#405 – Tahirih Vejdani
In this episode of Stageworthy, host Phil Rickaby speaks with Toronto-based performer, voice educator, and multidisciplinary artist Tahirih Vejdani. Born in Saint John, NB, and raised in Regina, Tahirih shares the inspiring and non-traditional journey that led her from classical music training in the Prairies to becoming a sought-after artist and educator in Canada’s theatre scene.
They discuss her early connection to choirs, her work as a singer and actor at Stratford Festival, and the founding of Ground Floor Team, an organization devoted to care-based rehearsal practices and conflict transformation in theatre. Tahirih also reflects on returning to school for vocal pedagogy and the evolving nature of her touring career.
This episode explores:
- How classical music shaped Tahirih’s performance journey
- Transitioning from musician to actor in the world of Shakespeare
- The founding and mission of Ground Floor Team and the ARCS methodology
- Touring across Canada with Catalyst Theatre’s The Invisible: Agents of Ungentlemanly Warfare
- Her return to school to complete a Master’s in Vocal Pedagogy
- Insights on fostering healthier rehearsal spaces in Canadian theatre
Guest:
🎭 Tahirih Vejdani
Tahirih Vejdani (she/her) is a Toronto-based performer, educator and multidisciplinary artist of Persian and South Indian heritage. With a career spanning over 15 years, she has worked extensively in theatre, music, and television, bringing a deep commitment to storytelling, collaboration, and equity in the arts.
As an actor and singer, Tahirih has performed on stages across Canada and internationally, including the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, Citadel Theatre, Grand Theatre, Globe Theatre, Factory Theatre, Cleveland Playhouse Square and Timbre 4. She’s also toured with acclaimed vocal ensembles such as The Nathaniel Dett Chorale and The Elmer Iseler Singers. Her on-screen work includes appearances in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and Kim’s Convenience.
In addition to her performance career, Tahirih is a passionate voice educator and choral conductor. She has taught voice at Sheridan College’s Bachelor of Musical Theatre program and worked with choirs such as Echo Women’s Choir, Univox, and the Community Music Schools of Toronto. She holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Regina and is currently completing a Masters in Vocal Pedagogy from The University of Essex and The Voice Study Centre.
Tahirih is also a co-founder of Ground Floor Team, an organization dedicated to improving working conditions for artists through mentorship, education, and facilitation. Her artistic practice is grounded in empathy, curiosity, and a drive to build supportive, care-centered spaces both on and off stage.
Connect with Tahirih:
🌐 Website: https://www.tahirihvejdani.com
📸 Instagram: @tahirihvejdani
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Transcript
Transcript is auto generated and may contain minor errors
Phil Rickaby: Welcome to Stageworthy. I’m your host, Phil Rickaby If you’re watching on YouTube, make sure that you hit the subscribe button and like the video. And if you want to be notified about when I release uh, future videos, make sure that you click on the bell icon. That’ll make sure that every time I release an episode, you will get a notification. If you’re listening to the audio only version, make sure that you are subscribed or following the podcast on your favourite app. That way every time a new episode is released, it’ll download immediately to your device. Whether you’re listening on Spotify or Apple Podcasts or some other app, as long as you’re following along, whenever an episode comes out, you will get that episode downloaded directly to your device. I want to talk for a second about my Patreon. The only reason I’m able to do this show is because of the backers on Patreon. Uh, without them I wouldn’t be doing this. It’s really affordable to join the Patreon. Uh, it’s just $7 Canadian a month And as a backer, as a patron, uh, you will not only get early access, you will getrt a window into how this podcast is made. I will share as much as I can about what’s coming up in the future. And also uh, as I developed the conversations about some of the issues I want to discuss, uh, you’ll be participating in that. You’ll be able to participate in that uh, and help me steer the direction of the podcast. The more people who join the Patreon, the more I’ll be able to do with stage worthy in the future. Right now we’re just at a subsistence level. We’re keeping the podcast just alive. But if I was to get uh, an influx, then there would be more that we could do with the podcast, um, maybe more episodes, maybe live episodes, things like that. So if you are enjoying the show, if you value the show, uh, go to patreon.com stageworthy and become a backer. My guest this week is Tahirih Vejdani. Tahirih is, uh, a Toronto based performer, educator and multidisciplinary artist. Born and raised in the Prairies and now in Toronto, Tahore has performed across Canada and the world on some of the biggest stages in Canada, the US and beyond. Tahirih is a, uh, voice educator and choral director. She’s taught at Sheridan College as well as Community Music Schools of Toronto. So I’m really excited to talk to Tahirih today, uh, and Find out more about her as well as uh, uh, some of the work that she’s done. So now here’s my conversation with Tahirih Vejdani
Tahirih I’m curious about you. You’ve sort of like reached out after I sort of put out a call, uh, people on the west coast and the Prairies and things like that. You said how about somebody who grew up in Regina and moved to Toronto? And I said absolutely. So please, um, can you tell me a little bit about your journey? What is it that took you from Regina to Toronto?
