I’m Karl Urban’s Mom! Kinda…

Blink and you’ll miss me but I can finally talk about being Karl Urbans Mom in The Boys!

It was a crazy experience during another lockdown for COVID19 and I was a bundle of nerves because of it. Karl introduced himself with his beautiful accent so it sounded like “Hi I’m Kyle…” and I looked at him confused. I think he thought I didn’t know who he was, and so he tried for chit chat between takes and I stumbled through pleasantries – he was absolutely charismatic and kind, saying that the show was a huge success because of people like me. I laughed but he corrected me that it’s true. I asked how Toronto was treating him, he said it was a great place, but the snow and winters he could do without.

I now joke that I have always begged the Universe to be on the same show as Jensen Ackles – and the Universe listened… technically! He wasn’t even on set when I was 😭 I had my own trailer complete with fireplace, and because of COVID I had a PA bring me food and drinks all day – it was like a day-in-the-life-of a movie star. So fancy!

But being on set was a real joy and everyone was delightful, even with COVID being a threat to the production. Being directed and told “you’re good, I wish I could give you more!” was a nice ego boost after years of struggling with my actor side. Though the final edit was just me sitting in the chair, know that I did a few auditions with and without an English accent, did a few set-ups and takes, all for that 2 seconds of air time. Acting can be a strange and amazing world, huh?

Watching him play backgammon between takes, not daring to ask for a game, I wish I was less scared of dying from COOVID and was a bit more chatty. Karl if you ever read this, you were a real gentleman and so warm and friendly, thank you (I tried really hard not to fangirl on you!)

….and I’m back!

….and I’m back!

A few years ago I was having to navigate a major job loss, and then becoming a part-time professor for Centennial College. I needed a break from the grind of the audition room and to refocus on what was newly on my horizon. It’s been a few years, but I never really left the performing arts – as I have been working steadily as a digital storyteller and marketing manager for several arts organizations and artists around Ontario, currently volunteering at Ghostlight.ca which is all about keeping the light on for actors across Canada through the pandemic.

Enter my friend JM Frey who wanted to brush up on her voice acting and find an agent to pursue a career as a voice over artist. I dabbled in it a bit and offered support and what little insight I had when she landed her agent! Congrats to my friend, right? But because it is a strange and COVID-19 time: she was asked if she knew any actors she could bubble with to do proper self-tapes and guess what? THAT’S ME.

So one thing led to another, and I virtually met Jennifer from Star Talent Inc and we hit it off and lo and behold I’M BACK!

What does this mean? You might see more posts about the audition grind, and hopefully more about voice over work from me too. Keep your fingers crossed, and press play on my updated demo reel:

Julius Caesar is onstage (and online!)

I have been working behind-the-scenes (well behind-the-screen) for Groundling Theatre and Crow’s Theatre’s adaptation of Julius Caesar as their social media specialist. I have been having a blast managing their Facebook and Twitter, where so many audience members and critics are able to interact with me and tell me how much they LOVE this production.

Social share created by Adrianna and shared on Groundling Theatre’s social media

I still haven’t seen it outside of a rehearsal I was lucky enough to attend, so just you wait until I start raving about it too – I’m seeing it this week!

Want to see it? Catch it quick as it closes February 2nd and it’s selling out all the time: crowstheatre.com/caesar and if you need accessible tickets check out: https://www.crowstheatre.com/1920promo#JuliusCaesar

Cranium Cookie on SortaTV

🧠🍪HUGE NEWS!🍪🧠

The award winning “Cranium Cookie” edu-tastic webshow I produced and created and hosted with Danielle Thorn and Charlie Caparros, is NOW ON SortaTV (a division of Shaftesbury films!)

Subscribe your kid! This channel is great for STEM and explorative kiddies! Here’s the award winning episode with yours truly hosting:

Poster Reveal for my Western

Western poster with a red head in an orange duster coat and pistol raised to the viewer, the ghost of a man in all black in a black cowboy hat. in the distance a hauntingly dark saloon sits vacant on the hills of Canada in 1842

I am excited to have my haunted Western, Scarred Leather, at the first ever Whiskey Ginger Collective New Works Festival at Red Sandcastle Theatre March 19-24th (plug plug plug)

But more excited to challenge myself in not just writing a period piece, not just collaborating with talented actors Jason Martorino, Phil Rickaby, and Caroline Concordia, but to up my photoshop skills to make the visuals for it! That includes my poster:

Western poster with a red head in an orange duster coat and pistol raised to the viewer, the ghost of a man in all black in a black cowboy hat. in the distance a hauntingly dark saloon sits vacant on the hills of Canada in 1842

Thanks to Ryan Fisher I got some great cowgirl shots over the past year, and then Jason Martorino channeled his inner Man in the Black in an impromptu photoshoot with me; thus this homage to the early 90’s Western craze (which The Quick and the Dead is among my favourites! I mean do I even have to mention Back to the Future 3 as my favourite movie of ever?!) was made. I’m pretty pleased with how it turned out.

We are doing a staged reading as it is still in development, but we will be doing light rehearsals until the festival, and of course it will be costumed because why do a Western in plain clothes?! You can see behind the scenes and updates on Whiskey Ginger Collective’s social media:

https://www.instagram.com/whiskeygingercollective/
https://twitter.com/WhiskeyGingerC4
https://www.facebook.com/whiskeygingercollective/

Hope to see you there! Now, back to editing the script….

Puppets, puppets, and more puppets!

