Design: Hardware Store to Theatre Space

Winter, 2008

Costume and Set Design
Extremities, Surface Underground Theatre

Toronto, ON


The hardware store during construction.


The final set, a quaint country cottage.

The Project: Peter Pasyk, a fellow Ryerson Alumni, called me up one day and presented this very bold idea he'd been working on for his theatre company, Surface Underground. A friend of his had bought a 60 year-old hardware store and was planning to turn it into an art gallery. However, before the major renovation, he had convinced her to turn it into a theatre and put on a production. This was where I came in. My mission, if I had the guts to accept it, was to convert this unconventional space into a theatre, with a functioning set and seating for 60 guests. I intern responded: "Sounds like a great challenge to me!"

The Play: Extremities by William Mastrosimone, focuses around three young women that live together in a quaint country house, converted from a old barn. While home alone, Marjorie is attacked by Raul, a rapist who'd been stalking her for years, but manages to escape and lock him in the fireplace. Her roommates come home and discover a distraught Marjorie and Raul bound in the fireplace. Through the course of the play Raul manipulates the three women to turn against each other, in order to escape his prison.

The Problems and The Plan: Due to the narrowness of the space, I decided to place the audience on either side of the stage. The play has an intimacy and realism that can be incredibly uncomfortable for the audience. For this reason I wanted the audience to be as close to the space and the actors as possible. As if they are there in the living room, seeing what's happening, but unable to act or help the victims. The fireplace, Raul's prison, is an instrumental piece to the play. The positioning of the audience on either side meant that the fireplace had to be as 3D as possible for the actor to be seen inside. By adding the metal grates and positioning the bike in a vertical manor, the actor was able to move more freely in his cell and be seen through the bars at multiple angles. AND when Raul banged on his metal cage, screaming away, it was pretty scary!

Twelfth Night - Costume Design

Summer, 2008
Resurgence Theatre Company, Newmarket ON


Director: Lee Wilson

The Design: The play has no specific time period. The imaginary island of Ilyria doesn't exist in a place that we recognize. The style of the show has a Victorian influence mixed with modern clothing elements. I wanted to capture the confined feeling of the Victorian period without being too strict to the era. As characters evolve they acquire more elements of colour and loosen restrictive costume pieces.

There is a strong contrast between light and dark, male and female.




Christine Horne (The Stone Angel), as Viola/Cesario. The play opens with a violent shipwreck and Viola is dragged from the water by the Captain onto the stage. I wanted Viola to first appear in white as she arrives on the island, in contrast with all the other character in Ilyria who are dressed in black and dark colours.


Sir Toby, the drunk, and Maria plotting against Malvolio.



Malvolio, the puritan. My interpretation of the famous yellow-garters.


Feste, the clown, dressed as a 60's beat poet. The most modern character in the entire play, speaking often directly to the audience.

*All the corsets constructed by me. The white corset and dress on Viola and pink bodice on Maria.

The Secret Garden - Costume Design

Summer, 2008
Resurgence Theatre Company, Newmarket ON
Director: Ashlie Cocoran


The Cast


Mary, young girl dressed in black, after her parents die and leave her an orphan. Mrs. Medlock comes to collect her at the train station to take her to live with her hunchback uncle, Mr. Craven, in England.


The women playing Mary was actually 24-years old. I had to do everything I could to make her look like a child without making her look like an adult dressing up like a kid. It needed to be believable.


Mary, Dickon and Colin in the secret garden.


The Finale, Colin has grown well and learns to walk with the help of Mary and Dickon. Mr. Craven discovers the children in the garden, overcoming his grief and finally reconciling with his son.


Ben, the gardener, introduced Mary to the Robin who lives in the garden.

The Hostage - Costume Design

Spring 2006

The Hostage, by Brendan Behan
Ryerson University, Theatre School
Director: Eda Holmes

Late 50's. Whore house in Dublin, Ireland.