Tahirih Vejdani: That’s a really good question. And I probably have like the rose coloured glasses version now like 15, 16 years later. Um, but you know, I did not take the traditional path into I would say performing arts and theatre. I grew up in Regina. I did everything under the sun that was available to me for performing arts. I did like an ah, undergrad in music. And so after I finished school, after I finished my undergrad and in like classical voice and music history, um, I knew there wasn’t much for opportunities and career in Regina. Um, and so just I had to take the leap and so I left Regina, I left Saskatchewan and I had visited Toronto once before and it had left a mark on me. And so it was the first place in my mind you that or Vancouver. And I chose Toronto. And it was such a big um, leap at the time to choose to move here. And at first I was like, yeah, I’m coming for just a month or two. And then I stayed and then I got until the summer and I was this close to moving back home and giving up on being in Toronto. And I would say that choirs were my lifeline when I first came and it was kind of the anchor that I uh, found myself in, um, because I had a lot of wonderful community members from Regina who had made their way to Toronto and like connected me with so many wonderful people in that world. And I stayed because I got into a professional choir. I found out that I got in and I was like great. I guess that’s what I’m doing this fall.
Phil Rickaby: Uh, you mentioned that uh, uh, Toronto, you’d been to Toronto before and it had made an impact on you. What, what was that first journey to Toronto and how did it make an impact on you?
Tahirih Vejdani: Um, yeah, so I think maybe the summer prior or a couple years prior I had come out for a conference and that conference is mostly at like a ah, hotel in like Mississauga. But I remember like the day after, the two days after that conference, uh, being in the City with friends in Toronto and kind of on this like whirlwind adventure and like walking down Bloor street and like Indian Annex and then going to the Eaton Centre for the first time and I just, it left such an exciting impression and like the idea of possibility and anything’s possible here and I think that’s what drew me to Toronto more than say maybe going to Vancouver.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, yeah. Um, I was. I mean I’ve only been to Vancouver once. I probably should go again at some point. Um, when I went to Vancouver I had a friend who was there who was like, you’re going to. I want to move here immediately. And it didn’t happen and I didn’t want toa admit to them that that was the case. But it didn’t, like, it didn’t hit me in the way that Vancouver does for some people. Um, Toronto’s always been my place. Like anytime I go away, when I come back it’s like ah, ah, this is the place. Right. Um, you mentioned that uh, you didn’t have a traditional journey to the theatre. Um, stud you studied music. So what was it that like brought you to the theatre? What was that?
Tahirih Vejdani: Um, so, you know, when I was growing up there weren’t many programmes. I would say maybe there were and maybe I just, I didn’t pursue them at the time. Um, it was, you know, easier and more affordable to go to school in Regina and the only programme that was there was a class ofoy programme. Um, there were Sheridan and Randolph and CCP at the time that I uh, wasn’t able to uh, m make those things or those options work out. And even though I always wanted to do musical theatre, I studied classically and uh, so I came and the world of classical music was kind of my first entry point. Like I always did theatre. I did um, do it with class as like a big name, um, kind of like company in Regina that a lot of performers that work out here or Broadway or a TV have gone through that company. Um, folks like Tatiana Mislani or like Paul Nolan, like really big amazing performers. Um, and so I connected to music. That was like the thing I loved most. I didn’t train professionally as an actor but I was always acting along with everything that I was doing. Um, and I was taking classes and doing all these things on the side and so I started auditioning. I got the agent when I came to Toronto and I started auditioning for shows and the first show I actually booked, uh, my first professional contract ever was doing uh, Honk, the musical Tale of The Ugly Duckling, uh, at the Globe Theatre in Regina. So, like, I had to leave Regjata to get hired in Regjana, like the classic tale. And, uh, that production was directed by Jillian Kylie and it was like an actor musician show. And so I also played the oboe. And so I was the quintessential sound of a duck. And, uh, so it was my first kind of big professional Equity contract. Um, and it was exciting, it was thrilling. Was also at the Haiti doing acting musician shows. So no one really knew what it was. And so we were all like, oh no, what did we get ourselves into? Uh, but it worked out well in the end. Um, and so, like, the shows, I would do them like every so often. But, like, choir and music were still kind of my bread and butter back then. And so I was singing. I remember at one point I was like, singing in like four or five choirs and maybe only half of them paid at that time. Like, had a church gig, was singing with the Nathaniel M. Deck corral, was singing in choir with friends for fun. Like, it just like when you think community, likeir choirs really are that, um, and so a lot of these people that I made as friends who were music directors and other musicians were also working the theatre world. And, um, you know, with my agent, I was auditioning for all these things. And, uh, early on in my career, like, I booked, you know, being in the ensemble at Stratford and, uh, But I do believe that my training classically was one of the reasons why I got on that door. Um, I like to joke that I get hired at Stratford every time they do a Gilbert and Sullivan show. Uh, because the first time I was there was in Pirates of Penzance in 2012. And the next time I was there was an HMS Pinafore in 2017. Um, but that year that I did parts, uh, of Penzance was very special because I, um, also did Elektra, which was a Sophocles play. The, uh, entire directorial team was from Greece and the score was an original seven part ac caplla women’s course, which is like, you think, like the capacity and capabilities needed to blend, sight, read new music and have tuning ports around the stage to find the pitch and sing with people in an immersive setting on the Tom Patterson stage. Uh, I truly think that my training classically and in music really did support the work that I had to do. Ah, at that time, um, and with that community and those connections, um, I was doing shows. Like, I ventured into actually doing Shakespeare after I was at Stafford. Like, I remember Taking classes, um, and training with people like Ian Watson and, ah, after the fact. I then started auditioning for Shakespeare, not, not in Str staffford, but like in Toronto. And I started to become like, the musician in the Stratford shows, like the Bard in the Bard shows. Um, and one of the first Shakespeare shows that I did, I was in. Oh, wow. Um, it was Much Ado About Nothing at the Tarragon and it was directed by Richard Gross and it was like a Bollywood inspired version of the show. Um, but I was kind of like the musician and singer in that show. And that led to another show where I was kind of. It was more musical, but I actually was like, acting in headlines and as a cool mashup. Um, and so it was this interesting progression from being the musician or the singer, the strong support in that area to like, grow into my own as an actor through working on shows, to people taking chances, through training and studying. Um, and so, like, the career that I have now, I wish I had 10 years ago. Right. Isn’t that always the case? Um, but I also love that one version of my life was working as a sangr and choral conductor for, like, a good 10 years.
