Merilyn Brend is a director, dialogue coach and a trained drama and music teacher at both primary and secondary levels, a professional actor and a community artiste. She graduated from St. Peter's College (Uni. Birmingham) majoring in drama. She has been trained by and worked with notable people such as Joan Littlewood, Prof. John Pick, Second City Theatre Company (U.K) and Freeform Community Arts.

Within her work she has been dedicated to all aspects of youth performing arts. She has been the dialogue coach for many children's television series. She has also tutored many students who are presently training or who are actors and professionals working within the industry. Merilyn owned and operated an agency being a founding member of the Victorian Children's Agents Association however education, training and performance dominated and the agency ceased in the early 1990's.

For the past twenty years she has led MBCTA Youth Theatre and Drama School working with students aged from 8 on. The drama school provides a wide range of opportunities for those interested in entertainment in the Outer Eastern Suburbs. MBCTA concentrates on introducing students to all aspects of actor training and performance. Courses offered include acting technique, performance, film and television skills, training in the various disciplines pertinent to theatre and also offers VCE Drama and has one adult acting group. MBCTA offers a range of facilities, including performance space seating an audience of 65, green room, make-up room, costume area and bio-box.

MBCTA has a Youth Repertory Theatre Company separate from the Drama School, which works with young people and adults. Youth representatives take responsibility for planning and implementing productions. They create new works and experiment with varying dramatic art forms. An Old Time Music Hall toured to the historic gold-mining area of Walhalla as part of a Federation 100 project.

Merilyn, with her husband Bill, formed the Australian College of Dramatic Arts (ACDA) in 1991. ACDA is a private part time college specialising in acting for film and television. The college became a Registered Training Organisation in 1996 and offers the first and only accredited Certificate II Acting (Film and Television) part-time course in Australia. Merilyn wrote the curriculum for the Certificate course. Her present work includes VCE Drama, complimentary studies to support Drama and Theatre Studies, Film and Television Industry short courses and offers many types of workshops for primary students and teachers.

She was an active member of the Project Steering Committee for the development of an Arts Facility within Knox and its regions also working on an Arts and Cultural Strategy plan for Knox City Council. She is continuing with her community role as an arts advocate for young people in the Outer Eastern Suburbs of Melbourne. Her latest project has been working with Wesley Youth Services - Eastern on a provocative performance piece entitled "Fostering - Thought to Action".