I was thinking a lot of what you said about "story". Being an actor that works a great deal in the mainstream, but comes from a diverse culture, what are you responsible to, "The story" or "the voice"? When do you feel they are separate? When have they come together for yourself as a storyteller?

My job as an actor is to give voice to the story. I am not a storyteller, rather, a re-teller of stories. I believe that the story and the voice are intrinsically linked - and cannot be separated. My responsibility is to take whatever skills, instinct and gifts I may have (my 'voice') and apply them to communicating something (the 'story') to an audience. If these two elements don't gel, then I'm not doing my job. I don't think that my responsibility to this task alters whether I'm working for the Vancouver Playhouse, or Neworld Theatre. I also question the notion of mainstream. Yes, I've worked for some of the large regional theatres; I've also worked for dance companies, small alternative theatre companies, companies with mandates to produce new work by young playwrights. I'm not sure how this hodge-podge of experiences qualifies me as "mainstream"? What's important to me is the re-telling of a good, well-crafted story, in such a manner that any audience member from any background can be touched by it in some way.

Reflecting on our conversation on reflection...do you need to see yourself to know you exist? On much smaller terms, do people of diverse cultures need to witness themselves on stage, or is theatre much bigger than that? If theatre is bigger than that, in reality, do you think directors that cast shows are as big?

This is a tough question because I think that the answer varies from person to person. For myself - no - I don't need to see myself to know that I exist. For example, I have no connection whatsoever to Eastern European culture, yet I can be moved to tears by an Estonian devotional chamber choir. Again, it comes back to the story. Tell me a story that moves me, that gets my brain and my heart churning and I will be drawn into the experience - which tells me that I exist. That, for me, is what art is about. It moves us forward by challenging what we think we know - or in some cases, by re-affirming what we know.

There is definitely a desire for people to see themselves reflected in the world around them - this certainly applies to theatre. And in a city like Vancouver, it's great to see theatre that reflects our diverse population. I believe culturally diverse work is being created all over this city by artists who need to share their stories with the general population. By and large, it's work that's being produced independently outside of the large regional theatres. But I don't have a problem with that. What that gives the audience is a large cross-section from which to choose. We as artists can't place judgments on what the audience wants to take in. What we can do is provide them with opportunities and diverse experiences. In terms of casting, I have trouble with the argument that any theatre should be obligated to cast anyone to satisfy quotas. What I do believe is that artistic directors should always be concerned foremost with hiring the most suitable person for the job regardless of ethnicity. By and large, it has been my experience that this is more often the case than not. Those few whom I suspect may have issues with diversity are not people who I'm interested in working with.

I often feel that there are words that have been so over used and battered that they have lost the power of their true intention. We were talking about these kind of words in our world, to name a couple, "colour blind casting", "multi-culturalism". Do you think these terms serve us, or serve to ghettoize our work, and take away its individual artistry?

So here's where I go on my bender. I take huge exception to being classified or pigeonholed by any term. I believe that a lot of the terms that get thrown around regarding ethnicity, culture, colour, class etc. are detrimental. At the risk of sounding lofty, I am an artist. As artists in this country, we have a lot of battles to fight surrounding our status as a community. I look around the country and see that ethno-specific terms are further ghettoizing pockets of artists. I don't understand terms like 'colourblind casting'. No one can possibly be blind to my colour when I walk into a room. To strive to do so is to deny who I am. I am a Pakistani-Canadian, fully comfortable with my cultural imprinting. I know where I come from and I don't need to be told by anyone who I should be responsible to. As an individual, I have something to add to the whole. Any outside attempt to classify me into a 'group' takes away my individuality, effectively preventing me from lending my personal and professional experience to any project. If my cultural background can assist me in the telling of the story - I use it. If it's not appropriate to the role, I don't. I have no desire to be lumped into homogeneous categories, arbitrarily chosen by others for the sake of political correctness and comfort zones. For me, political correctness equals fascism.

I know there are many "actors of colour" who are struggling to get a place on any stage. You have described yourself as an actor, a hired gun, how far has your talent, discipline and business know- how informed your success? Do you think this is possible for anyone of a diverse background?

I think that my success, if it can be called that, is the product of many things. Certainly, good training helped. I'm a U.B.C. BFA graduate and I had the benefit and privilege of excellent education, experiences that stretched me, and gave me the confidence and the skills to dive in to the profession when I graduated. Discipline and a good work ethic are also very important. Some of that I learned at university - a lot of it was also what was instilled in me growing up. I grew up in an environment where I was told that as long as I nurtured whatever gifts I had, worked hard and was respectful and tolerant of others, no door would be closed to me. I've lived by those maxims and they've served me well. As far as business savvy is concerned, that's all on the job. You learn as you go. Am I an exception? I don't know. This is a profession in which all kinds of factors can effect whether an actor works or nor not. And as a hired gun, a lot of it is out of your hands. I would like to believe that any actor of any background can achieve what I've achieved. Am I naive? I don't know. I haven't faced a great deal of overt racism. At the same time, I've never been offered anything, professionally, on a plate. Like everyone else, I've worked my ass off, and earned my opportunities. Success is a funny term. You ask me about my success as an actor, but I defy you to tell me that I've had greater success than incredibly dynamic women in this city like Margo Kane, Carmen Aguirre, Kim Collier, Katrina Dunn, Lorena Gale, Judith Marcuse, Mercedes Baines, Diane Brown, Marie Clements to name a few, who are actors, writers, producers, directors - the list goes on. These are truly women of success. Women who inspire me. This is what I am honoured to call my community. Is it diverse? Yes. Is it possible? Absolutely.