Phil Rickaby: When you are, um, brought into a show as essentially like, the musician among the actors, do you see something different than if you’re brought in as an actor? What is the sort of inside, outside view of the theatrical process when you are, uh, brought, uh, in as, say, the musician?
Tahirih Vejdani: It’s interesting because I probably should clarify. In all of those instances, I was still an actor within the sense of the show. Like, I wasn’t only there to play an instrument. I was still in the ensemble, still had lines and other bits like that. Um, but I think especially maybe like that Shakespeare one. I felt like I was a fly on the wall, learning a lot, um, from professionals and people who have done this for such a long time or worked with Shakespeare and worked with that text. Um, I took it as a learning opportunity. I, um, knew that I had something to offer as well too. Um, but I really enjoyed, uh, learning and being a part of the team. I never really felt like I was separate from what was going on, if that makes sense.
Phil Rickaby: It makes perfect sense. It makes perfect sense. Did, did you. What was your opinion of, or how did you feel about Shakespeare before you came into that?
Tahirih Vejdani: Oh, terrified. Like, completely terrified. Like, I don’t think. I’m pretty sure. I’d maybe tried Shakespeare monologues in the past, but I would never go out for, like, a Shakespeare audition. Uh, and, um, I think you Know, I got a little bit of training when I was at Stratford just by taking some of the classes that they kind of offering or coaching that they offer. And, um. And then, so that first show at Tarragon, I think gave me a little bit of courage. And then I remember it was either that summer or a year later, I can’t remember, but I did, um, like, production of Taming of the trw. Ah. With Driftford Theatre. And that was like the next step up. It was like, oh, I’m now playing the sister. And, uh, I have a lot of Shakespeare text to get to play with and work with. And it’s set to cool, cool. Acapeplla music. Right. And so again, I was like, yes, this is my, like bread and butter. I love anything acapeellla. And so acapeellla meets theer. Yes. Sadep Acapela meets theeder. And Shakespeare, that’s a little harder. But, like, I’m gonna make it work. Um, maybe it wasn’t my best work at the time. Like, maybe I was probably still learning that. I’m sure I was. Um, but then there was a turning point where I feel like, um. Because you do it, like, if you’re just scared to do it, you’re nevern to get better at something. Um, but there was a turning point where I remember doing, um. It must have been the summer of 2018. I did a production of Portius Julius Caesar, um, and was adapted by Caitlylin Reioran. And, uh, it was at Shakespeare in the Rough. And I remember I was serving with the, uh, director, uh, Eva Bery. We worked at a Persian restaurant together. And you’re like, just chatting about the industry and all that stuff. And then I was. I don’t know if I submitted or she asked me to submit. I don’t remember how it happened. Um, but I auditioned for just a straight Shakespeare show that didn’t have a musical element or that I wasn’t being brought in as like the musician in the show or the singer in the show. And that felt like, ah, breaking through a ceiling or breaking through something to say, yes, I’m not just a singer, um, or the musician, but I am here as an actor. And so there are bumps and curves and all those other things in that process. But now I’m not shy or scared to audition for or go out for Shakespeare show like I maybe was 10 years ago.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, there’s an interesting, uh, thing, uh, that I’ve seen happen with Shakespeare. I’ve met a few younger actors who, um, I talk to them about Shakespeare and they were of the opinion that we don’t even need to do Shakespeare anymore. It has no place because it’s so old and outdated now. A bunch of them went on to further education and then they were like, oh, now I understand. But I kind of think that that attitude comes from the way that we often teach Shakespeare in school, like in high school and that sort of thing where we are immediately putting people, uh, in a situation where how can they possibly like Shakespeare when we’re treating it like literature and it’s meant to be a play that you watch and. Yeah, and I think that sometimes people come out of that and they have no connection with it because it’s been taught to them so badly. Um, so it’s always really interesting to sort of look at like that relationship that a lot of people have with Shakespeare as um, somebody who came to Shakespeare. I was kind of like afraid of it, um, before that. Aside from the fear, what was like, do you remember like studying Shakespeare in school and how you reacted to it?
Tahirih Vejdani: Yeah, I definitely remember it being in English class in high school and I don’t remember like if I loved it or hated it. Like I do remember reading sonnets. Um, I don’t remember if we really worked on Shakespeare in acting class or in the drama class. Um, but ah, like having now spoken the text versus just reading text. Right. I think you understand it so much, um, better when it’s embodied more than it is just a thing on a piece of paper. And I think when it’s just taught in an English class or literature class, there is a bit of a disconnect that’s kind of lost. Um, but it doesn’t mean that there isn’t value in that. But I think there are better ways to teach it.