The Cast


Meg, the mistress of the whore house and Mrs. Gilchrist, the religious fanatic, she never goes anywhere without her Jesus cross.


The soldier, held captive in the whore house by the IRA. Colette keeps him company dressed in a dingy powder green baby-doll nightgown.

Victorian Study - Costume Design

Spring 2006
Ryerson University, Theatre School


I designed the costumes for select scenes from four different plays, all written in the Victorian era. The plays were all preformed in one evening. The project allowed me to design specific costumes appropriate for the period and have them constructed by a team of stitchers. I was completely in my element, the Victorian period is one my favorite times in fashion.


Ticket-of-Leave Man
1860's dresses designed by me. Construction supervised by me.


Patience by Gilbert and Sullivan.


A Women of No Importance by Oscar Wilde
1890's evening dresses designed by moi. Construction of dresses supervised by me.


Lady of Lyons by Bulwer‐Lytton

Misc. Costume Construction, Corsetry

All of the following projects were designed, cut and constructed by me.

Gypsy costume

Cleopatra's Crown

My first corset

18th Century jacket

Scenic Painting

Here are a few examples of my scenic painting abilities. The examples in my entire painting portfolio are quite extensive, more will be coming soon.

Halloween Haunt, Canada's Wonderland

In 2007 I spent about 2 months painting huge Halloween themed mazes. I got to paint so many different and crazy things. In that time I learned so much and really developed my scenic painting skills. I especially learned how to work fast but not comprimise my work. Here's just a taste.


A 3D room painted into a vortex. A fellow painter and I did this entire room by EYE, standing at one end we intructed the other person where the lines should be marked out. Made us a bit dizzy in the end. At the end of the room is the exit covered with a painted curtain. I think we did a pretty good job.


Room that held caged circus freaks. Walls are meant to look aged and distressed, excrement splashed on the walls. Poster of '2-Headed Baby' painted by me.


Jack-in-the-box. Box first distressed, then painted with regular paint, distressed again, and finally painted with glow paint.


Cellar in old Mansion. I had about 2 hour to transform 20 flats from plain black into something that looked like a dank cellar. I developed a really fast and effective technique to accomplish it.


Room painted all in shades of black and white. It is suppose to have a Tim Burton feel to it. The room contains about 10 more flats all in alternating shades of grey painted with the picture frame at wacky angles. Really gives that fun-house feel.

Othello - Art Direction

A Taste Of Shakespeare

Summer, 2006

Othello by William Shakespeare for Eugenia Educational Foundation. Eugenia Foundation adapts Shakespeare's plays into one hour films which are then sold to schools internationally for educational purposes.

Director: Dug Rotstein
Production Designer: Cameron Porteous

I was the art director, set decorator, set wardobe, scenic painter and set props. I also created some items worn by the characters. Military medallions where made by me. As well as white collars worn by council men.



Othello, wearing a cross medallion I made.









Desdemona's bedchamber and her death bed.

Back in '93 - Art Direction

Spring, 2007

Polenta Productions (Bravo!Fact Short Film)

Director : Mark Montefiore
Production Designer: Cameron Porteous

Back in '93 is about a 10 year old boy's coming of age tale as a closet Montreal Canadiens’ fan living in Leafs-Loving Southern Ontario during the 1993 Stanley Cup Playoffs.


I can even costume an elephant.


The boy's dream comes true, the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup. This shot is from the dream sequence that occurs at the end of the film. There was a marching band, angels and even an real elephant. All that we dresses in red, white and blue. The Art Department also had the task of decorating the houses on the block in the Canadien's colours. For another scene we had to decorate the block in white and blue and Maple Leaf memorabilia.


The family home, obsessed Leaf fans. A lot of blue...


The boy's closet shrine to the Canadiens. I had to delve into the mind of a ten-year-old and create the drawings, find the magazine clippings and collect the memorabilia. I even made the aluminum foil Stanley Cup.


The boy's friends in their Leaf den watching the Playoff game.