Frederick O’Neal is a Toronto born and raised actor of Jamaican/Guyanese heritage. After honing his craft in George Brown College’s Theatre Arts program Freddy landed the lead role of Kwame in Theatre in the Rough’s musical presentation of See Here! It’s Africa and the Caribbean.” Freddy next appeared in Hugh King’s Night Work and later toured with Dance Caribe Performing Company as a dancer and stage manager. On a brief trip to L.A. in 2002 Freddy got a chance to appear on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve show as a dancer. In 2005 Freddy appeared in Shawn Pendenque’s Journeys staged at the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto. Most recently Freddy appeared in Kwame Stephens’ for Black History month skit called Here Comes The Bus which was broadcast live worldwide on the web. Freddy previously played Emmanuel in an earlier incarnation of Kwame Stephens Man 2 Man called Damien’s Confessions which was read at GLAD Images during the Pride 2008 festivities at City Hall. Freddy starred as Emmanuel in Man 2 Man at Buddies in Bad Times in 2010 and Man 2 Man at Harbourfront Centre in 2011.
Mark P. Thomas An enthusiast for most things entertainment, Mark P. Thomas continues to pursue his passion for the performing arts through the Rainbow Glee Coalition (RGC), as Founder/Chair of this recreational community program in the performing arts at The 519 Community Centre, 519 Church Street Toronto.
With a background in Entertainment and Events Management, Mark began his stint onstage with Jamaica’s first salaried performing arts ensemble, ASHE Performing Arts Company, Kingston, Jamaica as a vocalist in musical theatre. He was also casted for supporting roles/ chorus for a number of ASHE’s productions such as ‘Lift-Up Jamaica’ and ‘Curfew’ and was ensemble member of their ‘Summer 2003 European Tour’ as Cultural Ambassadors. Mark later found that he also has a knack for production work, where he functioned as Assistant Stage-manager for the production ‘Curfew’. Bitten by the ‘production bug’ Mark also worked contractually in production with Jamaica’s premier modeling agency, Pulse Investments Limited on a number of their annual stage events to include Caribbean Fashion Week 2006/2007 and Miss Jamaica Universe 2007.
Mark migrated to Toronto, Ontario in 2008, resolute that he would find his niche in entertainment where he currently facilitates RGC, a creative outlet for members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans-sexual, Trans-gender, 2-Spirited, Questioning, Intersex and Allies (LGBTTSQIA) Community who simply want to explore their talents in a recreational and non-judgmental space. It was through this venture Mark met a network of creative professionals, to include Kwame Stephens, Writer/Producer of the stage production Man2Man.
Canute Lawrence is better known for his scintillating performances in several musicals in Jamaica with the LTM National Pantomime Company of Jamaica. He also appeared in a cadre of commercial theatre productions, ranging from comedy, drama to musical revues, many of which toured the Caribbean, the U.S.A., Canada and the U.K. Canute's directorial skills came to public view in 1998 when he directed Anton Chekov's The Bear in Jamaica's Inter-Secondary Schools' Drama Festival for his alma mater-Wolmer's High School, winning awards for acting, costumes and directing. Canute also directed the acclaimed 2002 musical revue Ban Yuh Belly An' Laugh, which featured some of Jamaica's top theatre talents. In Jamaica, Canute was also a movie critic for Radio Jamaica (RJR) and wrote many reviews and critiques for stage productions when he was not involved in one. In 2003, while living in New York City, Canute wrote, appeared in and directed a musical revue off-off Broadway entitled Jamaican Tea Meetin'. In 2009, Canute made his Canadian theatre debut starring in Me Get Mi Landed. He recently directed the Marcia Brown Productions' Feminine Justice. He starred as Pastor Everton in Man 2 Man at Buddis in Bad Times (2010). Canute Directed both productions of Man 2 Man at Buddies in Bad Times (2010) and Harbourfront Centre (2011).
Julian Murillo’s many achievements are the result of his ambitious personality. He is a Ryerson Theatre Program student. He is currently working closely with the head of wardrobe at Soulpepper and is working on A Midsumer Night’s Dream. Previously, he had a summer job in Moncton, New Brunswick for Sound Specialist Incorporation running set ups and shows, including the IAAF world championships. Julian was also the technical director for Moncton High School from 2008 to 2010. He is hoping to get known by people because of his work ethic and knowledge of skills. Julian worked as the Assistant Stage Manager for Man2Man @ Harbourfront in February 2011.
Kwame Stephens (Edward Ulzen) is a Toronto based emerging playwright. His first play Man 2 Man was staged at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre in Toronto in June 2010. A revised remount of Man 2 Man was staged as part of Harbourfront Centre’s Kuumba Festival in February 2011. Between 2006 and 2009 he had several short theatrical pieces which he co-wrote and produced with Youth Theatre @Baobab at Afrofest. These were called Karibuni Canada, Malaika, Bus Stop, Lunch Time, Lunch Time Again. In 2008, Kwame’s play Damien’s Confessions was publicly read as part of the GLAD Images event. This piece formed the basis of Man 2 Man. In 2009 Kwame’s two theatrical pieces Here Comes the Bus and Nyanibah’s Songs were staged. Kwame was part of the inaugural year of BASH – Canadian Stage Company’s Emerging Artists program in 2006/2007.
Kwame Stephens is also a facilitator, producer, and community organizer. His poetry, short stories and other writing published, produced and broadcast in Toronto and English Speaking Africa. Kwame has had three anthologies published - Accra! Accra! Poems About Modern Afrikans, Akwantu, Thoughts of a New Canadian, Accra! Accra! More Poems About Modern Afrikans. In March 2011 Kwame Stephens read from/discussed his anthology Accra! Accra! More Poems About Modern Afrikans at the Goethe Institute in Accra, Ghana. His work appears in T-Dot Griots, Anthology of Black Storytellers in Toronto, The African Drum, and Toronto World Arts Review amongst other publications. He has performed at various venues in the greater Toronto Area including Harbourfront Centre, and Chapters in Markham. Kwame Stephens has been involved with numerous community groups including Urban Alliance on Race Relations, Art Starts, and more. He enjoys facilitating educational workshops and have a interactive presentation called "Postcards From Africa". Kwame is currently working on his second play Ekua Na Kamau – a love story between a young man and woman set in modern day Accra, Ghana. Kwame Stephens is an Associate Member of the Playwrights Guild of Canada.








