Meet the Performers

Ever wonder who's who on the Irrelevant Show?

Meet the people behind the voices

MARIANNE COPITHORNE is delighted to be a cast member of The Irrelevant Show! She is also a freelance actor, director and teacher. Recent directing credits include Communion, The Woman in Black, Palace of the End, Choke, Habitat, Faithless, and Perfect Pie for Theatre Network, Edmonton; Dial M for Murder, and Little Shop of Horrors, for the Mayfield Dinner Theatre, Edmonton; Goodnight DesdemonaGood Morning Juliet, for Studio Theatre, Edmonton; Blithe Spirit for Vertigo Theatre, Calgary; and Othello, Much Ado About Nothing, Titus Andronicus, As You Like It, Hamlet, Love's Labor's Lost, and The Merchant of Venice for the Freewill Shakespeare Festival in Edmonton, where she is currently Artistic Director. Marianne is a graduate of the University of Alberta's BFA Acting and MFA Directing Programs.

Hello, I'm NEIL GRAHN and my background in comedy is spottedly impeccable. I began my comedy career with a goofy little skitch troupe called Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie and we got our own (short-lived) TV series and everything. I did 'Comics!' for CBC and I'm also debating this season on 'The Debaters'. In my spare time I enjoy writing and directing comedy/reality TV series like 'Show Me Some Funny', 'The Family Restaurant', 'Canadian Pickers' and other shows you may not have heard of. I've always loved improvising and comedy so doing The Irrelevant Show is big time fun for me! Twitter handle: @neilsmuses

MARK MEER A writer and performer on all previous incarnations of the Irrelevant Show, Mark is a core company member of the Canadian Comedy Award-winning improv troupe Die-Nasty, a founder of the comedy troupe Gordon's Big Bald Head, and a writer and cast member on the APTN sketch comedy show CAUTION: May Contain Nuts. He's toured across North America and Europe with Rapid Fire Theatre and Atomic Improv, crushing the competition in numerous international improv tournaments, and was recently nominated for a 2011 Canadian Comedy Award for Best Male Improvisor in the nation. Mark' s numerous voices can be heard in many video games from industry leader Bioware Corp, including the Dragon Age series, Jade Empire, and the Mass Effect trilogy, in which he stars as the player character, Commander Shepard. Mark is always delighted by the opportunity to write about himself in the third person. Twitter handle: @mark_meer

JANA O'CONNOR'S voice was born and raised in Edmonton. It has worked in the capacity of actor, improvisor and theatre instructor and has recently found a new incarnation as an award-winning playwright. Jana's voice was delighted to appear in both of the early incarnations of The Irrelevant Show for CBC Radio. Jana's voice's hobbies include talking, singing, and going "ahem". Twitter handle: @irrelevantjana

DONOVAN WORKUN is an award-winning actor and improviser in several media. He is a founding member of the wildly successful Atomic Improv Co. As part of that group, he created North America's first two-man improv show, which played sold-out shows across North America, and won both the "Just For Laughs" Improv Festival, and the World Improv Championships in Los Angeles, competing against the likes of Brad Sherwood and Wayne Brady from ABC TV's "Whose Line Is It Anyway." If you've turned on your TV in the last 15 years you've probably seen Donovan selling products from Alberta livestock and pizza to furniture and banking. His voice work has been featured in two animated series. He has starred in feature films alongside Tim Curry, Tom Green and Patrick Swayze. Donovan is tired of name-dropping. Oh ya, Mike Myers. Donovan is done.

Sheldon Elter and Ryan Parker have been writing comedy songs for the last seven years, but the Irrelevant Show has been their first endeavor into writing as a duo. Last season, they wrote and performed such songs as Wink and Gun, Notes On Da Phone and Great World. Most recently they've expanded the writing team to the remaining members of their band The Be Arthurs. For more information on Sheldon and Ryan and their band check out www.thebearthurs.com.

 

JAN RANDALLl received a Bachelor of Music in 1975, majoring in theory and composition, from the University of Alberta, before embarking on a full time career as an entertainer, music director, and composer. In his early years, Randall was musical director and composer for The Second City, during which time he appeared on SCTV, collaborating with Mike Myers, Catherine O'Hara and Ryan Stiles. He later performed with Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie, Rapid Fire Theatre and Theatresports. As well he was also the founding music director for Edmonton's legendary, live improvised soap opera, Die-Nasty. As a well  respected pianist, Jan has performed live with Bo Diddley, Otis Rush, Amos Garrett, Gaye Delorme, Dave Babcock, Sha Na Na, Spencer Davis, Sam Lay (drummer for Paul Butterfield andHowlin' Wolf) and Gary U.S. Bonds. From 1995-2007 he was music director for the Banff World Television Festival where he worked with John Cleese, Bob Newhart, Dame Edna Everage, Martin Short, Steve Allen and Kelsey Grammer.

LEONA BRAUSEN is an actor, writer, costume designer and improviser well-known to Edmonton audiences. She's an artistic associate with Edmonton's celebrated theatre company, Teatro La Quindicina. As part of that group, she' s toured Canada and acted in the Off-Broadway production of Stewart Lemoine's play PITH. She's also a core cast member of the improvised soap opera Die Nasty, where she has on several occasions broken new ground in the use of shocking profanity. She is a mother of three.

BEN SURES is a modern day troubadour who travels across the country playing shows, gallery concerts, living rooms and festivals. He's released five albums, and done two tours as support act and sandwich maker for The Arrogant Worms. He's appeared on 'Madly Off in All Directions' in addition to buckets of other CBC radio shows as a guest and commissioned songwriter. Ben's most recent CD "Gone to Bolivia" was the most played album by an Alberta-based Artist on CKUA. In 2011 Ben played concerts in the UK, Ireland and Beirut, and also appeared as a character in a Murder Mystery Novel. To hear more of Ben's music you can download his free app, which is available on all platforms. Just look for Ben Sures at the app store of your choice, or visit The Irrelevant Show Podcast!!!