April 23 – May 17, 2026
In This Program
- About the Show
- A Welcome from the Artistic Director
- Themes
- Cast and Creative
- Print Edition
- More About Seattle Children’s Theatre
About the Show
Seattle Children’s Theatre is grateful to our community and those who made this production of Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales possible.
Supporting Season Sponsors:
ArtsFund
Microsoft
The Shubert Foundation
4Culture
Show Sponsors:
Eleanor and Charlie Nolan
Seattle Children’s Theatre Presents...
Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales
April 23 – May 17, 2026
Produced by Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia
Written by Danny Everson
Inspired by the classic folktales Goldilocks and the Three Bears,
The Three Little Pigs, and The Three Billy Goats Gruff
CAST
Rachel Franco
Rafael Ziah Franco
CREATIVE
Jim Morrow Director, Set and Puppet Design
Danny Everson Writer & Creative Producer
Chris Luedecke Music Composer
Joshua Van Tassel Sound Engineer and Soundscape Designer
Ryan Wilcox Lighting Designer
Kate Church Character Designer
Struan Robertson Production Manager, Associate Designer & Director
Logan Robins Stage Manager
Cassie Seaboyer Puppet Sculptor and Builder
Michelle Warren Seamstress and Puppet Set Builder
Alexandra Cubbon Technical Artist
Sasha Postma Technical Artist
Brenda Duran Painter and Production Assistant
Sarah Haydon Roy, Charles Ford, Alex Esperanza & Julia Sommerville Production Assistants
*Actors Equity Association Member
^United Scene Artists Member, Local 829
**Stage Directors and Choreographers Society Member
A Welcome from the Artistic Director
Johamy Morales
Dear Friends,
Welcome to Seattle Children’s Theatre, where we grow good humans through the power of storytelling. It brings me immense joy to welcome you to Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales, created by Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia. Mermaid Theatre is a company whose mission is to bring the magic of storytelling, puppetry, and visual theatre to young audiences across the world. This production deeply resonates with our inner child and represents both a meaningful partnership and a beautiful reimagining of timeless tales. Their work is celebrated for its artistry, care, and emotional depth, and it is a true gift to bring their extraordinary vision to Seattle.
From the moment I encountered this new adaptation, I fell in love with its tenderness, sophistication, and delightful sense of surprise. These are stories many of us think we know but in the hands of this exceptional company of puppeteers and storytellers, they become something entirely new. There is a gentle subversion at play here: humor where you least expect it, nuance within familiarity, and a visual language that invites audiences of all ages to lean in closer.
What emerges is not just a retelling, but a celebration of classic stories with a twist, stories that remind us that connection can be found in the most unexpected places, and that friendships often arise between the most unlikely individuals. These themes feel especially meaningful right now, offering both comfort and a spark of wonder.
It is my hope that this production opens hearts, ignites imaginations, and reminds us all of the power of storytelling to surprise, delight, and bring us together.
Warmly,
Johamy Morales
Artistic Director
Cast and Creative
THE CREATIVE TEAM
JIM MORROW
Director, Set & Puppet Designer – (he/him) Jim Morrow is Mermaid Theatre’s Artistic Director as well as a performer, designer, teacher, mentor and creator of many of Mermaid’s celebrated productions including: It’s OK To Be Different; The Rainbow Fish; Goodnight Moon & The Runaway Bunny; Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See; Guess How Much I Love You & I Love My Little Storybook; and the award-winning productions of Swimmy, Frederick & Inch by Inch, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Eric Carle Favourites. Jim’s contributions to the community, both as artist and mentor, have earned him the Nova Scotia government’s highest award for artistic achievement, the Portia White Award; a Doctor of Humanities from his Alma Mater, Acadia University; the Order of Nova Scotia; and the International Performing Arts for Youth’s, Mickey Minor Award. Jim was born in Grand Falls, Newfoundland, and lives in Lower Avonport, Nova Scotia.
DANNY EVERSON
Writer & Creative Producer – (he/him) Danny Everson holds a Master of Fine Arts in Producing from the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) and a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Tampa. With a career spanning nearly a decade in the Theatre for Young Audience sector, Everson has served as both an arts executive and a creative producer. Additionally, he has written more than 60 episodes of television and film content for children and young audiences. Danny is Mermaid Theatre’s Executive Director and Creative Producer for MermaidTV. Danny Everson (the Playwright) is a member of the Playwriters Guild
of Canada.
KATE CHURCH
Character Designer – (she/her) Inviting viewers into a world of storytelling and introspection, Kate’s figurative work is an artful play of cloth, clay, wire, and found objects. The figures spark curiosity and provoke contemplation. As viewers immerse themselves in this imaginary world, they are encouraged to reflect on universal human experiences of humour, yearning, and a search for purpose. During her time as a textile and costume associate with Mermaid Theatre, Kate discovered her natural affinity for her distinctive figurative work. She is proud to have created figures for Cirque du Soleil which they commissioned and sold in their shops and at their shows around the world. She offers intensive workshops a handful of times each year. Kate describes her work as ‘Sculptural Puppetry,’ figures that combine movement and life with detail and line. She sees her characters as her muses, presenting her work hoping people might discover something for and about themselves. BFA, Rhode Island School of Design.
