We are excited to bring the Southeastern Stars Gala Celebration back! Mark your calendars for Wednesday, March 26, 7:00 pm at the Steinbach Regional Secondary School! Our trophy winners from Vocal, Strings, Piano and Musical Theatre will be performing and receiving their trophies at this event.
Justin Odwak is an in-demand choral conductor, tenor and vocal instructor. Justin serves as co-artistic director and co-founder of NUOVOCE Chamber Choir, founded in 2019.
He currently teaches choir, vocal jazz, and musical theatre at Dakota Collegiate, and directs the Louis Riel Divisional Treble Choir and Divisional Senior Concert Choir. Justin is past director of the Winnipeg
Jewish Chorus and the Shaarey Zedek Quartet at Congregation Shaarey Zedek, the St. James-Assiniboia Divisional Junior Concert Choir and Divisional Senior Concert Choir. He has also directed the Louis Riel School Division Senior Choir (Choral Celebration, 2019) Rainbow Harmony Project, Kolot Choir, and Interlake Youth Choir. He is in demand as a choral clinician and adjudicator, and also maintains a studio of private voice students.
Justin holds a Bachelor of Music (Voice) and Bachelor of Education (Choral) from the University of Manitoba.
Everett Hopfner is not a harmonium player. However, if you need a harmonium player, you’re in luck: he’ll probably say yes. An enthusiastic explorer of the piano (or whichever keyboard instrument happens to be nearest), Everett’s performances exude joy and intention, qualities he translates to his roles as teacher, administrator, advocate, and life-long learner.
Everett’s reputation as a generous, thoughtful, and brilliantly skilled player continues to grow. His openness and penchant for musical risk-taking has led to many collaborations with composers and artistic peers. Delighted audiences have found him strumming piano strings surrounded by whale skeletons in Frankfurt’s Senckenberg Museum, tinkling away at the jeu de timbres on tour with the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, performing on cathedral steps under the stars as a collaborative pianist for Casalmaggiore International Music Festival in Italy, touring across Canada as a winner of the Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition, and illuminated by a pulsating light installation alongside the Assiniboine River as part of Winnipeg’s Nuit Blanche. He has been praised as “a surreal performer who gives life and flesh to music” (Il Cittadino di Lodi).
Everett is an active piano teacher in high demand for workshops, masterclasses, adjudication, and summer festivals. He facilitates meaningful experiences by asking questions, embracing challenges, and developing goal-oriented, student-centred learning processes. Everett lives for the “lightbulb moments” — instants where his students find clarity or realise a musical wish — and works tirelessly to break down barriers to musical participation and understanding still enduring in traditional institutions. Everett has contributed to his artistic community as a board member for the Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition, Associated Manitoba Arts Festivals, and the Manitoba Registered Music Teachers’ Association, and previously served as Director of the Eckhardt-Gramatté Conservatory of Music at Brandon University. He is based in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Brenda Gorlick has been involved in the Performing Arts world for over 40 years in many aspects of the business. As a performer, she has acted, sung and danced her way across Canada, the U.S. and parts of Europe including Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the acclaimed Stratford Festival and the Banff Centre of Fine Arts. She received the 2024 WAC Career Achievement in the Arts Award, an Honorary Evie Award for Theatre Educator in 2020, a Women of Distinction Award for Arts and Culture in 2015 and was named to the Wall of Fame at Rainbow Stage in 2014.
Brenda served as Associate Artistic director for Winnipeg Studio Theatre for 20 years – a cutting edge professional musical theatre company which has produced hit shows such as Spring Awakening, Spelling Bee and the western Canadian premiere of School of Rock. She created the youth and adult StudioWorks programs – a training wing for emerging artists who wish to excel in “triple threat” technique. They have been featured at Canada Games 2017, with the WSO and Disney World.
Ms. Gorlick had the great challenge of creating the 2018 Arctic Winter Games Gala in NWT and served as the Performer Liaison for 2017 Canada Summer Games in Winnipeg – a mere 20 years after she created the Opening/Closing Ceremonies in Brandon, Manitoba. In 1999 she was the head choreographer for the Ceremonies of the Pan Am Games, the biggest choreographic event Winnipeg has ever seen.
Ms Gorlick has worked as director/choreographer on numerous commercial projects including the 2023 OC/CC for World Police & Fire Games, WAG’s Olympus Project, the Grey Cup Gala 2015, SMD Foundation Galas, Culture Days Manitoba Flash Mobs, Manitoba Hydro’s Festival of Lights Parades, the Canadian Artistic Gymnastic Championships Gala and the Forks production for Queen Elizabeth II’s Royal Visit.
She has been involved in over 250 productions including every theatre in Winnipeg over the past 40 years. Selected credits include: Hamlet starring Keanu Reeves (Manitoba Theatre Centre), Strike! the Musical – World Premiere (Danny Schur Productions), A Year with Frog and Toad (Manitoba Theatre for Young People), Funny Girl (Winnipeg Jewish Theatre), Carmen (Manitoba Opera Association), Le Train (Cercle Molière) and Altar Boyz & Heathers (Winnipeg Studio Theatre/Prairie Theatre Exchange). Selected performer credits include: MTC/Theatre Calgary’s co-production of Evita, Rainbow Stage’s Wizard of Oz in the coveted role of Wicked Witch of the West, Jennyanydots/Gumbie in Cats and her all-time favourite: Anita in the Banff Centre’s West Side Story.
