Pronouns
she/her
she/her
Brenda Gorlick is a Winnipeg-based director, choreographer, performer, and educator whose professional career spans over fifty years across Manitoba, Canada, and internationally. Her work encompasses musical theatre, dance, performance, and arts education, with a lasting impact on professional training and inclusive arts practice. She has been affiliated with leading institutions including Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the Stratford Festival of Canada, and the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.
Brenda served for over 20 years as Head of Musical Theatre at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, developing a program whose graduates perform on Broadway and international stages. In 2004, she founded Winnipeg Studio Theatre's StudioWorks Academy providing advanced triple-threat instruction to emerging artists.
Her commitment to accessibility led to the creation of All Abilities Dancers with Manitoba Possible and AIM 4 ALL – All Inclusive Musicals, the first program of its kind in Manitoba. Brenda leads the Dancing with Parkinson’s program with U-Turn Parkinson’s Manitoba.
In film, Brenda Gorlick has had principal roles in multiple Hallmark films. Her choreography credits include Seance, Time Cut, and the forthcoming feature November: 1963, as well as award-winning indies: If It Ain’t Got That and These Four Walls. A dedicated arts advocate, she was part of Creative Manitoba’s inaugural youth mentorship program and continues to serve as a mentor.
Brenda's honours include the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's Honour Roll, Winnipeg Arts Council Career Achievement Award, YMCA/YWCA Women of Distinction, and Rainbow Stage's Wall of Fame. She continues to be a driving force in Manitoba’s performing arts community as an artist, mentor, and advocate for inclusive excellence.
Choreographer- Large-scale projects
Hope McIntyre is an award winning playwright and director. She is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Winnipeg Department of Theatre and Film and also teaches through the Walls to Bridges program in correctional centres. Her training includes a BFA in performance from the University of Saskatchewan and an MFA in directing from the University of Victoria. She was the founding Artistic Director of Sarasvàti Productions, a company dedicated to social change that she helmed for 22 years. During this tenure she developed multiple new theatrical works, produced FemFest (an annual festival), worked as a dramaturg for emerging playwrights, and developed community-based play creation methods.
Hope is former Chair of The Women’s Caucus and former President of the Playwrights Guild of Canada. She has received the YWCA Women of Distinction Award, the Bra D’Or, the Women Helping Women Award, the Mahatma Gandhi Social Change Award, and the University of Winnipeg Arts Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award. In 2023 she published the e-book The Business of Theatre: Pathways to a Career in Theatre.
Social Media & Other Websites