VERDANDI THEATRE
Marika Karlsson
Marika Karlsson is an actor and puppeteer based in
Tiohtià:ke/ Montreal. Her artistic journey started in
Finland where she studied theatre and music during
most of her youth. She continued her studies with
a BFA in theatre performance at Concordia University
in Montreal, where she developed a particular interest
in puppetry arts. After graduating in 2021 from UQAM
with a DESS in contemporary puppetry, she participates
in various artistic projects in the Montreal art scene both
as an actor, puppeteer and creative collaborator. She is
a co-founder of the company Synthèse Additive, which is
currently on tour with their first show, SCOOOOOTCH!.
Recent performances include A comme Animal
(Marie-Pascale Bélanger), Au pays des merveilles and
Longues chaussettes en cabinettes (Les Cabinettes).
Yana K.M
Yana K.M is a performer and a visual artist from Siberia.
Her current art practice is a blend of physical theatre,
puppetry, free movement and ritual. In her early twenties
she worked towards her Master’s Degree in Fine Arts in
New York experimenting with photography, installation,
performances, and animation. In those years Yana taught
photography at University and was a photographer-in-residence
in a Japanese art space in Brooklyn where she collaborated
and studied Butoh with Japanese masters. In her thirties
Yana spent two years in Indonesia researching and practicing
traditional Javanese shadow theater, palace dances and
Joged Amerta awareness movement. She has extensively
traveled in Europe and Asia working with international
puppeteer artists. In 2021 Yana completed the
contemporary puppetry program at UQAM in Canada.