Alessandro Miro

Currently Teaching

• Ongoing Scene Study
• Intro to Acting PACE 1
• Intro to Acting PACE 2
• Teen Acting Camps

Alessandro is a New York trained actor who has extensive experience on stage, TV and film. He was nominated for a 2016 LEO Award for his starring role in the New York shot feature film Daddy’s Boy, as well as Best Actor at the NYC Winter Film Awards for his performance in the multi award winning Indie film Computer Potato.

He has appeared on such hit shows as Fox’s Fringe, USA Network’s Psych, CW’s Supernatural,  The Flash and Cult, CBC’s Intelligence, CTV’s Alice, I Think and Hiccups. Other roles include the romantic lead in I Hate Toronto: A Love Story, and roles in Dark Harvest and The Good Catholic.

He is the co-founder of the New York based Animus Theatre Company. He was last seen Off-Broadway in the role of Silva in Tennessee William’s The Long Goodbye under the direction of fellow company member Matthew Lillard. Other theatre credits include Angelo in Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, James in After and Tony in Tony & Tina’s Wedding.

Alessandro is a graduate of Circle in the Square Theatre School.

Most Recently, Al has written, directed, produced and starred in his own web series “How To Make It In Hollywood (When you are Foreign AF)”

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Andy Thompson

Currently Teaching

• Movement, Voice & Character

Andy Thompson is a multi-award winning theatre and film producer, writer, actor, teacher and director. He is the founding Artistic Director of The Virtual Stage, a Vancouver-based theatre company dedicated to the investigation of emerging technologies in theatre. He has been nominated for a total of fourteen Jessie Richardson Theatre awards as an actor, director, producer, writer and designer, winning twice. Thompson produced, designed the video and performed in the multi-award winning, “live-cinematic” hit production of No Exit (co-produced by The Virtual Stage and Electric Company Theatre in 2008) which won the “Outstanding Production” and “Critics’ Choice Innovation” Jessie Awards before touring across North America, including a month-long run at the prestigious American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco in 2011.

Thompson has written, directed and produced several hit shows, including the smart-phone enabled, roving theatre adventure series The Zombie Syndrome (2012–2016) and the sci-fi musical comedy Broken Sex Doll (2013–2014), which was acclaimed by critics and hailed as “the next Big Thing in Canadian Theatre” and won Vancouver’s musical theatre Ovation Award for “Outstanding New Work” before it toured across Canada.

Thompson’s film writing, directing and producing credits include the short films Cruel & Unusual (official selection: 2012 Vancouver Short Film Festival), Repairman (3rd place overall and top-ranking Canadian film: 2011 International 100-Hour Film Race), The Provider (Grand Prize winner: 2010 Bloodshots 48-Hour Horror Filmmaking Competition and ‘Coup de Coeur’ distinction: 2011 Cannes Film Festival) and Mayor Mulligan (Best Writing Award: 2010 24-Hour Vancouver Film Race).

A 1993 graduate of Studio 58, Andy’s recent film and television acting credits include Steven Spielberg’s The BFG, Van Helsing, Arrow, Supernatural, Hit The Road, No Tomorrow, Impastor, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, five made-for-television Hallmark movies, and a recurring guest starring role in NBC’s Trial & Error.

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Andy’s Website

Graeme Duffy

Currently Teaching

• Improv/Theater Sports

Graeme Duffy is a Vancouver based actor, comedian, sketch and improv comic. For the past 10 years he has established himself as a film and TV actor with many roles on all of the major US networks. TV credits include: Psych, Mr Young, Eureka, Fringe, Smallville, Supernatural, BSG and The 4400. His mini series credits include: A&E’s “The Andromeda Strain”, Steven Spielberg’s “Taken” and Peter Berg’s “Virtuality”. His film list includes: Elf, The Fantastic Four, The Possession and Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2.

As an Improv Comic Graeme performs multiple shows weekly on stage for the Vancouver TheatreSports League. He has co-written, performed and toured many formats over the years, including “Science”- the world’s only improvised documentary comedy and “Men in Suits”- improvising in the style of David Mamet. In 2010 Graeme was a featured performer in comedy festivals in Orlando, Calgary, Seattle and Vancouver.

