Mariya Khomutova (born March 9, 1987) is a Ukrainian actress and playwright currently based in Canada.[1] She is most noted for the stage play The First Métis Man of Odesa, a collaboration with her husband Matthew MacKenzie, for which they won the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play, Independent Theatre in 2023.[2]

A native of Odesa, she had a number of stage and film acting roles in Ukraine, most notably a supporting part as Kursantka in the film Battle for Sevastopol, before meeting MacKenzie when he was in the country on a cultural exchange.[3] The First Métis Man of Odesa, a dramatization of their relationship and the impact of outside events such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine on their family, premiered at The Theatre Centre in Toronto, Ontario in March 2023, before embarking on a national tour of Canada with engagements in Edmonton, Vancouver, Saskatoon and Winnipeg.[4] Mackenzie and Khomutova were jointly credited as co-writers of the play even though Khomutova had no prior experience as a playwright, and starred in the production together even though MacKenzie had only limited prior experience as an actor.[5]

She also participated in an online reading of Lianna Makuch's stage play Barvinok (Blood of Our Soil), which was staged by the Blyth Festival in 2022 as a special fundraiser for humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.[6]

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