Music Theatre - Performance
Graduation Year: 2000
I am living a dream come true, having just completed my Stratford Festival debut as Maria in West Side Story and Philia in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum during the 2009 season.
I had wanted to be at the Stratford Festival for many years and I feel very fortunate to have had a chance to play these two wonderful characters. It was also very satisfying as an actor to tackle such divergent roles in these two very different shows.
Before coming to Stratford, I spent three seasons at the Shaw Festival and appeared in several high profile productions, including the world première of The Lord of the Rings and the first U.S. national tour of Mamma Mia! (as Sophie). Chilina also played Anne in Anne of Green Gables at the Charlottetown Festival and Mayzie in Seussical – The Musical.
I loved being on tour with Mamma Mia! and creating The Lord of the Rings. Made-in-Canada shows are rare so I felt particularly privileged to be a part of such an exciting experience. And I'm a huge Tolkien fan.
Luck has definitely played a part in my accomplishments to date, but ongoing learning is important for lasting success, so I am continually improving myself. While at Stratford, I took advantage of their free classes and tutorials to develop my skills over the course of the season. This was a rare and a wonderful opportunity.
The best advice I can offer new actors is this: don’t give up, because it gets hard. You will hear ‘no’ many times before you hear ‘yes’. Art demands a lot from you but if it's your passion, you must follow it because life is too short not to do what you love.
Despite the challenging and unpredictable world of the theatre, I don’t worry too much about future projects. In this business, you must be flexible and open to new opportunities. None of us knows what lies ahead and I think it's best to take life one day at a time. Right now, I am enjoying staying put for awhile after having bought a house in Stratford.