Port Moresby Productions is presenting two new short plays at the Red Sandcastle Theatre this March. Michael Stittle – playwright and director of Fail Safe – and Bil Antoniou – who wrote, directed, and is acting in We Say Such Terrible Things – invite you to an evening of entertainment including a dystopian dream and biting banter. More information…

The 2014 Toronto Fringe Festival is under way! Here’s a complete list of this year’s Fringe previews to help you plan your patronage. Thanks to all of the theatre creators who sat down for a chat! An Evening in July Licking Knives Julius Caesar Project Memento Mori Tarrare: A Story of Hunger Valkyrie GUNSHOT Fantastic Extravagance The festival also…

The Steady State Theatre Project provides programming for plays at all stages of development. This year, as part of the Toronto Fringe Festival, the company presents a play it has been developing over the last two years. Playwright Lara Stokes recounts her script’s history and shares her thoughts on the creative process and the relationship between…

There’s a lot of scripted theatre in this year’s Toronto Fringe Festival, but it’s also the perfect time of year to see dance performances. And ReActive Dance Theatre is locked and loaded. The company’s co-founders, choreographers Amanda Pye and Rhanda Jones, aim to provoke audiences with their work and to present something refreshingly different f…

Previews for this year’s Toronto Fringe Festival continue, with Rarely Pure Theatre‘s production of a new play by Thomas McKechnie. Christina Bryson(the company’s general manager and stage manager for this production) and returning guests Spencer Robson and Monique Renaud(both of whom act in this show) were careful not to reveal too much about thei…

Suspicious Moustache Theatre Company‘s contribution to this year’s Toronto Fringe Festival presents a man defined by his monstrous appetite. Liam Volke and Darcy Stoop, the playwright and director, respectively, chat about their penchant for the dark and whimsical as well as their approach to filling in the gaps of an enigmatic life lived against t…

This year’s Toronto Fringe Festival features a new one-woman show from SOULO Theatre’s effusive founder, Tracey Erin Smith. If you haven’t yet heard about Tracey’s work with SOULO Theatre, her recent debut as a guest of WalkLeft is worth a listen. This time, she’s wearing her creator and performer hats and invites you to see how she applies her met…

The Spur of the Moment Shakespeare Collective returns to the Toronto Fringe Festival(and to the podcast) with an all-female production of one of the Bard’s classic tragedies, set in a women’s prison. Director Taryn Jorgenson and producer/actor Victoria Urquhart discuss the process of modernizing and modifying the classic, which will be presented at…

Melanie Hrymak is playwright and performer of a one-woman show in this year’s Toronto Fringe Festival. Based on her family’s stories and the influences of events in Ukranian history, the play explores questions of identity and self-determination. More information about performances is available on Facebook and the Toronto Fringe website.…

The countdown to this year’s Toronto Fringe Festival has begun! The Templeton Philharmonic(Gwynne Phillips and Briana Templeton) are bringing their surreal sketch comedy sensibilities to a site-specific immersive theatre experience, inspired by Marie-Hélène de Rothschild’s Surrealist Ball of 1972 and the story of Grey Gardens. More information abou…

The 2011 Toronto Fringe Festival featured Queer Bathroom Monologues, a play written by Sheila Cavanagh, which was based on based on interviews conducted for her award-winning book, Queering Bathrooms: Gender, Sexuality and the Hygienic Imagination. The script has undergone further dramaturgical development and makes its mark, bearing its new name, …

This conversation with Tracey Erin Smith was going to focus on this year’s second-ever SOULO Theatre Festival… It quickly turned into an examination of what a one-person show is and some of the philosophy behind her courses and workshops which have helped people from all walks of life to create their own plays. But don’t worry, the festival schedul…

Fly on the Wall Theatre is remounting its critically acclaimed 2013 Toronto Fringe Festival production of Owen McCafferty’s one-man play. Director Rod Ceballos and performer David Mackett discuss their process through the production’s history and the play’s challenges. Tickets are available online. A limited number of discounted rush tickets are av…

This year marks the third for The Playwright Project. The directorial quartet for this year’s scripts, Matt Gorman, Carly Chamberlain, Alec Toller, and Sarah Kitz, gathered to talk about each of their plays(A Number, Vinegar Tom, Drunk Enough to Say I Love You?, and Three More Sleepless Nights, respectively) and the playwright responsible for them.…

What better technology to discuss Thought For Food‘s upcoming production satirizing office-based crises than a speakerphone? Helen Juvonen, Paul Rivers(via telephone), and Tyler Seguin talk about putting the office world on stage and exploring bureaucratic dynamics that are no less flawed today in Canada than they were in Communist Czechoslovakia. …