Phil Rickaby: I 100% agree that there are better ways to teach it. I really, I’ve felt for a while that, because when I was in school and I think they still do this, we spent a lot of time in class as non actors reading text and nobody really explaining what do all these words mean. Like just, hey, we’re just going to read this thing. Everybody take turns paragraph by paragraph or whatever. And once we get through it, we get a test and then eventually we go see a play. We go, if we’re lucky, we see that play. Um, and I’ve been firmly of the belief that the first thing that you should do is see it and then study it. Because other now once you’ve seen it like acted the way it’s supposed to be and Brought to life. Um, it’s more interesting to go into it and understand what it means after having seen it.
Tahirih Vejdani: Yeah, I, um. This reminds me of having done some like, ah, Shakespeare education performances. I remember. I think I did a thing with Shakespeare in Action a little while ago where we would do this, specifically the show, like we. Excerpts of Roman and Juliet, maybe something else it’s been so long. Um, but it was. They would bring the students in and it was interactive and we’d talk with them about it. Um, and they had those resources. So I think, I think maybe there’s a little bit more like connection to it, um, and a little bit more play with the students than when I experienced it growing up. Or at least I hope that’s the case now.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, yeah. I remember doing a couple of student performances um, years ago and as soon as the lights went down the pennies started to rain down on this stage. Um, which is, I think that comes from the contempt that the kids have, um, because at that point they’re being forced to see something that now they hate. So they take it out on the poor actors. Um, and it can be a miserable experience for everybody. Um, I wanna ask you about Ground Floor Team, um, which is uh, an organisation that you’re a co founder of. So tell me a little bit about that organisation.
Tahirih Vejdani: Yeah, um, so, okay. Ground Floor Team, uh, is an organisation that I co founded with other actors in the industry, uh, Richard Lamb, Dave Ball, Alexis Gordon and Amilia Saron. And it kind of bore in the pandemic. Um, we were all part of this programme that Talkus Free Theatre had kind of uh, had designed and created called um, big. It was like a basic income guarantee programme, you know, maybe the first of its kind in a way. And it was all about like innovation and ideas and allowing you to kind of pitch um, many different things. And um, we all kind of, pardon me, gravitated, um, maybe cut that out, um, I had a little burp there pard to me. So we all kind of um, gravitated to each other and ah, we were pondering the idea of like, how do we make theatre better? Like how do we improve the environments that we’re in? How do we navigate like the tiny like bumps and bruises that we experience in a rehearsal process? Like we know what to do when we have like a major injury. We know what to do, um, like if you need an ambulance. But like, where’s the like first aid kit for the little things that might happen through like either disagreements or misunderstandings. And um, we had so much time in the world at that time to like kind of imagine how we wanted to collaborate on, how we wanted to create and how we wanted these spaces to be shaped. And so we spend a lot of time reading lots of podcasts. And one of the things that we kind of designed or landed on are like a methodology that became fundamental to the work that we do is like truly looking at the values that are created and brought in, um, to understand where everyone’s coming from. And so a programme that we uh, created and designed is called arcs, which uh, stands for Authentic Radically Curious Support. And those words kind of became pillars to how we see the work that we do and how wenna like centre care within the spaces that we work in. Um, and it’s gone through many iterations. Um, like we sometimes jo that word, like version 2.0 or 3.0 of what arcs is. Um, but so we were kind of like just a little collective through Takus Theatre at that time and we were running arcs. So we’d go into like the first version of this programme, we would go into theatres. They bring us in as kind of facilitators to kind of run like a three hour session that worked through, um, understanding, uh, things like conflict, understanding needs understanding, um, like designing and developing like a room agreement for the room and like how to maintain that in the space. Um, and also like how to have brave conversations if like something happened or a mistake or miscommunication happened. Like how to have those brave conversations to understand like the storytelling that’s going on. Like when you think about conflict, when you think about something that happens. Um, we are so good at coming up with the story as why but maybe we’re less good is at practising the curiosity to under truly understand what happened. Um, and so we try to break that down and empower people to feel brave to have those conversations. And there are re hard conversations to have, trust me. Um, and so that’s like one version where we went in facilitating just ARCS for theatre companies. Um, but while we founded that at first we were also doing things, um, like two way mentorship programme where we connected theatre practitioners across Canada virtually to work with each other, um, or to learn like in a m multi generational two way exchange of knowledge. Um, so we kind of piloted a lot of programmes back in that time. And then uh, last year we kind of needed to like grow our wings and establish ourselves as our own company. And so uh, we took the leap and uh, we kind of became the company that is now known as Ground fourteenoo and ah it’ it’s very exciting. We’ve just completed our first year not being under the umbrella of Talkus Free Theatre. Um and both uh, scary and exciting and um, we’re moving more. So the way in which the company has uh, evolved um is that we are moving more into a lot of education based facilitation and conflict mediation and conflict transformation work. Um, Richard Lam, one of our co founders is um, is certified as a compllicx ah mediator and so he Speher has a lot of those conversations uh and mediations. Um but we’ve also done um like education in institutional spaces like Sheridan. Um uh we’ve also worked with m. A first day rehearsal process at Randolph. We’ve done mediation with other um theatre and packed theatre companies and with pact. Um so we’ve expanded outside of the nebulous of like a rehearsal space and actually have gone into like um administrative spaces as well to or places that have ecologies that um exist prior to the actors even uh entering into it.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, it’s interesting because I think every actor has been in a rehearsal space that is wonderful and nurturing and like uh, you can’t wait to go every day. Um, and also separately being in a ah rehearsal space that is toxic. That is one that you hate going to. Um, and you almost never, you never know which one you’re going to get when you start a rehearsal process. Um and a while ago I was having a conversation with some folks. We were talking about like first off what wouldn’t it be helpful to have a discussion about what we’re hoping to get out of the rehearsal process? But also a couple of people were like neurodivergent and so what they need to get out of the rehearsal is different and what they need in rehearsal is different from what the neurotypical people need out of a rehearsal. And there needs to be some kind of agreement around that so that everybody can work together. Um, and it can be very difficult to navigate especially if somebody at the top is stuck in an old style toxic m. Hierarchical uh attitude. Um, are these things that you’ve seen that you’ve had conversations about and how do you see navigating those rehearsal spaces?
