Caitlynne Medrek (born November 19, 1989) is a Canadian actress. She spent the first half of her career working in professional theatre throughout Canada, but has since expanded it to film and television.
A Canadian College of Performing Arts alumna, Medrek is best known for her roles in Seasons 15 and 16 of Heartland as Ms. Clarissa and Season 3 of Fargo as Grace Stussy. She has also had a voice acting career with notable roles like Dawn in Total Drama: Revenge of the Island, Mikoto in My-HiME, Miu Matsuoka in Strawberry Marshmallow, and Pan in Dragon Ball GT. Her latest mainstream voice work includes The Haunted House: The Secret of the Ghost Ball, Kongsuni and Friends, Cardfight!! Vanguard, Arthur, and Gintama. She can be seen in the final season of Hell on Wheels, Season 2 of Wynonna Earp, Season 3 of Fargo as Grace Stussy, Season 3 of The Detour and recently, Season 2 of Tribal and Season 2 of Yellowjackets. Medrek starred in two feature films in 2022. Hailey Rose was released in 2023 at the Calgary International Film Festival to much acclaim. Medrek played "Rose" and was ultimately nominated for an Ampia Award for Best Performance-Female or Non-Binary, and then by Actra Alberta for Best Supporting Performance. Hailey Rose can be found on most streaming platforms. The second feature film, Stage 5 was directed by Australian director, Eddie Arya, and is awaiting its Canadian release.
Medrek is also known in the world of web series for playing Claire Daniels, one of the main characters in the LGBTQ webseries, Out with Dad, for which she received nominations and awards.
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Early life
Medrek was born on November 19, 1989, in Calgary, Alberta to Cynthia (née Harrison) and Adam Medrek. She is of Polish and Ukrainian descent. Medrek started performing at 10 doing community theatre, and quickly moved into the professional theatre world at 12. She took up dance in a variety of styles including Ukrainian dance and competed at various festivals throughout the province in solo, duet, and trio events. She was a member of the Young Canadians of the Calgary Stampede and at age 15 competing in Calgary's "Youth Talent Showdown" competition at the Calgary Stampede where she won 2nd runner-up. That same year she placed first at the Kiwanis Music Festival and went on to win first place in Provincials for Musical Theatre in Edmonton.
Career
In 2006, she was cast as Amber in the Rod Lurie-directed film Resurrecting the Champ. Medrek has voiced characters in a variety of anime works, often with the Calgary-based Blue Water Studios and Ocean Productions. In the summer of 2007, she was a member of the Charlottetown Festival Young Company Training Program and a cast member of Alberta Fusion. She graduated in April 2008 from the Canadian College of Performing Arts (CCPA), where she received the Arnold Spohr Scholarship. After graduating college, she worked regional theatre contracts until she decided to move to Toronto, Ontario.
In December 2008, she was seen in Saskatoon-based Persephone Theatre's A Christmas Carol as 'Want'. In July 2009, Medrek performed with Globus Theatre, in Bobcaygeon, Ontario, playing the lead in Neil Simon's I Ought To Be in Pictures, and later that year appearing in the title role in Canada's debut of the off-Broadway show Pinkalicious the Musical. Medrek performed the role for two years.
In January 2010, she starred as Anne Frank in The Diary of Anne Frank, and completed the run of "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" as "Logainne Schwarzy" with Fallen Rock Productions, in the spring. In the summer she went on to play Charlie Brown's sister, Sally, in "Dog Sees God". While maintaining her theatre career, Medrek had been cast as a regular in the animated television series Total Drama: Revenge of the Island as Dawn, broadcast on Fresh TV and Teletoon, as a guest in the animated television series Skatoony, the web series Out With Dad and the second season of Clutch. In 2013 she starred in Blood Riders: the Devil Rides with Us which premiered at the Blood in the Snow Film Festival in Toronto, Ontario.