Julia Nish-Lapidus and James Wallis are bringing their talents to a pair of scripts that are more modern than what one might consider their usual fare. What was originally conceived as alternating performances of two plays by Neil LaBute has, due to a recent serious injury suffered by a cast member, been adjusted to a six-performance run of reasons…

Almost a year has passed since Carly Chamberlain was chatting about an upcoming project here. This time her energies are focussed on directing a favourite from the Canadian theatre canon for a Toronto theatre institution. The final play of Hart House Theatre‘s 2013/2014 season is Ann-Marie MacDonald’s award-winning Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning…

Judging by this episode’s energetic guests, I think it’s safe to presume No Porpoise Productions‘ take on the classic stories of Lewis Carroll will be one zany show. Playwright/producer Katie Leamen and directors Lynne Griffin and Sean Sullivan talk about the playful collaborative rehearsal environment and the unpretentious appeal of this freely ad…

Theatre Double Take‘s new production imagines the life of the heroine of Edmund Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac two years after the events of the classic play. Playwright, director, and the company’s artistic director Grace Smith reveals her play’s origins and the inspirations involved in creating the new work. Her academic approach is certainly thoug…

Toronto Laboratory Theatre presents this new multi-tiered adaption of a 19th century Ukrainian-Russian novella. Art Babayants, the production’s director, discusses the process and challenges of assembling and rehearsing a show that combines non-traditional lighting design, narrative text, and live classical piano. Tickets are available online and y…

The podcast returns with Go Play Producing’s retelling of the story of Shakespeare’s Moor of Venice with all of the characters’ genders swapped. Director Tanya Rintoul, actor Krystina Bojanowski, and producer Pooria Fard all enthusiastically shared their insights into their production and the process that they’ve taken in bringing Othello to life. …

WARNING: Though this is a preview for a play presented as a part of FringeKids! programming in the Toronto Fringe Festival, the episode itself contains a generous number of expletives. The zany puppetry of Shakey-Shake & Friends returns to the Palmerston Library Theatre for a third consecutive year. Tom McGee reveals the company’s origins and his a…

As you can probably tell from the poster, this 2013 Toronto Fringe Festival preview takes a slightly darker sexual turn than previous episodes. The primary mission of Rachel Ganz’s Newborn Theatre is the production of the work of young playwrights and, though it was originally destined for a smaller stage, being successful in the Fringe lottery mea…

Natural Progression Theatre’s Stalled has gone through a thorough development process, from staged reading to workshop performances and now on to the 2013 Toronto Fringe Festival. Ashley Steeves, Phillip Psutka, and Lindsay Bellaire trace the production’s progress and their approach to facing the challenges that have come with preparing the play fo…

With so many options in the Toronto Fringe Festival, it’s sometimes hard to get one’s mind beyond judging by a title, even when it includes a nod to Stanley Kubrick. Fortunately, you’re a click away from hearing about Katharine McLeod‘s solo show, which could open and even elevate your mind. My High-Heeled Life: Or, How I Learned to Keep Worrying a…

Burt and Werneburg – the company founded by Hallie and Kate, respectively – presents a two-woman adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice that will be part of the upcoming Toronto Fringe Festival. In choosing a director for Elizabeth – Darcy, they didn’t want a fanboy. Hopefully, they didn’t mind that quality in a podcast interviewer, this t…

Royal Porcupine Productions, who pride themselves on picking and presenting prickly plays, are proud participants in this year’s Toronto Fringe Festival. Company members and performers Annemieke Wade and Cameron Johnston share the company’s history and reveal some details about the process involved in bringing David Ives’s Saint Francis Talks to th…

Tarradiddle Productions will be presenting their collectively created production Honest Aesop’s Fables as a part of the FringeKids! programming at this year’s 25th anniversary edition of the Toronto Fringe Festival. The play’s director Teodoro Dragonieri and Luke LaRocque, one of its actors and a co-producer, discuss collective creation, theatre fo…

“Coffee’s in your face now, y’know? It’s there, it’s present, it’s part of being trendy in Toronto.” So, what better place to study human behaviour than from behind the counter of a coffeeshop? That’s where Rebecca Perry toiled away for eight months, jotting down her observations, and then she interviewed other java slingers to expand her research.…

Over the course of Artichoke Heart Collective‘s existence, a source of ominous delight has walked among them. A few puppets, yes, but also a story and a script that have evolved and reached a new audience-ready stratum. Before We Walk Among You makes its way to the Montréal Fringe, Toronto fans of theatre and puppetry have two chances to see the sh…

