

Desaulnier dancing during a live performance of "Do The Owl".

Desaulnier performing as the Red Wiggle during a live concert in 2004.

Desaulnier with a bouquet of roses collected for Dorothy during a live show.

Desaulnier and his fellow Wiggly Dancers backstage.
Ryan Michael Desaulnier is a Canadian actor, singer, dancer, musician, and educator who has worked for The Wiggles as both a background dancer during various live concert tours and in several video specials and as a backing vocalist on several of the band's albums. In addition to performing as a dancer and vocalist, Desaulnier also portrayed Gallant George in Series 2 of The Wiggles Show! and served as an occasional live understudy to Murray Cook, performing as the Red Wiggle in Cook's absence during the Concert for Holly, the 2004 tour of the United States, and the Sailing Around the World Live! tour. He was invited to join the Wiggles' cast after performing as Raoul in John Field's 2001 musical Evie & the Birdman and subsequently meeting with John's younger brother and Wiggles creator Anthony Field, who was in attendance of one of the shows.
Desaulnier was born and raised in Kitchener, Ontario, and then moved to Toronto in his 20's. After graduating from Ryerson University Theatre School in 1991, he spent three seasons as a performer at the famous Stratford Festival, where he appeared in a total of eight musical theatre productions including Man Of La Muncha and Camelot. He has also appeared in various other theatre shows, including productions of Annie and Me and My Girl by the Huron Country Playhouse and The Importance of Being Ernest by Twisted Tree Theatre, in films such as AFTRS' The Instructional Guide to Dating and the 2002 television movie Counterstrike, and in commercials for products such as Coca Cola, Fantastic Furniture, and Washington Mutual.
After leaving the Wiggles, Desaulnier created the rock band The Vinyl Edge in 2014 and served as the band's lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist. He also worked as a drama teacher at the Northern Beaches Christian School, taught drama and history at St Andrew's Cathedral School, and appeared in John Field's 2017 musical Who Loves Me? In 2022, following a move back to Canada, Desaulnier started performing as a solo artist and joined the non-profit theater company Drayton Entertainment as an instructor. He has also worked on a children's show pilot called Michael In The Awesome World, which was uploaded to John Field's YouTube channel in July of 2023.
He is married to Carolyn Desaulnier, and together they have three children.
Wiggles Media Credits[]
Wiggly Dancer[]
- Wiggly Safari (in concert clips only)
- Top of the Tots
- Santa's Rockin'!
- LIVE Hot Potatoes!
- The Wiggles Show! (uncredited)
- Sailing Around the World
- Here Comes The Big Red Car
- It's Time to Wake Up Jeff!
- Splish Splash Big Red Boat
- Wiggledancing! Live In The U.S.A.
- Racing to the Rainbow
- Wiggledancing! Live In Concert
- The Wiggles Show! (Latin America) (uncredited)
Backing Vocalist[]
- Santa's Rockin'!
- LIVE Hot Potatoes!
- Sailing Around the World
- Here Comes The Big Red Car
- It's Time to Wake Up Jeff!
- Racing to the Rainbow
- Getting Strong!
- Dorothy the Dinosaur's Rockin' Christmas (archived recordings)
- The Sound of Christmas (archived recordings)
Character Roles[]
- Ship's Computer (Space Dancing!)
- Gallant George (Here Comes The Big Red Car, It's Time to Wake Up Jeff!, Splish Splash Big Red Boat, Series 2 of The Wiggles Show!)
- Astronaut (Racing to the Rainbow)
Trivia[]
- Desaulnier once played Professor Singalottasonga while Sam Moran was filling in for Greg Page as the Yellow Wiggle.