In 2011, Graeme improvised his way from Puerto Vallerta to Glacier Bay, Alaska, as a guest performer aboard the luxury cruise liner MV Crystal Symphony.

As a corporate entertainer, Graeme has performed for TD Canada Trust, CIBC, Royal Bank, Coast Capital, BCMPA, GoldCorp, Refinery Corporation, The Liberal Party and NDP just to name a few.

When Graeme is not performing, writing or making people laugh he is sitting in section 315 row 2 at the Rogers Arena cheering for his beloved Canucks.

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Hans Potter

Currently Teaching

• Voice

Hans is an alumnus of the University of Alberta Drama program graduating in 2013, he has spent many hours honing his craft on the stage before making the move to Vancouver to start work in the film and tv industry. Since then he has appeared in TV shows such as Legends of Tomorrow and film such as Bigfoot Country, Nutshells, and Camp Death 3D: The final summer. He has also worked as an improviser and comic combining his classical training with a sharp wit and sense of humor. He’s proud to be bringing decades worth of training and knowledge to the doors of VADA and looks forward to training the actors of tomorrow.

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Joel Semande

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Lee Shorten

Currently Teaching

• Youth On Camera Acting
• Audition Class

Lee Shorten grew up in Australia. He graduated Law School in 2009 and was a practicing attorney for several years before moving to Vancouver to pursue a career in Film/TV. 

Since then he has worked on a string of hit TV shows and feature films including The Terror, The Flash, iZombie, The Whispers. Lee is best known for his role as Sergeant Yoshida, one of the main villains on Ridley Scott’s The Man in the High Castle and as the longest surviving demon on Supernatural.

Lee has also appeared in numerous stage productions, including The Pillowman by Martin McDonage and Bondage by David Henry Hwang. Most notably Lee was part of the original cast of NeON by Mayumi Yoshida.

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Madison Smith

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Ron Chartier

Currently Teaching

• Scene Study
• Books & Exercises
• Co-Handler for the Showcase

Over the past 25 years Ron has appeared as a professional actor in plays, commercials, series and films in England and Canada. Ron has worked behind the camera on independent short and feature films as a writer, producer, and director. He was a co-producer on a Canadian independent feature entitled, “Saving Grace”. In the same film he played the comic role of “Officer Ned”. Ron directed, produced and co-wrote, Dark Water, also a Canadian feature, which aired on Superchannel for a six-month window. In addition, Ron has written or co-written, directed, produced and edited several short films. Since graduating from the National Theatre School of Canada in 1984, Ron has taught acting in both England and Canada. In London, Ron taught and directed at The Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, the Unicorn Theater and several other centers throughout the greater London area. Vancouver teaching credits include acting classes and workshops at various centers and acting schools across the Lower Mainland.

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Scott Patey

Currently Teaching

• Audition

Scott Patey is a professional actor, improvisor & host with over 15 years experience under his belt.  He has amassed over 50 Film & Television credits on his acting resume appearing in TV Series such as iZombie, Supernatural & the upcoming Amazon Prime Series “Upload”. As well as Feature Films like The Odds, Monster Truck and Sonic The Hedgehog.

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Simon Longmore

(Owner & Founder)

Currently Teaching

• Handler for the Hollywood Field Trip
• Intro To Acting
• Ongoing Scene Study

Simon is an actor, writer and director, involved in teaching since the mid-90s. He has taught his legendary approach in workshops all across Canada, The United States, and Europe. His approach to acting has been taught to over 5000 actors, writers, directors, producers, casting directors, comedians, broadcasters, on-air personalities, stunt performers, models, acting teachers, talent agents, leaders of industry, musicians, singers and voice-over artists.

Simon is a classically trained actor who uses an amalgamation of the classic Method Approach and concepts from the modern masters of acting. His major influence has been Warren Robertson.

So many of Simon’s Students work regularly within the Film and TV industry that it is so hard for him to keep track of them all. His students have been featured on the cover of magazines, talk shows, newspapers and entertainment television.

IMDB Profile

Simon’s Website