My name is Kwaku Okyere and I am a Ghanaian-Canadian actor and emerging director. My interest in TYA began when I had the great privilege of working on a devised TYA piece with my 2nd year class at Humber, entitled To Me in 10 Years, directed by Richard Greenblatt. Prior to this, I had no experience performing in any TYA, but after touring our Little-Show-That- Could to a few Toronto middle schools, I was able to witness, firsthand, how truly transformative Theatre for Young Audiences can be. Since then, I have had the opportunity to work as an artist educator with Story Planet and RARE Theatre Company, facilitating storytelling workshops in elementary schools. I have also worked with Theatre Direct, touring a reading of Andrew’s Tree to Cedarvale Community School and performing in the company’s WeeFestival twice. As an actor beginning to explore the realm of directing, I am constantly taking myself on excursions to the theatre. I am confident that the discerning eye and openness to new and experimental forms that I’ve gained as a theatre-goer, coupled with my experience with TYA as a performer would make me an ideal candidate to be considered for one of the jury positions in the Dora TYA Division.