Medrek decided to move back to Alberta in 2014 to seek out future theatre and film opportunities in her home Province. In the fall of 2014, she was cast as Hope in Urinetown, Kensington in Becky's New Car, Violet Beauregard in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, "Betty Parris" in Theatre Calgary's The Crucible, Belle in Disenchanted, and Gertrude McFuzz in Seussical, the Musical. Medrek had also taken an interest in directing and assistant-directed Hana's Suitcase with StoryBook Theatre and made her directing debut in the fall of 2017 with Pinkalicious for StoryBook Theatre. In the summer of 2015, she was cast in Episode 10 of AMC's highly acclaimed Hell on Wheels. Since 2015, her film career has excelled further, along with more anime projects for Netflix, a role on Season 2 of Wyonna Earp, a principal role in Season 3 of The Detour, and a recurring role on Season 3 of Fargo as Grace Stussy.
Personal life
Medrek is married to Jordan Charette.
Filmography
Anime series
The Haunted House - Gaeun Lee
Strawberry Marshmallow – Miu Matsuoka
D.I.C.E. – Puffy Angel
Doki Doki School Hours – Chinatsu Nakayama, Soccer Ball
My-HiME – Mikoto Minagi
My-Otome – Mikoto the Cat Goddess
Flame of Recca – Ganko Morikawa/Primela, Young Fuuko
Future Card Buddyfight - Ku Teito
Gintama° - Soyo Tokugawa
Kiznaiver - Chidori Takashiro
Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam – Qum, Cheimin Noah
Dragon Ball GT – Pan (Canadian dub), Young Guide
Tomato Twins – Ti Ann
Cardfight!! Vanguard G - Rin Hashima
Kongsuni - Eve
Video games
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam – Elpeo Puru
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 2 – Elpeo Puru
Mega Man X: Command Mission – Cinnamon
Radio roles
Conversations with my Neighbour's Pitbull – Ellen
Discovery Financial – Teen Girl
Film and television roles
Resurrecting the Champ – Amber, the babysitter (deleted scenes)
Iota – Child Narrator, Lead
Second Coming in the 2nd Grade – Christina
Total Drama: Revenge of the Island - Dawn
Out with Dad - Claire Daniels
Clutch (web series) - Lex
Skatoony - Dawn
Blood Riders: the Devil Rides with Us
Bibi Blocksberg – Theme song Vocal
Arthur - Kaylie Lamott
Hell on Wheels - Season 5, Episode 10
Fargo - Season 3
Wynonna Earp - Season 2
The Detour - Season 3
Heartland - Seasons 15 & 16
Tribal - Season 2
Hailey Rose - Rose
Stage 5
Theater roles
Sound of Music – Stage West – Marta Von Trapp
A Christmas Carol – Theatre Calgary – Mary Cratchit
Picking Up Chekhov – Alberta Theatre Projects – The Kid
Oklahoma! – Front Row Centre – Ado Annie
Alberta Fusion – The Confederation Centre's Young Company/Charlottetown Festival
Oh Canada Eh! Dinner Theatre – Oh Canada Eh! – Rose Marie/ Featured Singer Dancer
A Christmas Carol – Persephone Theatre – Want
I Ought to Be in Pictures – Globus Theatre – Libby Tucker
Pinkalicious, the Musical – Vital Theatre Company – Pinkalicious
The Diary of Anne Frank – Encore Entertainment – Anne Frank
Becky's New Car - Alberta Theatre Projects – Kensington
The Crucible - Theatre Calgary - Betty Parris
Disenchanted - Cappuccino Theatre - Belle
Seussical, the Musical - Storybook Theatre - Gertrude McFuzz
Billy Elliot the Musical - Theatre Calgary - Mrs. Wilkinson
Awards and nominations
Medrek has received the following nominations and awards:
2013
4th Indie Soap Awards (2013) (1 only winner in a category)
Award : Best Breakthrough Performance for " Out with Dad "
2014
5th Indie Soap Awards (2014) (1 only winner in a category)
Nominations: Best Supporting Actress (Drama) for " Out with Dad " (1st nom.)
LA Web Series Festival 2014 (multiple prizes in the same category)
Award : Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for " Out with Dad "
2015
6th Indie Soap Awards (2015) (1 only winner in a category)
Nominations: Best Supporting Actress (Drama) for " Out with Dad " (2nd nom.)
2020
Top 40 Under 40
2021
Broadway World - Regional Awards (2021)(1 only winner in a category)
Award: Performer of the Decade (Musical or Comedy) for " Billy Elliot "