In film, Ms. Gorlick is featured in several Hallmark movies including the principal role of Ruth in “A Lifelong Love” opposite Tom E. Young and has starred in numerous indie projects including the award winning “If it Ain’t Got That” and “The Box”. She acted as Assistant Dance Crew Liaison for Miramax Productions feature flick: “Shall We Dance” starring Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez , and has choreographed the feature films “Seance” and the newly released “Timecut”.
As an Artist in the Schools, Brenda has created projects throughout the province for over 30 years. She has served as the Manitoba rep. for the DTRC (Dancer Transition Resource Centre) and currently sits on their Board. Brenda is one of the founders and former chair for the Winnipeg Theatre Awards. She created Manitoba Possible’s All Abilities Dancers – an inclusive group of dancers comprised of disabled youth and adults who have performed live and/or on film for numerous events. Most recently, Brenda joined the U-Turn Parkinson’s team where she teaches dance for people of all ages and stages of Parkinson’s. Brenda completed a 20-year “run” as professor in dance and musical theatre for the University of Winnipeg.
www.brendagorlick.ca
Pianist Madeline Hildebrand:
Madeline is a versatile pianist, soloist, and collaborator across Canada and the US. She has appeared recently in concert with Philip Glass (Winnipeg New Music Festival), the Kronos Quartet (Mass MoCA), with Yarn/Wire (DiMenna Center, New York), and as a soloist for Music Toronto’s COSE series.
Whether cooperating with a singer or a sine wave, Madeline’s collaborative virtuosity leads much of her work. Recent highlights include Winnipeg’s Cluster Festival, Vancouver’s Music on Main, and performances with Trio Joya in the Netherlands, and Ireland. Her debut album with her duo partner, oboist Caitlin Broms-Jacobs, was released in January through the label Leaf Music. She is a vigorous advocate for bringing classical music to rural communities and homes as evidenced by her solo tours with Home Routes, GroupMuse (NYC), and Living Room Live.
Madeline founded the Young Artists Program for Winnipeg’s Virtuosi Concert Series, where she served on the board for seven years. As an educator, Madeline as taught at Brandon University and Canadian Mennonite University. She has appeared at Music at Port Milford (Ontario), Rosamunde Festival (Manitoba), and as an adjudicator and master class clinician across Canada. Madeline Hildebrand recently completed her Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance at Stony Brook University, NY. Madeline is grateful for the support of the Winnipeg and Manitoba Arts Councils.
Madelinehildebrandpiano.com
Violinist Elation Pauls is Artistic Director of the Rosamunde Summer Music Academy and Festival and has served as Assistant Principal Second Violin with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra since 2009.
She has performed in major concert halls throughout North America and Europe and has collaborated as chamber musician with artists such as Andrew Wan, Yosuke Kawasaki and Martin Roscoe. She has served as adjudicator for numerous festivals and competitions, as sessional instructor at Canadian Mennonite University and maintains an active private teaching studio with students winning provincial prizes for top marks in their Royal Conservatory of Music exams.
In the fall of 2019 Elation collaborated with Polycoro Chamber Choir, performing Bach’s Chaconne where “She played with heart and soul, her violin carrying us into another realm with the singers’ chorales…deeply moving.” (Holly Harris, WFP) With support from the Canada Council for the Arts, SOCAN Foundation, Winnipeg and Manitoba Arts Councils, Elation recently recorded her debut album entitled SUSTENANCE alongside pianist composers Serouj Kradjian and David Braid. Visit violinelation.com for more details.
Donna Fletcher is an accomplished actor, singer, and concert performer with a wide range of national experience. Proud of her prairie roots, Donna received her early training in Winnipeg and earned a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Manitoba, a diploma in Music Theatre from The Banff Centre for the Arts, and a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from The University of Toronto.
As an actor, Donna has been acclaimed in principle roles from east to west with the Charlottetown Festival, Drayton Festival, Rainbow Stage, Theatre Calgary, Stage West Calgary, the National Arts Centre, Manitoba Opera, MTC, PTE, MTYP, WJT, the Belfry Theatre and Persephone Theatre.
In her role as director Donna has helmed the Rainbow Stage/WSO concert presentation of South Pacific; Phantom of the Opera, Into the Woods & The Sound of Music with Opera on the Avalon; Kiss Me Kate, Carousel and City Workers In Love for NUOVA; Merrily We Roll Along, The Bridges of Madison County, The Addams Family, A Man of No Importance and Sweeney Todd for Dry Cold Productions; Love, Loss and What I Wore for WJT; as well as Brundibar for the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra. Donna conceived the WSO presentation of Send in the Clowns: The Music of Stephen Sondheim where she took the stage with TONY Award winner Len Cariou. She is thrilled to be directing Siminovitch Prize nominated playwright Bernardine Stapleton’s reimagined No Change in the Weather for Terra Bruce Productions.
Donna served as First Vice President & Manitoba/Nunavut Councillor for Canadian Actor’s Equity for 15 years and was inducted into the Rainbow Stage Wall of Fame in 2012. Always seeking new challenges, she co-created Winnipeg Musical Theatre Company Dry Cold Productions which presented the Canadian Premiere of the smash musical THE PROM and is celebrating its 25th season with the Manitoba Premiere of Dogfight. Donna is a nationally respected clinician, Voice, Diction and Musical Theatre Performance & History Instructor at the University of Manitoba Desautels Faculty of Music as well as an Instructor of Music, Singing and Musical Theatre at the University of Winnipeg Department of Theatre. Most importantly, she is mum to Amalia.