CHRIS LUEDECKE
Composer – (he/him) Old Man Luedecke is the stage name of two-time JUNO Award winner and Polaris Prize nominee Chris Luedecke, a celebrated Canadian folk singer-songwriter known for his high energy bango driven stompers, touching guitar ballads, and dry humorous stories. A longtime resident of rural Nova Scotia, Luedecke emerged from Halifax’s DIY folk scene in the early 2000s. He’s released critically acclaimed albums produced by Steve Dawson and folk legend Tim O’Brien, recorded everywhere from Nashville’s Butcher Shoppe to his hand-built cabin in Nova Scotia. His songs—like “I Quit My Job” and “The Early Days”—trace the beauty and struggle of everyday life with warmth and charm. Luedecke has toured widely across Canada, the U.S., Europe, and Australia, and in 2022 received an honorary doctorate from King’s University in Halifax for his cultural contributions.
JOSHUA VAN TASSEL
Sound Engineer and Soundscape Designer – (he/him) Joshua Van Tassel is a sideman, producer, composer, podcast producer, sample maker, and sonic landscaper. He regularly performs some of Canada’s best song writers including Great Lake Swimmers, Amelia Curran, Sarah Slean, Donovan Woods, Rose Cousins, and David Myles, among others. Joshua and his studio, Dream Date Studio in Toronto, have worked on albums for The Good Lovelies, Nico Paulo, Sarah Slean, David Myles, KIRTY, Justin Rutledge, Christine Bougie, Megan Bonnell, and more. He has been nominated for and won numerous ECMA, JUNO, and NSMW Awards.
LOGAN ROBINS
Stage Manager – (he/they) Logan “Lo” Robins (@loganrobins) is a queer environmental theatre maker, puppeteer, stage manager, science communicator, and the founding Artistic Director of The Unnatural Disaster Theatre Co. He is based in the Moolipchugechk region of Mi’kma’ki (colonially known as Herring Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada) and has performed across the world in theatres, on glaciers, and everywhere in between. In the summer of 2025 Logan performed as a puppeteer from Southern Spain to the Arctic Circle with “The Herds,” an international climate action project by The Walk Productions. Logan is passionate about devised theatre, mask, puppetry, and outdoor, site-specific, theatre that connects audiences to the natural world. As a theatre maker they believe that prioritising collective creation and community care are key to creating art that forges pathways of empathy towards others, ourselves, and the planet.
THE CAST
RACHEL FRANCO (she/her) is a movement-based performer with a BA Honours in Dance and Theatre from the University of Winnipeg and the School of Contemporary Dancers. Her passion for expressive movement led her into Motion Capture for 3D animation, and eventually into Animation Production, where she wrote and produced children’s content for companies including Mattel Entertainment, The Jim Henson Company, Fisher-Price, Nickelodeon, Knowledge Network, and Amazon Prime. Rachel creates, teaches, choreographs, and performs movement and theatre-based work in Canada and Colombia. In every project, she brings an energetic spirit and commitment to quality storytelling, with a special passion for work that engages and inspires young audiences.
RAFAEL ZIAH FRANCO (he/him) is a Colombian-born visual storyteller and multimedia artist with a flare for bringing stories to life through animation. He studied Photography and Performance at Santa Monica College, followed by Film and Media Arts at the University of California Los Angeles extension program. He enjoyed a long career in children’s television as a director and producer, where his work received awards from the TELUS Fund, Canada Media Fund, and Proimágenes Colombia. A playful and curious child at heart, Rafael naturally gravitates toward live performance and object animation. He is driven by the power of presence in visual storytelling to connect people across languages, cultures, and generations.
Seattle Children’s Theatre is a member of TYA/USA, the national center of the International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People.
SCT is a constituent of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national service organization for the nonprofit professional theatre.
SCT is a proud member of International Performing Arts for Youth (IPAY).
ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION, founded in 1913, represents more than 45,000 actors and stage managers in the U.S. Equity negotiates wages and working conditions, providing a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans. Equity seeks to foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of our society. www.actorsequity.org.
Lighting, sound, staging, property, scenery, scenic art, and costume work at Seattle Children’s Theatre is performed by employees represented by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists, and Allied Crafts of the US and Canada, AFL-CIO, CLC.
Seattle Children’s Theatre works with the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.
The designers at this theatre are represented by United Scenic Artists (Local USA 829) of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.
* Indicates members of the Actors’ Equity Association
Print Edition
More About Seattle Children’s Theatre
Seattle Children’s Theatre
SCT's Equity and Community Agreements
Land Acknowledgement
SCT's Board of Trustees
SCT's Staff
