Toronto Programme

Toronto Fringe Festival

July 6-16, 2023 Native Earth’s Aki Studio

Do You Think You're Better Than Me?

CREATED BY Zoe Marin & Becky Ablack

Premiering at the 35th Toronto Fringe Festival

SPONSORED BY

CREATIVE TEAM

CAST

ROSE COLOURED THEATRE

Becky Ablack Creator & Performer

Becky Ablack Creator & Performer

Zoe Marin Creator, Performer & Projection Designer

David Čivčić Performer

Romi Shraiter Producer

Rayhan Jabbar Performer

Hayley Crowder Stage Manager

Zoe Marin Creator & Performer

Noah Webster Production Manager

Stephanie Perri Performer

Rehaan Lachporia Sound Designer Matteo Da Costa Costume Designer Rebecca Fadoju Set & Prop Designer Simran Kapoor Lighting Designer Qadira Nazarali Head Marketer Trinity Lloyd Assistant Marketer & Publicity Designer

Do YOU think you’re BETTER than me? Come watch our sketch comedy revue about friendship, being in your 20s, pop culture, identity politics, and the “industry”... and find out FOR YOURSELF! (Warning: We have songs, projections, AND the cast is really attractive so keep that in mind).

Runtime: 60 minutes MORE ABOUT THE SHOW AND COMPANY Small Friend Tall Friend was created by Zoe Marin and Rebecca Ablack, two women of Argentine and Guyanese backgrounds respectively. This show prioritizes stories from its people of colour, women, and queer members. @smallfriend.tallfriend

Special thanks to Suitcase in Point and the Ontario Arts Council for their funding through the OAC Recommender Grants for Theatre Creators throughout our creation/workshopping process.

Small Friend Tall Friend would like to acknowledge this sacred land on which we gather and operate. Native Earth Performing Arts and Aki Studio are situated on the traditional territory of many nations including the Anishinaabe, the Chippewa, the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, and the Wendat.

The territory is mutually covered by the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, an agreement between the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, the Anishnaabe, and other allied nations to peaceably share and care for the resources around the Great Lakes.

Today, the meeting place of Toronto is still the home to many Indigenous peoples from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to work in the community, on this territory,

CAST Becky Ablack – Creator & Performer Becky Ablack (she/her) is an actor, writer, comedian, and recent graduate from York University’s Theatre and Creative Writing programs. She has a particular interest in devised theatre, and aims to approach storytelling through collaboration. Becky is grateful and proud to be the tall friend in Small Friend Tall Friend.

Zoe Marin – Creator & Performer Zoe Marin (she/her) is an Argentine-American theatre artist (director, writer, performer) and comedian (sketch, stand-up). She holds a BFA in Theatre from York University, and was a recent participant of the Paprika Festival’s Director’s Lab. Zoe loves: horror, comedy, music, politics, and pop culture. So you can look forward to seeing SOME of that at FRINGE! Finally, Zoe is so excited to be the smallest friend in “Small Friend Tall Friend” (not in a pick-me way, just in a physical comedy way).

David Čivčić – Performer David Čivčić (he/him) (b. 2000 in Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia) is a Mississauga-based actor, writer and performance artist. His work explores the transient nature of life's experiences and accentuates the undercurrents of love surrounding us. In 2022, David graduated from York University's School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design, Department of Theatre.

Rayhan Jabbar – Performer Rayhan (he/him) is an actor and comedian from Scarborough. He has appeared on TV shows such as Workin Moms, True Dating Stories, The Detail and Condor as well as films such as Blackberry and Doin It. Rayhan was the director of The Bob Comedy Revue - Canada’s longest running collegiate sketch comedy group and has also written/performed sketch comedy for Toronto Sketch Fest, Austin Sketch Fest and Skidmore College National ComFest. Selected theatre credits include The Crack of Doom (Toronto Fringe), One Small Step (Toronto Fringe), Letters From Cuba (VCDS) and The Baltimore Waltz (UC Follies).

Stephanie Perri – Performer Stephanie Perri (she/her) is so excited and she can’t hide it. She is also a recent graduate from Mechanical Engineering at the University of Toronto. Stephanie has had a passion and love for the arts for as long as she can remember. Stephanie has been involved in musical theatre since she could walk and attended Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts where she competed nationally with the school’s improv team. This is Stephanie’s first Toronto Fringe show, she is looking forward to entertaining audiences and being on stage with some of the funniest people she knows.

CREATIVE Romi Shraiter – Producer Romi Shraiter (she/her) is a Toronto based actor, producer and recent graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada’s acting program. In 2019 she cofounded Rose Coloured Theatre, through which she has had the opportunity to collaborate with the Femme Fatale Film Festival, Rookies with Friends Collective, Paprika and Fringe. Romi is so excited to be working with Small Friend Tall Friend and hopes you enjoy the show!

