Spring Gala Team 2022
Shadan Ashrafi
Co-Producer
Shadan is a third-year VFMP student and she is excited to be one of the Spring Gala producers this year. Working with the Gala team for the past two years has been a wonderful highlight of medical school for her. She’s looking forward to creating a memorable night to celebrate the artistic talents of UBC medical students! In her free time, Shadan enjoys baking and watching true crime documentaries.
Rachel Cheung
Co-Producer
Rachel is in her 4th year at VFMP. Spring Gala stole her heart the first time she watched as a first year, so she knew she had to get involved. She has been part of the Gala Committee for the past two years as Finance Director, and is excited to be in this new role as Co-Producer! She grew up singing, dancing, and playing the piano, so it is exciting for her to be a part of organizing a platform for her colleagues to display their artistic gifts.
Hannah Matheson
Artistic Director
Hannah is very excited to work with Spring Gala again this year! She thoroughly enjoyed her experience as a Publicity Director last year and is looking forward to now continue on with the Gala team as an Artistic Director. Having danced for almost 20 years, Hannah feels lucky to be able to continue to dance throughout medical school in UBC Medicine’s Terpsichore. She is always blown away by the talent on display at Gala and is honoured to continue the tradition of Spring Gala for another year!
Sophie Carr
Artistic Director
Sophie is thrilled to be part of the Spring Gala team again this year as an Artistic Director. She is a fourth year VFMP student who loves to dance and admires all other forms of artistic expression. She looks forward to another memorable evening celebrating the many artistic talents of the UBC medical community!
Sara Sheikh
Artistic Director
Currently in her second year of medical school, Sara spends her free time either dancing ballet or playing the classical guitar, both integral parts of her life since childhood. She’s beyond excited to back on the Spring Gala team this year serving as one of the Artistic Directors and is looking forward to seeing everyone’s hard work and beautiful talents come together to create a wonderful night!
Bailey Burrell
Technical Director
Bailey is a third year student at VFMP looking forward to his third Med Gala as a Technical Director. He's been around theatrical performances, concerts and recitals for more than two decades, usually running the show from behind the soundboard. Bailey is excited to see the med community come together again to celebrate some amazing talent!
Gabe Malvas
Technical Director
Gabe is a 3rd year who is stoked to be a part of the Gala team this year. The Spring Gala is such an enormous, annual highlight for the student body & it represents a time everyone can celebrate their "fun side" outside of the classroom. Although always a scientist at heart, Gabe has personally picked up enough of artistry to deeply appreciate the music, movement, and occasional mayhem all performers bring to bear on stage. He sincerely hopes that the behind-the-scenes preparations whet your appetite for the stellar performances planned for this year!
Sara Choi
Publicity Director
Sara, third year VFMP medical student, is very excited to work with the Med Gala team as a Publicity Director. Spring Gala was one of her top highlights in medical school and she is looking forward to another memorable evening celebrating art!
Larissa Hum
Publicity Director
Larissa is a third year VFMP student. In her free time, she enjoys working on her calligraphy and hand lettering skills. This is Larissa's first year joining the MedGala team - she's very excited to be a part of it after seeing the excellent shows the last two years!
Manisha Jogendran
Publicity Director
With over 10 years of experience in dance, I developed a passion for the arts and an appreciation for its unique diversity. As an audience member at the 2019 Gala, the performances and talent on stage sparked an interest in becoming a committee member this year. This will be my third year apart of the team and I am looking forward to another amazing show!
Sabrina Wei
Finance Director
Sabrina, a third year VFMP student, is very excited to be a part of the Spring Gala team. Although she does not have a background in arts, she really admires the vast variety of talent that is shared every year. She looks forward to a memorable evening with the medical community celebrating amazing art.
Nicola Horwood
Sponsorship Director
Nicola is currently a third year student in the Duncan ICC program and a part of the Northern Medical Program. She grew up in Victoria, singing in choirs, dancing and playing various instruments. Throughout her time at UBC, she’s been apart of Med Choir, Terpsichore (dance troupe), and FIFE girls. When she’s not in the hospital, you can find her exploring the great outdoors through skiing, hiking and mountain biking. She’s excited to help put together such an amazing concert!
Wendy Tsai
Sponsorship Director
As a first year at VFMP, Wendy is excited to join the Spring Gala team this year as a Sponsorship Director. She grew up in Vancouver, spent the past 5 years in Baltimore, and is now happy to be back in beautiful BC. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, playing the flute, exploring new books on her Kindle, and traveling. She looks forward to a memorable night of celebrating artistic talent within the medical community!
Vanessa Wong
Art Show Director
Vanessa will be returning as the Spring Gala Art Show Director this year. She is very excited to join the team and is looking forward to seeing all your beautiful artworks and pieces. She hopes to create an interactive experience so that you and the artist can connect through more than just a computer screen.
Derek Chan
Webmaster
Derek is a second year medical student and is excited to return to the Gala team as the Webmaster for another year. He loved being a part of Spring Gala last year and really enjoys planning events that bring people together. He cannot wait to see all the artistic talents of the UBC medical student body again this year. In his spare time, he can be found lifting weights at the MSAC or learning how to fix and maintain his car.