NEW
by Pamela Mala Sinha
It's 1970 in Winnipeg, and a young Bengali bride has just arrived in Canada to marry a man she's never met. But the husband waiting for her is hiding a secret, and the tight-knit immigrant community she's stepping into is holding more than a few of its own. Three couples. A doctor with a double life. A marriage frozen by grief. Two students being pulled apart by the new world around them. And one unexpected arrival who refuses to behave the way anyone needs her to. Theatre critic Glenn Sumi calls New by Pamela Mala Sinha "specific in its details but universal in its themes" and one of the best new Canadian plays in years
Cast & Creative
Ali Kazmi
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Ali Kazmi is an award winning Pakistani, Canadian, trained multilingual, and multifaceted, professional creative powerhouse of an Actor/Director & Producer. He has been working successfully both on and off camera, in the industry in Pakistan, India, Canada & USA for over 20 years in the creative fields of theater, television & film.
Some of his latest notable TV/Film Projects Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy” (Canada’s submission for the Academy Awards) & “Beeba Boys”; “Umro Ayyar- A New Beginning” (Pakistan’s first Epic Superhero/Adventure film);“Law and Order Toronto”; “Murdoch Mysteries”; “Transplant” Angelina Jolie’s Oscar nominated “The Breadwinner”, “Designated Survivor”; NBC’s “Taken”; “Falling waters”, Pakistan’s Record-breaking hit TV series “Baaghi” “Jackson heights” , “Badnaam” and “Jaal.”
Theatre - “Life of Pi”, Dora nominated “Uncle Vanya” (Astrov) Mirvish/Crows production and “Behind the moon”- Tarragon Theatre. “New”by Pamela Sinha at CanStage
The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.
Lisa Ryder
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Currently studying at UofT (Masters of Psychospiritual Studies) Lisa is also an actor and writer based in Toronto. Recent acting credits include “Craze” (Tarragon Theatre), “The Darkest Dark” (YPT), and “The 52 Live” (Luminato Festival, Toronto). She can be seen on recent episodes of “From” (Paramount Plus), “Gen V” (Prime Video) and “Hudson and Rex” (CBC).
Ellora Patnaik
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Canadian-born Ellora Patnaik is a dancer and actress. She grew up teaching and performing Odissi Classical Dance, a traditional style from the state of Odisha in India. She is a graduate of the American Academy of Arts, where she was a company member in her third year.
Part of the first wave of South Asian actors to break into the mainstream in the West, she has performed diversely on stage and screen, for both TV and Film. Notable appearances include: Sort Of, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Kim’s Convenience, and Ginny and Georgia (TV), and My Own Country, Tapish, and One Small Visit.
She starred in the feature film “Calorie” which premiered at the Calgary International Film Festival in September and opened in Canadian theatres in late November of 2025.
Ellora enjoys classic cinema of many genres. She also enjoys horseback riding, gardening, and preparing novel food.
She is the friend and ally of all animals, always and everywhere.
Zorana Sadiq
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Zorana Sadiq is an award-winning Toronto-based actor, playwright and classical musician. A multidisciplinary artist of Pakistani descent, her work spans different types of performance from theatre, verbatim theatre, radio and television to chamber music, modern opera and new music.
Performance: A Sense of Place (Music Gallery), MixTape (Crow’s Theatre-Dora Mavor Moore nomination for Outstanding Performance, Grand Theatre), Into the Woods (STC), Wildfire (Factory Theatre), Towards Youth (Crow’s Theatre), CHILD-ish (Summerworks Lab), Eleven Moons (Boston Musica Viva), Bend it Like Beckham (Starvox), Helen’s Necklace (Canadian Rep Theatre), , The Enchanted Loom (Cahoots Theatre), , Sultans of the Street (Young People’s Theatre- Dora Mavor Moore for Best Ensemble), as well as appearances with Necessary Angel Theatre, Soulpepper’s Global Cabaret, Vancouver’s Turningpoint Ensemble, Soundstreams Canada, The Tanglewood Music Centre, Bad New Days, Banff Summer Arts Festival, Calgary Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic and Boston Musica Viva.
Television: Strays, In the Dark, Designated Survivor, Kim's Convenience, The Mulroneys, Burnt Toast.
Writing: Sadiq is the recipient of a Creative Development Grant from the Canada Council and a Creative Residency Grant from the Ontario Arts Council. She has written the verbatim text for a large musical work, The Great Pause which is currently being scored and slated for performance in 2023. Sadiq wrote and guest-hosted 10 episodes of Tempo on CBC Music in the last two years.
Shelly Antony
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Shelly Antony is a Classically Trained Actor who has over 10 years of professional experience in Theatre, Film & T.V. His work has been seen in Canada and Internationally at places like the Stratford Festival, Canadian Stage and also in cities such as Edmonton, Winnipeg and Shanghai.
Fuad Ahmed
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Fuad Ahmed is an accomplished Canadian film, television and theater actor known for his wide-ranging talent, effortlessly shifting between comedic and dramatic roles in both character and leading performances. Born in Karachi, Pakistan and raised in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand and Atlanta, his multicultural background enriches the depth he brings to every role. His recent work includes Painkiller (Netflix), Brilliant Minds (NBC), Christmas Casanova (Peacock), and Late Bloomer (Crave Canada). A graduate of the prestigious Actor's Conservatory at the Canadian Film Centre and a recipient of the RBC Emerging Artist Award, Fuad is also a passionate advocate for South Asian representation in the arts. He will next be seen as a new series regular on the hit TV show, Sullivan’s Crossing (CTV).
Pamela Mala Sinha
Playwright/Actor
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Pamela Mala Sinha is a Winnipeg-born writer and actress who works in theatre, film and television. Her first solo play, Crash, which she also performed, garnered six Dora Nominations and four awards including Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actress and Outstanding New Play for 2012. Pamela’s second play, Happy Place, was made into a film which was directed by Helen Shaver. Sinha wrote the screenplay and also played one of the roles. Pamela lives in Toronto.