BOOM X Creative Team

Rick Miller is a Dora and Gemini award-winning writer/director/actor/musician/educator who has performed in five languages on five continents and who Entertainment Weekly called “one of the 100 most creative people alive today”. He has created and toured solo shows such as the hit sensation BOOM, MacHomer, and (w. Daniel Brooks) Bigger Than Jesus and HARDSELL. With Robert Lepage, he has collaborated on Geometry of Miracles, Zulu Time, Lipsynch, and on the film Possible Worlds. As the artistic director of WYRD Productions and co-creative director of the Kidoons Network, Rick has most recently developed BOOM and BOOM X, and (w. Craig Francis) Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea, GAME of CLONES, Jungle Book, and (w. Craig Francis and Paul Van Dyck) Frankenstein; as well as animated series that educate, enlighten, empower and entertain young people. He often teaches an interdisciplinary class at the University of Toronto called The Architecture of Creativity. Rick is from Montreal, and lives in Toronto with his wife Stephanie Baptist and their two daughters.

Bruno Matte was born and raised in Quebec City, and graduated from Cegep Limoilou in 2005 in audiovisual design. A music enthusiast, he began his professional career as a lighting designer for concerts. He began working with local artists, then moved to international acts ranging from Richard Séguin to Charlotte Cardin to Cypress Hill to Daniel Lanois. In an effort to expand his creative research, Bruno began working on several bold theatre productions. Whether with Ex Machina or Kidoons, he found ways to seamlessly integrate lighting with video, under very rigourous technical constraints. His spatial design exploration continued in the world of dance, where he has worked with several La Rotonde choreographers on productions such as Alan Lake’s Les Caveaux. Bruno now regularly designs for the circus, which seems a natural fulfillment of his experience in music, theatre and movement. In productions ranging from Flip Fabrique or Machine de Cirque, the complexity of the work allows him to keep refining his craft.
 

An accomplished director, editor and visual artist, Nicolas Dostie studied Media Arts and Technology with a focus on television. With the arrival of the digital era in 2002, he became interested in large-scale architectural projection, and helped design the multimedia for the highly visual spectacle Cavalia. His design career then pushed him more and more into the worlds of theatre and circus. He worked for Ex Machina and Robert Lepage, on Le projet Andersen, the Jeux de Cartes series, 887 and Kodō, and with BOOM X, his work as co-designer has garnered several award nominations across Canada. Considered one of the pioneers in architectural projection, Nicolas has worked on the 2014 Sochi Olympics (with Pixmob), and the Cirque du Soleil productions Delirium, the Michael Jackson world tour, and Varekai. He currently teaches at CEGEP La Pocatière, passing on his knowledge to a younger generation.

Irina Litvinenko is an accomplished creative artist, graphic designer, and video production artist. Irina has been a longstanding collaborator with Rick Miller and Craig Francis, including as Multimedia and Video Designer for Jungle Book, BOOM X, Frankenstein, and BOOM YZ. Irina assisted on onscreen multimedia for MacHomer and its educational Animated Shakespeare videos, video sequences and design elements for Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea. As a web and video artist, Irina is a designer, animator, and production editor of the Kidoons Network animated series. She has worked on advertising and multimedia campaigns for Performing Arts Centers across Canada and the US; for shows from BOWFIRE to Carol Burnett; and campaigns including TELUS, Cirque Musica, and the University of Kentucky Opera Theatre.

After a Bachelor’s degree in theatre and cinema from Université Laval, Virginie went on to study scenic design at Conservatoire d’Art Dramatique de Québec. She was the first recipient of the design scholarship Théâtre Blanc-Desjardins. She received Quebec’s Prix d’excellence des arts et de la culture for costume designs on L’asile de la pureté (2009) and Fin de Partie (2012), and was nominated for Cyrano de Bergerac (2008) and Dans la République du Bonheur (2015). For Ex Machina, she toured with La Celestina (2004), designed props for La Tempête (2011), Jeux de Cartes : Pique (2012), Coeur (2013) and Lipsynch (2007), and costumes for Seven Streams of the River Ota (2019) and Courville (2021). She is also a frequent designer with other renowned Quebec-based companies, including Théâtre de la Bordée, Théâtre Périscope, Théâtre du Trident, and Carrefour international de théâtre de Québec. Virginie’s work on BOOM X has been nominated for les Prix de Théâtre in 2021, and she’s delighted to be working again with Kidoons/WYRD on BOOM YZ.

Craig Francis is a writer, illustrator, performer, and multi-disciplinary creator, whose works are enjoyed by millions of people worldwide. A founding member of the 20K Collective, he is the co-author and co-director with Rick Miller on the productions Jungle Book and GAME of CLONES, as well as their Stage Manager. He's also the co-author and Stage Manager of the stage adaptation of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea (directed by Miller), and a producer, designer, and Stage Manager for Miller's solo productions BOOM and BOOM X. Craig is co-creating reimagined adaptations of Frankenstein (with Rick Miller and Paul Van Dyck), Wizard of Oz, Rose Red, and an Animazia animated series. Craig illustrates the cartoon characters for the Kidoons Network videos (as well as writing and voicing them), which are on display at museums in 4 provinces, with millions of views. Craig performed TheatreSports and improv comedy internationally for 12 years; stage credits include The Refugee Hotel (Teesri Duniya/Segal Centre). He lives in Montreal, where he has illustrated several books, and been a commentator on radio and TV.
 

Laurel is excited to be back working on the BOOM Trilogy, with such a fantastic team! Select credits include: BOOM (Theatre Calgary, Thousand Islands Playhouse, & 59E59,) Jersey Boys, Legally Blonde, Rock of Ages, Avenue Q, The Producers, Game Show, 39 Steps, Chicago, Spamalot, Young Frankenstein, Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (Stage West,) Sound of Music (Western Canada Theatre,) Annie & Fiddler on the Loose (Drayton Entertainment.)  Laurel has also taught stage management at the University of Lethbridge. She would like to thank her family and friends for their unending love and support.

Aidan Ware hails from Calgary, Alberta. His passion for live production has taken him around the world where he has worn many hats as a technical director, lighting & sound designer. He recently completed an 18-month practicum program at the Banff Centre for Arts & Creativity as a lighting technician and now lives in Toronto where he is Assistant Technical Director at Canadian Stage. 

Composition for theatre, includes The 39 Steps, A Few Good Men (Theatre Aquarius),  Frost Nixon (Canadian Stage), Tuesday’s with Morrie (Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company), Salt-Water Moon, Jitters, The Norman Conquests (SOULPEPPER), The Importance of Being Earnest (NAC), David Widdicombe’s "Science Fiction" (the play) and Rick Miller’s BOOM and BOOM X.

Jeff has a lifelong passion and vision for combining art and technology to develop original works. His projects are inspired by a love of storytelling and innovation. Through Kidoons theatrical productions and digital works on the Kidoons Network, Jeff's artist collaborators help organizations to tell their stories onstage and online. He works with Not-for-Profits and corporate clients across Canada and the United States with a vision to inspire and empower all generations.