Tahirih Vejdani: Totally. Like it’s interesting because we’ve been brought into spaces that have already been eager to do the work that we’re doing or, or already have the openness to that kind of work. Um and not necessarily so much into the rooms that might actually benefit from the work that we’re doing if that makes sense. Um What I really love about, um, and everyone has different processes. You can’t dictate what a process should look like. Um, and directors have different practises as to how they set up a room and how they start the process. But I truly think that the best processes, or ones where directors learn how to, uh, allow people to be able to advocate, uh, for their needs in this space. And often one of the clear ways that you can do that is by doing some form of the community agreement. Um, and when we’ve done AHRQs and we’ve facilitated it, one of the key things that we often try to do is allow people to say, I need blank in order to collaborate or be my best collaborative self. And you are going into maybe the minutiae of things. But even just, uh, verbalising it in the space already can make a change in the space because it’s there, it’s actively there subconsciously. You might not even even name it every day, but people are aware and people can then practise care in order to do things that are within their means of doing something. Um, but if we don’t, then we start to operate on, um, assumptions and then that’s when we get miscommunication and then that’s when conflict can occur. And, like, conflict inherently isn’t a bad thing. Right. When you think of, like, the stages of conflict that exist, the first stage of conflict is difference, but difference is generative. Like, difference can create ideas and possibilities to move forward and you don’t always have to see eye to eye on things in order to accomplish a task at hand. Um, otherwise, if that was. If we can only ever, like, fully agree on something in order to create, I don’t think we would have theatre. You know what I mean?
Phil Rickaby: I do. I know ex. I know exactly what you mean.
Tahirih Vejdani: Um, I. It does start at the top. Like, there has to be a willingness to change and recognise that the way that we were doing things, um, isn’t how we should keep doing things, and that there is a need from leaders across the board, um, to take that responsibility and accountability.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, absolutely. Um, when I was in theatre school, we were taught in the. I think this is one of those things that’s sort of fading away. But I think there’s a lot of, uh, directors who were sort of taught on this way and they direct in this way that Europeanash, American way of like, um, yes, we’re gonna be miserable, but I’m gonna get the best work out of you. And that kind of thing, which, uh, is a Terrible way to work. It doesn’t. It doesn’t. It doesn’t. It’s very difficult to make art when people are afraid or when people are miserable. And, uh, fortunately, I think it’s largely going away, but I’ve still seen elements of it over the years. Um, and I imagine that, um, the ground floor team can’t do the work if the director is at all reluctant to participate.
Tahirih Vejdani: Yeah, ah. Often in our earlies stages, it was very key for us to actually first connect with the director and make sure that they understand the process that we’re bringing to them and that they are on board and that they also can help lead and guide it to a certain degree. Um, because if they’re not on board, then you will experience that resistance and the people in the space will also feel like what they’re saying is not being heard or respected. And so it has to be. It has to start from there. The willingness has to come from there. And I’ve been in such great spaces with directors who, who are willing and are capable and I think there’s more of that now than there isn’t, if that makes sense.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. It’s one of those, uh. It’s a long, hard road to get to that point as people are reluctant to unlearn things they are comfortable in. Um, you’ve travelled a lot across Canada and internationally in your work. Um, when you were starting out and thinking about, like finally thinking about going into theatre, um, did you imagine that you would be moving around quite as much as you have?
