About Espoused Productions
Photo Credit: Maddie & Ivy by Mark Savoie
In the immortal words of Eileen Regina "Shania" Twain, "Looks like we made it."
Maintaining a budding friendship isn't easy. Cultivating a joyful roommate ecosystem is not for the faint of heart. Feeding the unmired maw of marriage in your mid-twenties is practically impossible. Doing all of that while founding an independent theatre company -in the most expensive city in the country- is what even the most mild-mannered, and well-meaning of great aunts might refer to as, "godless and messed up."
And yet? Looks like we made it.
Hi. We're Madeleine Humeny and Ivy Padmos, and it is the utmost privilege, and unyielding cause of boundless jitters and nauseating glee, to bring our hearts and minds to you here at Espoused Productions. The idea for Espoused was formed during a sunny September car ride over the Cambie bridge in 2023. The wheels of fate started to turn, and, following the perfect instigating onus to get our act together in January of 2024, some friends took a chance on us and offered us our own show in May of last year. The Maddie and Ivy Hour was born in co-production with Instant Theatre, and has since developed a monthly cult following.
We now find ourselves here, with many sold-out shows; an improvised play, Now We're In It; and a concerning degree of unbridled Gastown soft-shoe, produced solely under our moniker.
Looks like we made it.
At Espoused, we operate under a few, key, statements of ethos - we're professionals, folks.
Firstly, we always operate under a question that demands to be explored, and rarely answered.
Secondly, we refuse to hold our audience's hands. We don't rely on unearned shock and awe, but we also know you are smart, capable citizens, and won't deign to treat you as anything less.
Thirdly, we are atomically inspired by sadness and clown. Once we realized our characters didn't have to be likable – or we, as femme-presenting, queer creators and performers didn't have to be likable – everything changed. Depth becomes feasted upon in a way that invites our patrons to the table, without the promise of utensils. That's where we thrive.
That's what we promise to you, evermore.
Looks like we made it.
-Madeleine Humeny, Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Espoused Productions
What She Said.
-Ivy Padmos, Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Espoused Productions
Enjoy the show.
Photo Credit: Maddie & Ivy by Maddie & Ivy
Meet the Team
Madeleine Humeny
(She/They) is a queer, bilingual, multidisciplinary, award-winning performer and creator, with a penchant for Oxford commas.
Theatre is her first love, and, after graduating from a successful run at The Canadian College of Performing Arts, she's had the privilege of working closely with companies like Atomic Vaudeville, Bluebridge Theatre, The Belfry, Chemainus Theatre, Kaleidoscope Theatre, and The Greater Victoria Shakespeare Festival, where she was presented with a CBC Award for Comedy, on top of writing and producing her own work since 2017. Madeleine can currently be seen performing with Espoused Productions, Tightrope Theatre, Queerprov, Instant Theatre, and YamJam.
Ivy Padmos
(She/They) is a queer multi-disciplinary artist originally from Calgary, and has been here for six years.
Ivy fell in love with improv twenty some odd years ago, and as a true romantic with a committal streak, has married herself to this craft. Ivy has been lucky in love and has performed with The Improv Centre, Tightrope Theatre, YamJam, and Instant Theatre. She can be seen now producing her own show, The Maddie and Ivy Hour, right here with Espoused Productions.
Select theatre credits include Mary Hayes in Screwball Comedy and Elvira in Blithe Spirit (Royal Canadian Theatre Company).
Sacha Husband
Technical Improviser for Espoused Productions
Born and raised in Vancouver, Sacha has always had a strong desire to work in the local arts community. Following graduation from SFU's film school in 2015, he worked in the film industry as a script reader, tv office production staff, and at a VFX studio.
Wanting to be more performance focused, Sacha left his VFX job during the pandemic to attend On The Mic Training's full time voice-over diploma program, graduating in 2022. Since then, he has voiced over five hundred commercials for products ranging from Burger King, to Specsavers, to Reactine, and many more.
Since 2024, Sacha has been heavily involved in the Vancouver improv scene. It was in this year that he met Maddie and Ivy, who's combined raw talent and ability absolutely turned his belief of what theatre can be on its head. After bringing him on to tech his first Maddie and Ivy Hour, he has learned so much by watching the process of two individuals who form a true collaborative juggernaut.
Grá.