We’re thrilled to share to this message from the Once team:
Hello Fellow Walterdaleans,
We are beyond excited for you to meet our newest Walterdale community member—and the leading man of our upcoming production of ONCE—Mark O’Reilly.
(And yes, Mark will probably be mortified that we’re writing this. Sorry, not sorry, Mark.)
Over the past few months, we’ve had the privilege of getting to know him, and we can confidently say: we’ve come to adore him, and we suspect you will too.
We’re writing this together because we wanted to give Mark the full Walterdale welcome.
Casting a show like ONCE is equal parts beautiful and brutal. Finding the right team of people means searching for folks who can act, sing, play multiple instruments, carry the emotional heart of the story, and—if that wasn’t enough—deliver a convincing Irish or Czech accent. No pressure. But – also- the entire creative bench was panicked. We were HOPEFUL but panicked.
We were incredibly fortunate to see many talented performers audition, and you’ll be seeing several of them on stage in our show. But when Mark walked into the room…
At the time, not one of us knew him.
We weren’t Facebook friends. Mark was basically untraceable. Believe me, we tried to find him. (Take a look at his instagram @markatthemill and see for yourself…) No one we knew had ever heard of him, let alone worked with him. He was a complete mystery.
Then this performer stepped into the audition room with a résumé that immediately had us all doing double takes – it was basically an empty sheet of paper… Yes, FOR REAL!
“Who is this guy?”
And then he started singing.
Within moments, the entire panel was exchanging looks that can only be described as theatrical disbelief. You know the kind—the look that says, “Are we all seeing this?”
Because from the second he opened his mouth, we were absolutely floored.
WHO IS THIS HUMAN?
WHERE DID HE COME FROM?
And, in what was almost perfect unison, the entire audition bench finally blurted out:
“Ummm… is that your actual accent? Or is that something you’ve somehow perfected?”
To which Mark casually explained that, yes, he was born and raised in Ireland.
Mystery solved.
Since then, Mark has brought not only extraordinary talent to the room, but also kindness, humility, generosity, and the sort of quiet dedication that makes an entire company better. He is the kind of performer who makes difficult things look effortless and the kind of person who makes everyone around him feel welcome.
Exactly the sort of person we hope finds a home here at Walterdale and throughout the Edmonton Theatre scene.
We can’t wait for you to meet him. From the moment the lights rise on him, you too will be drawn into the world of this mysteriously marvelous human. Mark’s GUY will invite you to fall in love not only with music, but with the beauty of life’s unexpected encounters and the joy that reminds us we are alive.
Break legs and hearts,
Bethany – Director
Rachel – Music Director
Samantha – Choreographer/Intimacy Director
Jordan – Assistant Director
Cameron – Stage Manager
Come see Once at Walterdale Theatre, running July 8–18
Use code ONCE20 until June 15 to save 20% on the first four shows (July 8–11)
Photo credit: Rachel Haverkamp. Pictured: Once Cast and Crew.
Edit June 20th: Additional photos added.