Tahirih Vejdani: No, uh, I, I don’t know what I expected, to be honest. Um, I am very lucky that I’ve had the ability to travel as much as I have been. Um, a lot of that started kind of like touring with the choirs back in the day. Like I would tour Canada. We tour all throughout the us. I’ve gone up to northern Canada a few times. Um, and so I think the bug to want to tour in the experience of touring kind of that laid the foundation for it and it’s very different. Like touring with AC Chire is very different than being on like on an Equity contract tourg. Um, you don’t have to share a room with like a choiremate or anything like that. Like you have like, that felt like high school days in some ways, even though it’s a professional choir. But like, uh, there are defite a lot more fall wayves travelling on like maybe an Equity tour. Um, but, uh. And even like just working regionally, like not on tours necessarily, but I’VE worked uh, like a lot regionally and more so recently than when I first fig started out. I would say like stratord was a unique case because um, I think after that I was then actually working more in toront. Like I think I did more in Toronto pre pandemic and then post pandemic. I’ve been working a lot more outside of Toronto. Um, and what I’ve done some interesting things. So right before the pandemic, um, I was touring a production of Jungle Book with uh, Kdunes, um, by Rick Miller and Craig Francis. And um, it was very interesting because we had a lot of like on and off kind of contract dates and uh, to this day like I still really love having travelled to Cleveland, Ohio. Like I expected nothing from the trip. Like I expected nothing from the city. I didn’t know what, what it would be like and I just absolutely loved it. Like it was so quaint. Um, and the Cleveland uh, Playhouse Square was just absolutely beautiful and like touring this like uh, mega um, design Heavy Jungle Book for like students and kids all over the US um was very exciting. Um, but actually we were in that show at ypt when the Pandemic hit. I think we lost like the last week of our run. Um, so that was like, that was very diffic. So I hadn’t done anything like that before because we’d go and tour, then we have a week off and we’do another week and then we have a week off. And so it was very in and out. So I actually could balance doing other work. Like I was still I think uh, working with the community choirs that I worked with. I think I was maybe still serving at my like serving gig back then. Um, in most like post pandemic though, um, I’ve been touring a lot with one company, um, and they’re based out of Edmonton. They’re called Catalyst Theaterre. Um, they’re very well known for um, a show that they’ve done called Nevermore, um, about the life of Edgar Allean Poe. Um, but this show, uh, the Invisibility Agents of Gen, uh, Warfare now done three times with them and um, sometimes they’re like sit down tours or sometimes they’re actually tours. Um, and so the very first time I did the show with them, uh, we rehearsed in Edmonton. Uh, we recorded a cast album. So this is an interesting order of events. We rehearsed in Edmonton, we recorded a cast album and we did like a concert presentation with the show in Edmonton. Then we flew to Vancouver and then we did a Run of the show at the Cult in Vancouver, but then we also filmed the show at the Cult in Vancouver and then we went to Vernon, bc, But we actually lost that last week of, of tour because Covid. Um, and so it was unlike anything I’ve ever done before. Like, I’ve never done anything like that with any other theatre company. Um, the cast album is out now, the film is out now. Um, but since then we then went and took that show to the Grand Theatre. Um, now that was my second time at the Grand. I, um, was there previously doing. What was it, ah, Grand Ghosts. So the show about like, Ambrose Small. Um, and so we did it at the grand and that was like mostly the same script. Like I would say, ah, you hope that there’s no revisions, but there always is. What I’ve learned is that there will always be modifications and revisions, but it’s always about just like serving the show and making it that much better. Um, it’s exciting. It really is exciting. Um, doing a Catalyst show is not for the faint of heart. Like, it is very meticulous work. Um, it’s actually like, interestingly enough, it’s almost like doing Shakespeare because rather than, ah, a pentameter, it’s like a quadrometer. And so the dialogue is often set in kind of a 4, 4 pattern. If you didn’t, like, if you look at the script, you’d be like, what’s going on? Um, but if you’re listening to it with all the beautiful underscoring that’s happening, you don’t know that we’re kind of in a rhythm in our speech pattern that we’re to trying to get within these like, um, elastic underscoring that’s happening underneath us. Um, and then that show, and they’re all Seate tours. Like, these weren’t all back to back, but just this fall. Then, uh, we returned to doing the Invisible and we started in Edmonton, we rehearsed there. We performed actually at a high school. It was a really beautiful relationship. Um, they actually, uh, had a lovely kind of thing with, um, the Victoria School of Arts there. And we were rehearsing in the school. We had connection with the students who were they themselves rehearsing the production of Frankenstein, which is a Catalyst show. Um, and so both things were happening at the same time, which is, I would say, like a very beautiful experience for both the students and for us. And I think it really ignited, uh, even for myself, like, uh, understanding why I might have been like an old bitter performer by that point. And then I was like, oh, look at all these wonderful youth. Yay. Um, it’s softened my heart, I would say. Um, so we performed in. In Edmonton, and then we went back to Verdon B.C. because we had that show that we never did, so we had to go back and do that show. Um, and then we came to Saskatoon and performed with the Persephone Theatre. And I think that might be my favourite place that we’ve done the show. The community just loves Catalysts. They love the show. The house was actually. I felt like the right size for what that storytelling was. Um, so that was really beautiful. And then we took it down to Regina. So for me, that was extremely special. To be able to go home to Regina with this, uh, beautul, beautiful, powerful, devastating production, um, about SOE operatives in World War II, um, and perform it at home, um, at the Dark hall. And, uh, to be able to have my family come see that show was truly important to me.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, absolutely. Um, the experience of revisiting a show is something that, um, a lot of actorsies don’t get to do. It’s usually like, you do a show, you go to the next one and that show is in the rearview mirror. You never see it again. Um, but coming back to his show is not just about, like, oh, this is what I did last time. Because not only are there, um, script revisions, but you’re not the same person. You won’t interpret the script in the same way as you did for your performance, in the same way. How do you approach and find revisiting a play that you’ve done a bunch of times?
