Rebecca Northan has been improvising and working as an actor since the 1990s. I met her at our illustrious alma mater The University of Calgary. She got her start at the famous Loose Moose Theatre Company in Calgary. There she met founder and improv master Keith Johnstone whose teachings would shape Northan’s career and life.
In 2004 she was nominated for a Gemini Award for "Best Ensemble in a Comedy". Northan is also a five-time Canadian Comedy Award nominee, and one time winner, for "Best Female Improviser". She has made several appearances at the Montreal Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in the World Improv Games, and was a member of The Second City Toronto mainstage cast. She has also appeared as a guest host on CBC's This Hour Has 22 Minutes.
In 2016, she won the Dora Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female for her popular show Blind Date which has been performed over 1000 times.
With her performing partner Bruce Horak she created their wildly popular interpretation of the Scottish play in mask, Goblin Macbeth which has recently had sold-out runs at the Stratford Festival and Bard on the Beach. In February of 2024 Goblin: Oedipud debuted at One Yellow Rabbit’s High Performance Rodeo in Calgary. You can see the Goblins for yourself at the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton in January 2025.
I spoke with Northan over Zoom from her home in Stratford Ontario.
The Bold Interview: Rebecca Northan on Her Be$t year, Authentic Intelligence and Why You Should Make Your Own Work