Our Team

Claire, a Caucasian woman with blonde hair smiles at the camera while she pets a gray cat.

Claire DeBruyn

Claire deBruyn (she/her) is a local theatre artist, dancer, and human originally hailing from the traditional territories of the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council and the Kwanlin Dün First Nation, also known as Whitehorse, Yukon. Within Bramble, Claire primarily has focused on Marketing and Community Engagement. Claire is also a graduate of UBC's Masters of Counselling Psychology and is passionate about mental health and finding ways to combine therapy with expressive arts. In her spare time you may find her playing cooperative board games, reading, planning themed parties, or cuddling other people's pets. Claire loves being a part of the Bramble team because she wants everyone who loves and cares about theatre to feel they have a place to be meaningfully included in that community. She believes having a space to grow, make friends, and participate in and create theatre should be accessible for all who yearn for that. 
Deanica, a Filipino woman with black hair pulled into 2 braids smiles at the camera. She is wearing a grey toque.

Deanica Galo

Deanica Galo (she/her) is a theatre artist born and raised on the territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish), and Tsleil-Waututh people, also known as Vancouver. Within Bramble, her tasks have mainly centered around behind-the-scenes logistics and people-focused responsibilities for events and productions. Deanica is also an elementary and middle school teacher working in the New Westminster school district, with a focus on social-emotional learning.  When she is not teaching or working with Bramble, you might find her choreographing dance combos, singing with Q Choir, hanging out with her dog, or playing Animal Crossing. Deanica loves being a part of the Bramble team because she gets to create a welcoming theatre space for herself and others to grow and make art, while also pursuing other areas outside of theatre. 
Emily, a Caucasian woman with brown hair smiles at the camera with a vineyard and mountains in the background.

Emily Saint

Emily Saint (she/her) is a theatre artist born and raised on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem First Nation), also called Port Coquitlam. For Bramble, she works on logistics and information management as well as assisting in producing larger productions. Outside of Bramble, Emily recently completed her master’s degree in public policy at SFU. While not doing stuff with Bramble, she can be found procrastinating doing work with baking, watching too much TV, or taking her dog for a walk. Emily is so happy to be a part of Bramble and of a group that is offering spaces for people to be involved with theatre in so many different capacities.
Oliver, a Caucasian man with brown hair, sips water from a glass at an outdoor patio.

Oliver Spilsbury

Oliver Spilsbury (he/him) is a theatre artist originally from Treaty 7 land (also called Calgary). In Bramble, he works on budgets and finances, as well as supporting the rest of the team. Outside of Bramble, Oliver is finishing his Master's degree in English Language and Literature at UBC. You can find him playing indie games, reading, and hanging out with slugs on the street.He’s so proud to be able to work in a collective that gives theatre opportunities for people who, like him, drifted away from doing theatre but never drifted from loving it.
Jessica, a Chinese woman with dark brown hair smiles at the camera sitting at a table outside with tea

Jessica Wong

Jessica (she/her) is a theatre performer, administrator, and voice actor originally from Hong Kong. Within Bramble, she tends to focus on production/event outlining. Most days you'll find her running around a theatre somewhere - either running rentals in the CTYP offices, or doing FOH/Box office somewhere in town. Outside of the theatre world, she loves cooking and hosting food parties, checking out new places to eat (recommendations welcome), or playing board games with the rest of the Bramble team. Like many, out of high school, she felt pressured to pursue a non-acting career. Finding a community who celebrated peoples love for performing helped her reconnect with her dreams. If through Bramble, she's able to help even one person feel empowered to pursue what they want to pursue, in whatever capacity they can - she'd be so happy.
Elsa, a Chinese woman with black hair in a ponytail smiles at the camera; a beach landscape is visible in the background.

Elsa Yuan

Elsa Yuan (she/her) is a theatre artist born and raised on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, aka Vancouver. Elsa first discovered a not-so-small passion for theatre while pursuing a BSc at UBC. Within Bramble, she focuses on production coordination and sometimes acts as an in-house stage manager. Outside of Bramble, Elsa is currently pursuing a PhD in Chemistry at UBC. In her free time, you can find her on the waters on a dragon boat team, playing RPGs, or making music.  As someone who believes very strongly in the value of interdisciplinary pursuits, Elsa is so glad to be able to provide opportunities for anyone with an interest in theatre to participate in a variety of ways, regardless of background, experience level, or availability. Whether you are just looking to make some friends, socialize, and read some scripts, or you’re looking to hone your creative skills through getting involved in full-length productions—Bramble strives to provide a space to support you.
The six members of the Bramble Team posing in silly ways. They are dressed nicely with fairy lights behind them.