Tahirih Vejdani: That’s a great question. Um, I would say every time I’ve approached the show, I find something new in it. Um, and also because the world around us is different, right? And, like, we’re talking about something that is, it feels like, is on the precipice of, like, we’re facing the same kind of fascist threat externally. And, like, the show is dealing with these women who are standing up to that and fighting for. Fighting against the enemies and fighting in Germany and fighting, uh, against Nazis and working as spies and, um, just seeing the amount of destruction and war that has been going on in the last two and a half years has made it a very, um, both powerful and difficult show to revisit. Um, and sometimes I’m like, okay, well, why? Like, why? What is happening? What is this message doing? Or how is it impacting people? And yet we’re still facing these same questions and still not learning from our past makes. And I think that regardless we still have a responsibility through art to try and make that change. Um, when it comes to like redoing a catalyst show now, uh, like I would say make sure you have your notes from the first time because, like, it is like, uh, at least for the invisible. Like we call it the laser cage because we have like dots on the floor and like side lighting. And you have to be so specific where you stand. It’s like battleships. You have to be in your quadrant, otherwise you miss your lighting. And um. So I literally have like my cue cards that have just like coordinates. Like one song might have like 20 coordinates on it. And that for the most part is reusable. Whenever we remount the show, I’ll just make adjustments if we’ve been readjusted for lights or something. But often most things in that regard, like the greatest structures of the show are still there, but like the fine tuning details of like. Sometimes it’s just like a one word that’s given as a revision and it just changes the intention of what you were doing for that character, for that lie in that moment. Um, and there’it’s uh, funny, there’s this one scene, uh, that we have on the show that s. Every time we do it feels like it’s always the one going through major revisions. But. And the film has one version of it. I haven’t actually watched the film yet. I don’t know if I can watch the film until I’m done playing or doing this show because the vision, the film is a time capsule of what we’ve done and in no way reflects where the characters are or where in the work. As an actor I have taken, uh, that character and sort to watch, it just feels like, not disingenuous but like, um, not an accurate representation of where I think the show or that character is for me right now. Um, and so I feel like I’ve strayghed off the question at hand. But, um, it. I think you have to be open into the process. So you have to know when you’re going back into show. And I should specify if you’re doing something that’s a revival that is specifically about reviving the exact same thing from the stage manager’s copy of a book. Um, often you’re not going to deal with cuts necessarily, or major changes or rewrites. Um, but in a show that’s like an original work, an original King production, like, you know, Jonathan Christian Christensen has made a beautiful show. Um, and he’s very much attached to it and is able to give us Those revisions with every new process and just to refine it and serve the show, um, you have to as an actor also understand that there is that give and take. It’s not about doing the carbon copy of the version you’ve done previously. Knowing that you are going to discover new things and be willing to discover newthing. I think that’s very important.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. Um, as somebody who’s travelled a lot across Canada and beyond, um, I was talking with somebody yesterday and we were talking about how the is theatre in different places in Canada is different. The shows that are being produced in Edmonton are different than the shows being produced in Toronto are different than the show is being produced in St. John’s Newfoundland. Um, as you travel around, what are you seeing? Ah, what do you see as the strength of Canadian theatre and the differences in what’s being presented?
Tahirih Vejdani: Oh, that’s a good question. What are the strengths in the differences of what are being presented? Um, it’s interesting because right now I don’t sense a lot of differences and I think that’s because theatres are in a position and I think the industry is in a position right now where we just need to get BTs into seats. Um, so like you know, everyone is doing Frozen in the next year. Almost every theatre is programming Frozen or programming come from Away, um, or doing what’s another, another show that everyone’s doing right now. Um, and like I think that there’s a need for the collaboration actually across provinces because a lot of these shows are kind of like being remounted. For example, like our production of Frozen that was at the Citadel and Edmonton is being revived at ah, the Grand Theaterre in London this November and December. Um, and I think that’s actually, I really like that because it does share the knowledge and the creative skill across the country. Like we’re not siloing or isolating ourselves. I think that’s a disservice to our industry if we think we should only ever be um, local. I understand that that’s like a finance thing and that is a cost effective thing to not have people come in from away. But I actually think that uh, there is value in bringing artists from across the country into your communities because we share knowledge, we share expertise, we share ways of learning. Um, and I think that the industry and the work that we do is so collaborative that we need to share that collaboration and skillse set across the country. Um, it’s interestinguse like Toronto, if we’re thinking like musical theatre other than like say like commercial musical theatre, we have a beautiful, like, industry that is fostering Canadian musical theatre, uh, here in Toronto. But there aren’t as many opportunities to actually just do musicals in Toronto. You know what I mean? You have to go outside Toronto and do that. Um, you have to go to the Citadel and go to the festivals or go to regional theatres to just do a professional equity contract on a musical. Um, but if, you know, you’re lucky and you get to work on something that’s one of the workshops of a show or a new production or something, um, then I think that is really special and that is something that serves, uh, a part of the industry or a part of a very, um, important, um, groundwork to fostering Canadian shows. Like, we need to build our industry up for what we do produce here. Um, and I think there are certain theatres that are developing more and more work like that and I think in the next few years we are going to start to see that even more, um, and more of that risk taking, which I hope, hope, uh, we do more of.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, absolutely. I think there’s a great opportunity in this moment right now for Canadian theatres as people are starting to think about what they’re consuming. Both uh, uh, as far as like the food that they’re eating, where it’s coming from, as when the things that they buy and where it comes from and the media that they consume, where that comes from. And I think that, um, we have an opportunity to uh, bring people to Canadian theatre in a way that they haven’t before, to sort of show them what we got. Ah, if we take the opportunity. I think we have, uh, some really amazing opportunities ahead of us. Um, one of the things that. One of the notes that you left, things that you want, uh, to talk about was, um. It just says back to school in your note. Um, tell me, tell me, tell me what that means. And uh. Are you going back to school?
