2022 Speakers

Born in Whitby, Ontario, the journey started for Priyanka (the drag superstar alter-ego of Mark Suknanan) with a career in television. She studied at Niagara College and interned for Rogers Television and MTV Canada, until she finally fought her way up to become the first web host of YTV’s “The Next Star”. Nicknamed “Suki”, she toured Canada as the face of “Next Star Nation” which quickly became the heart beat of the show. Her successes immediately parlayed into an even bigger platform when she was hand-picked by YTV as the face of their flagship after school program “The Zone”. For 6 six years, Priyanka was the face of Canadian children’s television, not only starring in, but writing and producing her own segments for her young fans airing between such favourite shows as: Spongebob Squarepants and Fairly Odd Parents.

In the spring of 2018, after being taken under the wing of top Toronto drag performer: Xtacy Love, Priyanka was born! She took the city by storm, sweeping the drag scene and snatching the crown in both the Miss Crews & Tangos pageant, and Woody’s: Queen of Halloween. She’s performed in every major city across Canada, Chicago & Dominican Republic and most recently graced the cover of Now Toronto after being named they cities “Number One Drag Entertainer”

With live shows filling almost every day of the week, two self-produced singles with accompanying music videos on iTunes aptly named: “You Look so Good” and “Say My Name”, and a weekly Series on YouTube, she is one of the hardest working entertainers in the business. It’s with that tenacity and determination that won her the first ever season of Canada’s Drag Race on Crave where she became Canada’s First Ever Drag Superstar.

Catherine O’Hara is a prolific, multi-award-winning actress, writer, and comedian whose film credits include lead and supporting roles in Beetlejuice, Home Alone, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, After Hours, Heartburn, The Life Before This, Penelope, Away We Go, Where the Wild Things Are, A.C.O.D., The Right Kind of Wrong, Nightmare Before Christmas, and many more.

O’Hara has collaborated with Christopher Guest and co-writer Eugene Levy four times on the critically acclaimed mockumentary films Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, and For Your Consideration. Her performance in the latter won her the 2007 National Board of Review Award for Supporting Actress. O’Hara has also made many guest appearances on top-rated television series including Six Feet Under and Curb Your Enthusiasm. Her role in HBO’s Temple Grandin earned her Primetime Emmy, Satellite, and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations.

O’Hara first performed with Toronto’s Second City Theatre and later, with fellow alumni including Eugene Levy, created the iconic sketch comedy show SCTV. O’Hara won an Emmy Award and earned four Emmy nominations for her writing on the show.

In the final two seasons of the hit CBC series, Schitt’s Creek, O’Hara received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Comedy Television Series, a SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series, a Critics’ Choice Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series, a TCA Award for Individual Achievement in Comedy, and multiple Canadian Screen Awards for Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Comedic Role amongst others. O’Hara also garnered Emmy, Golden Globe, and SAG awards in the Best Ensemble categories alongside her cast mates Eugene Levy, Dan Levy, and Annie Murphy.

O’Hara can be seen next in a second national tour with her Schitt’s Creek cast members in their live show “Schitt’s Creek: Up Close and Personal”.