Fraggle puppet with orange hair sits beside a Fraggle Rock vinyl record and record player

I don’t think I have shared my non-secret with you… I LOVE puppets! Maybe it’s because I grew up in the golden age of puppetry with Fraggle Rock, Muppets, Mr Dressup, Mrs Rogers Neighbourhood, Sesame Street, and local favourite Today’s Special and Romper Room.

Over the years I have created with puppets as a way to get around production hurdles, mainly no one at my museums wanted to be on camera – yet I was tasked in creating content. Video has been the king of content for a while now, so I always tried to think outside the box when trying to make something on a shoestring budget of a few hours, an iphone, and a museum at my disposal.

Enter Little Red: a campaign for summer camp at Gibson House Museum. She was “mini-me” and a camp counselor helping people get excited for camps at the museum by having little adventures in the museum that were topical to the weekly theme of the camp:

And so Harry the Haggis episodes were born to explore the tradition of Hogmanay at Gibson House! Soon my museum workers were seeing the fun of content creation and I expanded my cast from fuzzy creatures and finger puppets.

It’s been a while since I created with puppets but just recently I had a resurgence of love for them with my new Fraggle, named Pebbles, commissioned by The Puppet Forge and designed by Jay P Fosgitt. I put it up on my personal page and its been viewed 700 times and people were so lovely with their comments that I was taken aback at my return to puppeting! It was a little rusty – and filming and puppeting all by oneself is HARD so it’s not the polished piece I would like it to be. But sometimes you just have to puppet dance, so that’s what I did:

I was back in love with creating with puppets! And so I brought my Eldritch Theatre monster puppet created by Eric Woolfe to one of my museums to do a silly idea…

It has about 700 views on Facebook, 11 shares, and such wonderful comments like these:

It sounds like Philbert Gilbert Dilbert needs to go on a museum adventure around our city! I’m currently researching what grants if any would support a web-series about a puppet interning at museums in the name of supernatural and history. Got any leads? I’m happy to hear them!

Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day

One of my fondest memories and best acting gigs I ever got was playing Anne Bonny in the Toronto Pirate Festival between 2006-2008. I got to swashbuckle, carry an axe, wear fun costumes, and pretend my red hair meant I was Irish. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before smart phones and before social media this video was taken of myself as the irate Anne Bonny and the now Artistic Director of Dauntless City Theatre Scott Emerson Moyle. 

 

Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day! Yarr I be missin the golden age of my piracy days 😉

Red Anna… a black and white photography project with Rainyfresh Photography

My talented friend Ryan Fisher of Rainyfresh Photography let me check a bucket list item off my list: being a historic cowgirl. I have always loved Calamity Jane (from Deadwood was an amazing interpretation!) and Back to the Future 3 – heck I live my life in the times of the Gold Rush, but I’m stuck in Toronto 1850s not the Klondike! My costume in this photo-shoot was inspired by Calamity’s classic look from her 1880’s portrait, too. I have been training to be her with stage combat, whip work, gun work, and of course horseback riding. 

My friend Phil from Stageworthy Podcast wrote this when he saw the Rainyfresh edit of the photos: 

“Red Anna. Some’ll tell you that her hair wasn’t always red. That it turned blood red from the entrails of the men she killed. Others say that it’s red because it was touched by the flames of hell. Still others say that its the dark mark upon her, placed there for some sin too dark to mention. What the truth is, none can say. But she’s earned each and every tale that’s told about her, and more.”

So here is Calamity Jane’s 1880 portrait I used to inspire my costume that I put together myself:

Calamity Jane circa 1880 Adrianna Prosser as cowgirl Red Anna cowgirl circa 1880 Adrianna Prosser as Red Anna cowgirl circa 1880And here is Robin Weigert as Calamity Jane on HBO’s  Deadwood TV series (which I adore and renewed my faith in great parts for actresses – what a gift and what a stellar performance, you have to see this show!)robin weigert portrays calamity jane on deadwood

 

Here are some of my favourites, shot at the historic Montgomery’s Inn:

 

Find Ryan at:

https://www.facebook.com/RainyfreshPhotography/

https://www.rainyfreshphotography.com/ 

https://www.instagram.com/rainyfresh/ 

 

 

Spell Tutor: On Set

green screen on set for the Spell Tutor with boom mic

Adrianna as Dottie Green screen on set of Spell Tutor
Adrianna as “Dottie” in Season 4 of The Spell Tutor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was on set for The Spell Tutor as the creator Herman Wang asked if I would want to play a Victorian witch, knowing full well that 1. I am a huge geek 2. I am a Harry Potterhead 3. I am a Victorian for most of my time at the museums. So naturally I said yes! I played Dorthy Kelpie, a Victorian woman trapped in another dimension.

This is their final season and it looks like I will be in episode 4 of it. I had my scenes with Parissia played by Alexandra Bayer. I don’t want to spoil the plot but I will definitely post the final result when it airs as I haven’t had much fun with green-screen and this was a treat to do. 

Thanks for having me on the show! And congrats on 4 seasons!

History is Dramatic

One of the many hats I wear is shaped like a bonnet – well, at least that’s my usual hat when I’m at the museums. I am a storyteller and sometimes the story I have to tell is that of Toronto’s history at some of the historic house museums. You can learn about my endeavors on my Historical Interpreter page and see more about my historical dramas built for site specifically on my Playwright page

The Toronto History Museums and I have a long standing history (pun intended) of creating experiences for patrons to explore history in a different/immersive way. I have created several theatre-in-situ/site specific stories based on artifacts, letters, diaries, and photographs. Here’s my little piece in the museum magazine about it:
history is dramatic magazine page article front cover of toronto historic sites museum magazine Adrianna in Toronto History Museum Magazine

So fun! I can’t wait to see what our next creation will be 🙂

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