About Catalyst Theatre

Jonathan Christenson

Artistic Director

Jonathan is a director, writer and composer whose original musical plays have been presented at major theatres and festivals throughout the U.K., Australia, the U.S.A. and Canada. His work has been recognized with more than 40 British, Canadian and American awards and nominations, including a Lucille Lortel nomination for Outstanding New Musical of New York’s 2015 Off-Broadway season. His plays have been published by Playwrights Canada Press, Newest Press and Bayeaux Arts, recordings of his music can be found on iTunes and at Broadway Records, and his productions are featured in American Theatre, Maclean’s, CTR, PRISM International, Canada World View and All Stages. He was named one of “Alberta’s Fifty Most Influential People” by Venture Magazine and Alberta Playwrights Network chose him as one of Alberta’s one hundred most significant theatre artists of the past one hundred years.

Email Me

As Catalyst is a creation company, we do not accept script submissions. 

Lana Michelle Hughes

Managing Director

Lana has been with Catalyst since the fall fo 2009, and has been in a leadership role since 2017. Working at Catalyst has given her the gift of connecting with artists and administrators across Canada, and she is always grateful to engage with her diverse, talented and generous colleagues. As both an administrator and an artist, she’s especially inspired by Edmonton’s vibrant theatre community, and enjoys helping to cultivate and maintain our healthy arts ecology. When not at Catalyst she works as a freelance artist, and she has performed, directed and written for various theatre companies across Western Canada, including: The Citadel Theatre, Theatre Network, Workshop West Playwrights’ Theatre, Urban Curvz, Theatre SKAM, Send In the Girls Burlesque, Promise Productions, and Northern Light Theatre. She recently developed an Artistic Director Fellowship program for Shadow Theatre. She is a graduate of the University of Alberta’s Department of Drama, and holds a Diploma in Journalism from Grant MacEwan University. She has also studied with One Yellow Rabbit, Punchdrunk, Ghost River Theatre, and has completed Leadership Training through The Banff Centre.

Email Me

Bretta Gerecke

Resident Designer

Bretta is the resident designer at Catalyst Theatre where she has been designing and conceiving world premieres for the past 20 years. She is a Set, Lighting and Costume Designer who creates for Theatre, Musicals, Circus and Opera. When not at Catalyst she is designing for companies such as Edmonton Opera, The Citadel Theatre, Calgary Opera, Theatre Calgary, The Stratford Festival and Cirque du Soleil. She is the recipient of over twenty-five awards including The Enbridge Award for Best Emerging Artist; The Global Women of Vision Award; Edmonton’s Top 40 Under 40, and three times short-listed for the Siminovitch Prize. She illustrated the children’s book “Maximillian’s Mistake”, represented Canada in Prague at the Scenography Quadrennial and her costume designs will be exhibited in Moscow and Beijing this year. Bretta designed a summer home on Devil’s Lake, Alberta, is a marathon runner and an Archaeological Illustrator. She lives with her husband, Nick in London, and has a beautiful step-son and god-daughter.

Jessica Glover

Associate Producer

Jessica is an Edmonton-based arts administrator and has been Associate Producer at Catalyst Theatre since 2020. Previously, she has worked in various administrative and customer service roles at the Citadel Theatre, Theatre Alberta, and the Edmonton Fringe Theatre Festival. She is also the co-founder of the independent theatre company Cardiac Theatre and has co-produced all of Cardiac’s projects to date. On varying occasions, she has been a playwright (Maps to the Stars, New Works Festival), stage manager (Pompeii, L.A., Cardiac Theatre), and actor (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Edinburgh Festival Fringe). She holds a BA from the University of Alberta, and is a graduate of the Arts and Cultural Management Program at MacEwan University.

Email Me