Tahirih Vejdani: Uh, yes, I forgot that I wrote that. And it’s one of those things of like, you know, we practise so much in what we do. Um, and then sometimes, you know, I think I make rash decisions. Sometimes I’m like, I don’t know what I’m doing next. Oh my God. I guess I should go back to school. Um, and this is one of those moments. Um, and so I likeigned back up to do, uh, this programme. It’s through the University of Essex and the Boy Study Centre and it’s a Master’s in vocal pedagogy. And so like, you know, we’re circling right back to my love of music, but also my love of education. Um, I actually really love teaching and so I’ve been teaching at, ah, Sheridan College for the last five years. Um, and my m desire to go back to school first started after I started teaching at Shedan after the pandemic. Um, I was, you know, started to teach, uh, remotely for them and then I started to go in person and I was really inspired by the hunger and learning that my students brought into the space that I was like, oh, I want to deepen my knowledge further so that I’m a better teacher for them. And so I actually, I did a postgraduate certificate in voco pedagogy, similar to the programme that I’m doing now. But, like, I tapped out and I was like, I’m too overwhelmed because I’m working and doing school and every time I decided to go to school I’m like, oh, there’s no work coming up. So I guess I have the freedom to study. That’s always wrong. And so I tapped out and I was likekay, we’ll just have this, whatever they call it, a PG cert in the uk. Um, and then recently I was in that same dirge of like, oh, God, I don’t know what I’m doing. And so I signed back up to school, so I’m actually finishing the programme. They’ve moved universities, but it’s essentially the same thing. Um, so that I have, like, I had a third of a master’s and so now I’m going toa complete the two thirds of that master that’s remaining. Um, I’m excited. You know, I love talking about the voice, I love teaching voice. And, um, I don’t know what it will lead to, but I’m sure it will only benefit.
Phil Rickaby: The funny thing is that sometimes we look at education as, like, what it will lead to and what it leads to. A lot of times, like, if you’re learning something, if you’re keeping your brain active, isn’t that the most important thing?
Tahirih Vejdani: Like 100%? Like, I actually think it benefited me, not as an educator it did, but it benefited me as a performer as well too. My own, uh, use of my vocal mechanism improved and my understanding of it got way better in the span of even just doing that programme.
Phil Rickaby: Yeah, yeah. I think the capitalist view of education is one that really needs to go by the wayside. We really need to just sort of look at education as, like, a thing that that benefits us. It doesn’t have to make us money, it expands our minds and that’s all that needs to do 100%.
Tahirih Vejdani: Yeah, yeah.
Phil Rickaby: Um, just as we’re sort of starting to come to a close, where can people find you online?
Tahirih Vejdani: Um, probably on most platforms I have a website. I try to update it with, like, projects that I’m doing or upcoming, um, on Instagram or Facebook or, you know, whatever platform you choose to engage with. I know they’re all kind of complicated.
Phil Rickaby: Nowadays, but there’s so many now.
Tahirih Vejdani: There’s so many now. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Phil Rickaby: Um, aside from going back to school, what do you have coming up?
Tahirih Vejdani: Um, that’s a good question. It’s like, you know, when you’re waiting for the balls to drop, there are things that are on the horizon but you’re not sure. Um, so for sure, the only, like, actual for sure thing I know is like, Frozen is happening November, December. I know that that’s coming up. Um, next week. I’m actually working on a workshop concert presentation of an opera. Um, it’s with this company called Cultureland, and they’re in collaboration with Tapestry Opera, and it’s in the new space up on Yong Street. Um, and it’s a collection of different pieces by, uh, the composer. And I’m in like, one excerpt. Um, ah. The opera is called the Refugees. Um, and if I remember correctly, I think it’s based off of Achalus or something like that. Um, so I’m doing that and then I’m doing Frozen, and then in between is this, like, murky. Who knows the balls are going to drop. Um, I think I’m doing the Friend show. Uh, I probably can’t say what it is yet. Uh, but it’s in the, like that musical theatre hub one that’s happening. Theatre Passurai. Um, so, uh, yes, I, uh, have nothing more I can say about that because.
Phil Rickaby: That’s all right. Yeah, I.
Tahirih Vejdani: Absolutely.
Phil Rickaby: This is sometimes the nature of the industry, 100%.
Tahirih Vejdani: Um, and then I’m doing a workshop and I can’t say anything other than that for that project.
Phil Rickaby: Perfectly fine. I understand entirely. Uh, like I said, the nature of the industry.
Tahirih Vejdani: Ye.
Phil Rickaby: Uh, uh, uh, Tahirih Thank you so much for joining me. I really appreciate you giving me my time. It’s been delightful talking to you.
Tahirih Vejdani: Thank you. Thank you so much for having me.
