The Fredericton Playhouse selection committee has recognized and awarded director, educator, and community artist Lisa Anne Ross as the Playhouse Honours recipient for 2025.
Lisa is a transformative force in the Fredericton and New Brunswick arts scenes. Her contributions span performance, directing, education, and inclusive community-based arts initiatives—each rooted in a commitment to social change, creative collaboration, and her primary virtues: fun and inclusion.
“Lisa Anne Ross has profoundly shaped the performing arts in our region through her boundless imagination, care for community, and dedication to inclusion,” said Lesandra Dodson, Programs Manager at the Fredericton Playhouse. “Her impact is visible in classrooms, rehearsal halls, and on stages across the province—we’re extremely lucky to have her practicing and expanding the arts in our community.”
Lisa’s formal training includes Dalhousie University, the Dell’Arte School of Physical Theatre in California, and a Master’s degree from York University focused on ‘theatre as a tool for social change’. She has performed and directed with theatre companies across Canada and is the founder and Artistic Producer of Solo Chicken Productions, a company known for its bold physical theatre and socially engaged projects.
An inspiring educator, Lisa is a part-time faculty member at St. Thomas University where she mentors emerging artists and fosters inclusive, creative environments. For the last six years she has been leading The Spirit Project—a company of artists with and without intellectual or physical disabilities—and has brought a great number of powerful new voices to the stage. Their original production Magic Beans: The Musical, featuring party-loving pirates and a duck named Oreo Jr., exemplifies Lisa’s joyful, collaborative, and boundary-breaking approach to theatre-making. She’s cited the project as the potential highlight of her career.
Lisa’s belief that inclusion strengthens both art and society is at the heart of everything she does. Her practice has created space for diverse voices, playful storytelling, and meaningful connection—bringing audiences and communities together in unexpected and unforgettable ways. Not only has she upheld these values across all of her projects in our community, she’s also instilled them on every pupil she’s worked with in our community.
As the 2025 Playhouse Honours recipient, Lisa Anne Ross joins a celebrated group of performing arts pioneers who have shaped the cultural fabric of our region. As a titan of creation and education in our arts community, her place in the group of honorees is well deserved.
The Fredericton Playhouse acknowledges the generous support of promotional partner Atlantic Mediaworks for their contribution of services to the program.
Photo credit: Kelly Baker Photography