is skilled in content creation, passionate about telling woman stories and promoting social change. She believes art is where individuality and community meet, the impact provoking progress. She can also be found as a consultant for 852 Tangram. Isa enjoys connecting with people and communities and implementing her beliefs on a daily basis, centering her career with these driving forces. She is excited to be joining Nightwood’s amazing team!

Email:isa@nightwoodtheatre.net

Program Directors & Consultants

INTISAR AWISSE

PROGRAM DIRECTOR: WRITE FROM THE HIP

INTISAR AWISSE

PROGRAM DIRECTOR: WRITE FROM THE HIP

Intisar Awisse is a theatre-maker, playwright, dramaturg, and creative producer. She has been creating theatre for the last ten years with a focus on new plays, devised ensemble work, adaptations, and dance-based performance. Her work includes projects for theatre companies such as Dancemakers, Shaw Festival, Stratford Festival (Meighen Forum), Greenlight Arts, Why Not Theatre, and the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival.

She was an inaugural ThisGen Dramaturgy Fellow with Why Not Theatre and is currently ThisGen’s Artistic Producer where she supports theatre artists from across Canada. She often leads dramaturgy and creation workshops and has been a guest lecturer and facilitator for various institutions on topics such as Contemporary Dramaturgy and Performance Practice, Script Analysis, Canadian Theatre History, and Black British Theatre.

Outside of performance, she regularly works as an editor and educator with experience in both book publishing and arts education.

JESSICA WATKIN

ACCESSIBILITY CONSULTANT (INTERNAL)

JESSICA WATKIN

ACCESSIBILITY CONSULTANT (INTERNAL)

Jessica Watkin is a PhD at the University of Toronto’s Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies with research focusing on Disabled artists in Canada and their creation processes, dramaturgies, and support systems. She is a Blind and Disabled scholar, interdisciplinary artist, dramaturg, consultant, educator, and reader. She has been published in the Canadian Theatre Review, The Drama Review, and Theatre Research in Canada. Jessica is working to co-create definitions of what Accessibility Design and Disability Dramaturgy mean in a Canadian context.