Comedy: Writing and Performance

An accomplished, award-winning member of Canada's theatre and film/TV scenes, Melody's work as performer, writer and director is recognized coast to coast to coast at such prestigious institutions as the Stratford Festival, Tarragon Theatre, and Second City (Toronto and Chicago). Melody is also a voice actor on seasons one and two of Treehouse TV's Agent Binky and the award-winning Ketterkenny, among other commercial work. Selected TV: Slings & Arrows, Michael Tuesdays and Thursdays, in addition to originating many roles in Canadian theatre (with over ten Dora nominations and one win). Melody's play Miss Caledonia has toured extensively across Canada and the UK, and will enjoy productions at two other major Canadian theatres for the 2021/22 season. For more information visit melodyjohnson.ca.

I was a television comedy writer who turned his attention towards teaching 10 years ago. 

Martha Chaves is an award-winning comedian, writer, and actor whose career spans over two decades. NOW Magazine describes her as "smart, sassy, provocative, and very funny."

She's also a stand-up comedy instructor at Humber College in the Comedy: Writing and Performance program.

Martha has appeared multiple times at the prestigious Just For Laughs Festival, the Winnipeg Comedy Festival, and the We Are Funny That Way Festival, to name a few. Martha describes herself as the "most famous Nicaraguan-Canadian LGBTQ+ stand-up comedian in the world." Still, despite being an act of such a unique nature, she's hilariously relatable, universally funny and accessible. She tours from coast to coast as a headliner for Yuk-Yuk's (Canada's premiere chain of comedy clubs) and is also in high demand for corporate performances, conferences, and speaking engagements. She can frequently be heard on CBC's The Debaters and Laugh Out Loud. She is a regular panellist on the popular CBC show Because News. Martha also starred in two TV specials broadcast nationally: Comics! on CBC and Something About Martha on CTV and the Comedy Network.

Martha was named 2018's Stand-up Comic of the Year by the Canadian Comedy Awards after being nominated seven years in a row. Her debut album, Chunky Salsa, was included in a list of 2019's best comedy records in Interrobang Magazine.

Martha has written and acted in several successful one-woman shows. Staying Alive and In Times of Trouble were featured in the Soulo Festival and the Aluna Theatre Festival in Toronto, respectively. The Diaries of a Young Lezbo premiered at SOLOCOM in New York City.

Anne Fenn is an experienced TV writer and former development executive with over 25 years' experience writing for film, TV, radio, print and stage. Anne loves to teach and has been teaching Sitcom Writing in the Comedy program since 2010 and also teaches in the TV Writing & Producing post-graduate program. She has been nominated for numerous awards for her writing, some of which she won! Anne recently earned her MFA in Creative Nonfiction (King’s/Dalhousie), holds a B.A. from the University of Toronto, and is a graduate of Norman Jewison's Canadian Film Centre. For more information about Anne, please go to annefenn.com.

An accomplished creator, Melody has enjoyed a career of moving between the worlds of comedy and drama.  

Since 2010, Melody has successfully toured and produced the self-penned Miss Caledonia throughout Canada (premiering at the prestigious Tarragon Theatre in Toronto, and National Arts Centre in Ottawa) and internationally to the United Kingdom. The play garnered two Toronto Dora nominations (Outstanding New Play, Outstanding Performance 2013), and Calgary’s Betty Mitchell honour was awarded to actor Jamie Konchak for her portrayal of the titular character. Melody was recognized by Ontario Contact with the 2014 Touring Artist of the Year award, and has since passed the baton to many performers and theatres. The play was recently produced in in 2021 at Gananoque’s Thousand Islands Playhouse and Regina's Globe Theatre, and it makes its 2023 return to Ontario at Bancroft’s The Mac Theatre.

Melody’s solo comedy Person of Interest is a light, topical, take on neighbourly warfare that has delighted critics and audiences coast to coast. She also tours with composer Allen Cole in Leftovers and the Lottery - the Writing of Shirley Jackson, a show of readings, performance and song celebrating the American writer. 

An alumna of The Toronto Second City and Stratford Festival, Melody has appeared on stages throughout the country specializing in comedic performance. Her comedic performances have ranged from Shakespeare to Noel Coward to improv and musicals, and she's voiced numerous animations. She recently recorded her third season of Treehouse TV’s Agent Binky: Pets of the Universe for which she received a 2023 Canadian Screen Award nomination for her work as Agent Nola. She is thrilled to be part of the new comedy pilot The Trades in addition to the podcast Earth Rangers Underground voicing an enthusiastic leopard Gecko named Pheobe! For many years, Melody has enjoyed sharing her on-stage/set experiences with her students in Humber's Comedy program. Please visit melodyjohnson.ca.

Lisa Merchant is an award-winning improvisor. She has performed and taught improvisation nationally and internationally for 30-plus years. She is a senior faculty member with The Second City Training Centre and The Second City Works division, and an ongoing program director with York University Osgoode Law Professional Development. She created, produced and performed March of Dames, a weeklong all-female comedy festival that ran for 10 years.

She is a multiple nominee and winner of four Canadian Comedy Awards, three for Best Female Improvisor. Lisa was a cast member of the Gemini-nominated Joe Blow Show. When not improvising, she shows up on various television programming, Murdoch Mysteries, American Gods, Degrassi XV, Train 48... In addition to performing numerous improv shows around Toronto and across Canada, she performs monthly in the award-winning Monkey Toast, the live improvised talk show, now in its 19th year.

She delivered improv-focused workshops to some of the Canadian Olympic Team hopefuls for the London 2012 Summer Games as well as Sochi 2014 Winter Games.

“Taking improv with Lisa Merchant was a game changer for me. It not only helped me be a better communicator, it made me a better person. I learned fundamental ideas that I still apply to this day. Over ten years after taking that original class, I invited Lisa to come and speak to the 2012 Canadian Olympic team to give them a competitive advantage. Such is the value of what she has to teach.”

- Mark Tewksbury, Olympic Champion and 2012 Canadian Olympic Team Chef de Mission

Award Highlights

• Platinum Winner of The Toronto Star 2020 and 2019 Reader's Choice Award for Best Theatre Instructor
• Awarded by The Second City 2019 Frank McAnulty Faculty Award
• Winner of the 2019 World's Biggest Improv Tournament surviving 126 teams

Kyle Woolven is a writer, performer, director, editor, musician -- it's easier to just say comedian. Born and raised in Belleville, he struck a chord with his hometown when his satirical video "Welcome to Belleville" quickly went viral. His YouTube channel has continued to gain popularity, as his music video "Buys Houses" recently won first place in the Toronto Sketch Competition and was nominated for the Toronto Sketch Festival's Outstanding Comedy Short award.

Aside from performing, Kyle is also an advocate of comedy. He is the creator of the mental wellness initiative Finding Your Funny, teaching elementary students how to write and perform stand-up comedy to relieve stress and build confidence. He is also a professor at Durham College and creator of the course Funny Bone: The Canadian Comedy Identity.