Hayley Crowder – Stage Manager Hayley Crowder (she/they) is a Toronto-based artist, originally from Hamilton, Ontario. Hayley holds a BA in Art History from York University. They spent much of their time during their university career exploring other forms of art and creation. In doing so, she discovered a love for theatre and performance art. This is Hayley’s third Fringe, but is her first SM gig with the Festival! Hayley has been stage managing for four years. Recent credits include; Thistlepatch (Alumnae Theatre), Fruits of Labour (York University’s Devised Theatre Festival), WET (Hamilton Fringe Festival). Hayley is thrilled to be working with the Small Friend Tall Friend crew and hopes you all have a good belly laugh.

Noah Webster – Production Manager Noah (he/him) is a man of many hats. He’s always been someone who wants to work so many different jobs.

Getting stuck doing the same thing repeatedly is one of his biggest nightmares, so working in theater gives him the opportunity to do something new with every job. Being part of this production has given him the chance to gain a couple new hats. Noah wants to thank everyone at Small Friend Tall Friend for allowing him to be a part of this amazing production!

Rehaan Lachporia – Sound Designer Rehaan (Rey) Lachporia (he/him) is a recent graduate from the Devised Theatre program at York University.

He has worked on a number of shows within York such as: Project 37 from the 2022 Devised Theatre Festival (actor, sound designer), Auto-nomy from the 2020 Devised Theatre Festival (actor, choreographer), and PostPracki from the 2019 Playground Theatre Festival (actor). While away from theater, Rehaan is involved within student advocacy work on York’s campus working as the current Vice-President Campus Life for the York Federation of Students. Rehaan is excited to be a part of the SFTF team and can’t wait for y’all to witness some genuine knee-slappers.

Matteo Da Costa – Costume Designer Matteo Da Costa (any pronouns) is a costume designer, performer/actor, and model who has recently completed 4 years in York University’s BFA program. Their most recent credit is with Alumnae Theatre's Fireworks Festival, costume designing for the show Thistlepatch. They also both costume designed and performed in Project 37 for the Devised Theatre Festival. They’re always interested in the art of clothing and fashion with emphasis on queer expression. Matteo is very excited to be a tall friend working with Small Friend Tall Friend.

CREATIVE Rebecca Fadoju – Set & Prop Designer Rebecca Fadoju (she/her) is a Toronto-based filmmaker and actor. She recently graduated with a BFA in Film Production with Honours from York University and has had the opportunity to work on various productions since. Though she primarily works in the film and TV industry she is so excited to go from set to stage with our Small Friend Tall Friend show.

Simran Kapoor – Lighting Designer Simran Kapoor (she/her) is an Artist from Kolkata, India based in Toronto. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to work on Do You Think You're Better Than Me? with the entire team. She has previously worked as the Assistant Lighting Designer for Wedding Band & Grand Magic at the Stratford Festival, Ross Petty Productions Peter’s Final Flight, and Anandam Dance Theatre’s Contemporaneity. She has also worked as the Lighting Designer for Veenix Productions show Thirumagal, and YorkU shows The Late Wedding, REVAMPED, f1nalgurlz_, Art of Time, Music Media Concert and Fruits of Labour. Instagram: @superstarsimran

Qadira Nazarali – Head Marketer Qadira Nazarali (she/her) is a graduate of the York University Devised Theatre program with a minor in Business. During her time at York, she has been involved with multiple York University theatre festivals, including V-Day @ York (performer), PlayGround festival's Our Mothers’ and Fathers’ (co-creator/co-director) as well as He Follows (performer). She was also part of Mother’s Daughter as the makeup designer and her latest contribution was for Fruits of Labour as an actress, projection designer and co-creator. Aside from her time at York she has been involved in multiple music video shoots as talent and working at the FLATO Markham Theatre in 3 different positions.

Trinity Lloyd – Assistant Marketer & Publicity Designer Trinity Lloyd (she/they) is an actor and creator based in Toronto. This is Trinity’s fifth theatre production where they have assisted in media, marketing, and graphic design. Some of Trinity's acting credits include X n da Spirit (Theatre Passé Muraille), Love Labour's Lost (Panoply Collective), and Everybody (Theatre @ York).

Trinity's production credits also include Mother's Daughter (director), Kinda You Kinda Me (co-director), and REVAMPED (assistant director). There’s nothing she loves more than making silly little edits on their silly little iPad for her small and tall friends.

Access Guide https://d1vimco8ur52ud.cloudfront.net/07-03-2023-170634-8059 (full guide)

Content Warnings and Advisories Please be advised that Do You Think You’re Better Than Me? includes mature language, mentions of sexual content, mention of suicide, loud noises, an explosion sound effect, a prop knife, and a prop gun with gun shot sound effects. This show includes themes of racism and sexism.

If you have any questions or would like more clarification regarding our content warning, please email us at sftftheatre@gmail.com or rosecolouredtheatre@gmail.com

Get In Touch Romi Shraiter Producer Email: rosecolouredtheatre@gmail.com If you want to tell Fringe about your experience or have feedback that you would like to share, you can call, write, or send an email to the Fringe.

Our address is: 100 Broadview Avenue, Suite 322 Toronto, ON Our email address is: access@fringetoronto.com Our phone number is: (416) 966-1062 Thank you for coming to the 2023 Toronto Fringe Festival!