Sophie Moynan honoured with 2025 Pauline McGibbon Award

Sophie Moynan, a production craftsperson who specializes in props and costuming, is the recipient of the 2025 Pauline McGibbon Award. This award is presented to an Ontario-resident professional artist in the early stages of their career who has contributed to the well-being of Ontario’s theatre community, displays unique talent, and has the potential for excellence.
 

Sophie received the award today during the nomination announcement press conference for the 45th annual Dora Mavor Moore Awards, held by the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto.

About Sophie Moynan

• Sophie Moynan is a multidisciplinary artist based in Tkaronto (Toronto), working in prop making, leatherwork, shoemaking, and visual art.
• Sophie graduated from Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU)’s Theatre Production program in 2017. She has also completed specialized training in shoemaking, including at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity and with a professional Western-style bootmaker in Calgary.

Canadian Opera Company’s 2024 production of Faust. Sophie Moynan built the 1878-era cake trolley and desserts used in this scene. (Photo: Michael Cooper)

• Sophie has worked as a prop builder with a number of Toronto-area performing arts organizations, including the Canadian Opera Company, Canadian Stage, Soulpepper Theatre, and Factory Theatre. She has also created props for the band GOODKID’s 2024 and 2025 concert tours.

Full view of cake trolley and desserts built by Sophie Moynan.

• Sophie is committed to supporting emerging artists and sharing the knowledge passed down by her mentors. While at TMU, she received the Wylie Award for Excellence in Theatre Production, recognizing her teamwork skills in support of a production’s artist vision. More recently, she has come full circle by serving as a props mentor in TMU’s Theatre Production program.

Factory Theatre’s 2019 production of Trout Stanley, for which Sophie Moynan served as Head of Props. (Photo: Joseph Michael Photography)

Quote

The assessors were excited in their selection of Sophie Moynan as laureate of the 2025 McGibbon Award. As they noted:

“Sophie is a truly enthusiastic maker. Her boundless curiosity and desire to continue learning are key to her professional success. Her wide variety of prop-building skills, along with her creative problem-solving, provide ingenious contributions to the storytelling of each production she works on. We are also inspired by Sophie’s commitment to building a strong theatre community through mentoring and teaching."

About the Pauline McGibbon Award

• Established in 1981, the award honours former Lieutenant Governor Pauline McGibbon for her support and patronage of the arts. It includes a $7,000 prize and a bronze medal designed by Dora de Pédery-Hunt.

The Pauline McGibbon Award medal, designed by Dora de Pédery-Hunt.

• The award is given each year by the Province of Ontario through the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Gaming and is administered by the Ontario Arts Council.
• The award is cyclical in nature: the first year of the three-year cycle, the award goes to a designer, the second year to a director, and the third year to a production craftsperson.

Official portrait of Pauline McGibbon, by Cleeve Horne.

• The winner is selected by a peer assessment jury, which this year consisted of Paul Boddum (scenic artist, Toronto), Monica Lee (props and costume-builder and 2022 McGibbon Award laureate, Toronto) and Clelia Scala (theatre and visual artist, Kingston).
• Previous winners include theatre director Tawiah Ben M’Carthy (2024), set and costume designer Samantha McCue (2023) and props and costume builder Monica Lee (2022). Full list of Pauline McGibbon Award laureates.