Theatre With-Out-PaperS

Company History

Canada was born as a multi-cultural country; a country of great prosperity and opportunity, thus attracting many immigrants to a new and better way of life. But to relocate to a new country is to take a great risk attached with many possible sacrifices; made every day by people wanting and maybe needing to provide a better life for the future of their families. And by sacrifices we mean learning the North American culture which is quite different from most other parts of the world. Most often the result of this is abandonment of the original cultural background. Or at least, the misunderstanding of original traditions and customs, causing them to be misinterpreted, to unwillingly modify, or to extinguish altogether through the new generations in the family. This may be referred to as the 'death of a culture'. But in the beauty of it all, and what is often overlooked, is that it’s a new beginning; the 'birth of a new culture'. As well as other cultures in Canada, the Italian-Canadian society is one that has made themselves a firm foundation in Canada by proving themselves and working from ground up; despite the many labels and/or stereotypes that weighed them down for many years.

With these thoughts in mind, Antonino Pruiti and Dino Sepe created Fratelli (which is Italian for Brothers), originally showcased as a second year Vocal Masque project at Humber College for the Performing Arts. The project was designed to stick with 'a theme'; that theme being Brothers. The project was designed by Pruiti and Sepe to talk about a different upbringing; an Italian upbringing during the birth of a new generation. Also, exploring traditional customs as they transform into a new culture; the Italian-Canadian culture. This piece was centered on two Italian brothers growing up in a constantly changing world that would tare them apart and eventually lead them in two different directions.

After a great response, Pruiti and Sepe then decided to form a theatre company so they could create larger goals and stretch their message a little further through out the art community. Theatre With-Out-PaperS was formed in late summer of 2005. Pruiti later began working with a young talent, Joe Vermeulen, who would then jump aboard as their resident designer. But it wasn't until Fall of 2006, after months of drafting and work shopping their show that they finally opened with their first original show Fratelli. The show ran 12 successful performances in the Back Space at Theatre Passe Muraille. Since then, they've produced another dramatic piece, Wake Up, as a workshop in the 2007 Toronto Fringe Theatre Festival. Currently, The three resident artists are off on their own writing, as well as producing show with other companies or working with other mediums such as film and music.

Please do us a favor and browse the site, learning about our fundraisers and upcoming shows. Grazie e ciao!

- Antonino Pruiti & Dino Sepe

Co-founding Associate Artistic Directors

The Team

Antonino Pruiti - Associate Artisitc Director a.k.a. Nino or Tony, is a Toronto born Actor as well as aspiring Writer/Director/Producer. After graduating from the Humber Theatre Performance Program in 2004, Nino co-starred in Sweater People; an independent short film directed by acclaimed Canadian film director Nicole Chung that was well received in the 2005 Toronto Reel Asian Film Festival, San Francisco Asian American Film Festival, and Inside Out Festival in Toronto. In his spare time, Nino is working on adapting a few novels to the stage, one of which is Canadian. He is also currently working on a number of original screenplays in which he will produce in the next five to ten years. Whenever Nino needs a break from his work, he finds his newly found passion for the guitar, the piano, singing, and songwriting to be relaxing, as well as another creative outlet. Past Theatre credits for Humber Theatre include Catesby in Richard III, directed by Yanna McIntosh, Commander Fernando Gomez de Guzman in Fuente Ovejuna, directed by Tanja Jacobs, Barnabas in Red Castle Inquiry, an original play adapted from Franz Kafka’s The Castle and co-directed by Raymond Bobgan and Karin Randoja, and Tommy in Shorter Wilder Lives, directed by Diana Belshaw. For Pins and Needles Theatre, Nino played Safe in Jean Parker’s The Dishwater, which played in the 2006 Domino Theatre’s One-Act Play Festival in Kingston. For Column 13, Nino played the Holy Roller in Stephen Adley Gurgis's In Arabia, We'd Al be Kings, directed by Jonah Alison. Antonino Pruiti will soon be seen as the lead in a feature length play which he is working hard to gain weight for. This new original comedy/drama, a story about a young goon who is sucked into the new sport of Animal Fighting, is written and to be directed by Toronto writer Breen Godfrey for the stage in late 2008.

Dino Sepe - Associate Artisitc Director

is a Toronto based actor, as well as an aspiring writer and documentary filmmaker. Dino trained at Humber in the Theatre Performance program. His past theatre credits include Rodolfo in A View from the Bridge directed by Diana Belshaw, Harry Bagley in Cloud 9 co-directed by Diana Belshaw and Tatiana Jennings, Lord Mayor and Murderer 1 in Richard III directed by Yanna McIntosh. Over the next several years Dino plans to build his theatre company with friend and colleague Antonino Pruiti, as well as completing his first documentary film about Italian football. In his spare time he enjoys the culinary arts, script writing, art collecting, sports and music.

Joe Vermeulen - Technical Producer

is a young lighting and sound designer who is just starting to get his feet wet in the industry. His design career started in high school, where he designed several shows including the musical “Hair”, “Small Sticks”(Sears festival award) and the Bi annual UNESCO showcase. He currently studies theatre at York University and is completing his third year. His other interests include commercial aviation and digital music creation. Credits for Theatre With-Out-PaperS include Fratelli and Wake Up.