“Everyone loves a dance party.” It’s hard to argue with that statement from Brandy Leary, the Artistic Director of Anandam Dancetheatre. And, frankly, who would want to refute that? Chances are, if you’re listening to this podcast, you aren’t that person. The upcoming Dance Party is the first of a new presenting series that promises to be an intima…

Nina Kaye is the Artistic Director of Unspoken Theatre Company and a self-described impresario. LOVESICK, an evening of theatre shorts working with darkly romantic themes, features the work of local female playwrights and will take place at a different venue each night. You can find more details here.…

Neoteny Theatre‘s first production is a double-bill of plays exploring monogamy and infidelity: Overruled by George Bernard Shaw and Romance by Neil Labute. There must’ve been something in the air during the recording of this episode because, while the director Carly Chamberlain(also Neoteny’s Artistic Producer) and assistant director Susan Bond ha…

It was a pleasure to chat with Michael Goldlist and Zachary Florence about WORKhouse Theatre‘s upcoming production, set in Toronto on the ever-contested border of adolescence and adulthood. In addition to sharing a glimpse into the world of Gwen Powers, they expressed some thoughts on making theatre that are definitely worth a listen.…

Rarely Pure Theatre makes a return appearance on the podcast with their next production, The Pillowman. The play’s director, Ryan Quinn, and two of its cast, Spencer Robson(who recently became the company’s co-artistic director) and Davydd Cook, talk about the show and the benefits and challenges of working with individuals with whom one went to th…

If Jack Kerouac and Jackie Kennedy met… it just may have gone down the way playwright Jim Christy imagines in his play, Jackie and Jack, which is being presented by Back Burner Productions. The play’s director, Guy Doucette, and producer, Michael Orlando(whom you may remember from the episode about Theatre Lab and The Other Houdini) recount how the…

Ashley Gibson is an active performer and blogger whose first solo show is about more than shining a light on herself and her own talents. Her objectives for a multi-faceted project this February include honouring her mother’s memory and raising awareness and encouraging dialogue about mental illness. In addition to a performance on February 22nd, f…

Alanna Stone and Lauren Toffan of Half-Pint Theatre may be small, but they’re also mighty. A Night of Shanley brings two of John Patrick Shanley’s tales of the Big Apple – Women of Manhattan and Welcome to the Moon – to Hogtown. …and, as an added bonus, stay tuned after the episode for a couple of amusing moments that ended up on the virtual cuttin…

Friend and fellow Monkeyman, Leeman Kessler has invited friends to viewings of Conspiracy – in its movie form – for years. This year, one day before the anniversary of that film’s depicted event(The Wannsee Conference), he’s presenting a free reading of the script as it was adapted for the stage. A very special guest, the author of the script and t…

Individually, Tim Lindsay, Jeremy Knowles, and Seth Drabinsky are all forces with which to be reckoned. It’s only when their powers combine, however, that the magic of Breathe.Feel.Love can occur. There were 10 interviews before this one… so it’s appropriate that, by talking about a show that’ll rock as hard as Hedwig and the Angry Inch, WalkLeft, …

…but there will be new episodes in a couple of weeks. Stay tuned!By Marty Chodorek

It takes a special kind of actor to do the words of William Shakespeare justice. It takes a special kind of person to take theatre to the people who would benefit from it. Sometimes, that’s the same individual – as in the case of Victoria Urquhart, a co-founder of the Spur-Of-The-Moment Shakespeare Collective. The story of their projects starts lik…

You might know Tara Litvack as a musical director or perhaps as an accompanist. You might know her as a vocal coach, conductor, or arranger. She’s now also a producer and the podcast’s first guest inviting you to a musical theatre event. Set Those Sails: A Night of William Finn will take place on one night only, December 14th, and features a long l…

Matt Gorman, Artistic Director of Cart/Horse Theatre, has a way of making an interviewer forget about asking for little things like show dates and the theatre company’s website URL. This Lime Tree Bower, incidentally, has a preview on December 6th and runs from December 7th through December 22nd. But there’s a lot more to this episode than a show a…

The Theatre Lab has a history of bringing lots of talented individuals together for their productions. There is certainly a similar confluence for The Other Houdini, which brings together aspects of Clown, physical comedy, and escape artistry… not to mention original music. Omar Hady, Michael Orlando, and Robert Feetham shared their excitement abou…

Sanctuary Toronto and The Bench Theatre Initiative present plays as a labour of love. Not just a love of craft and creativity, but also a deep affection for the community. Have a listen and you’ll hear the joy in the voices of Shannon Blake and Lyf Stolte as they talk about their work and the upcoming production of Damien. Their enthusiasm is infec…

What’s more deranged than five people talking on three microphones? The answer to that may very well be the first production from tryworks theatre co. The director and cast of Aeroplane Jelly(Brooke Meyer, Andy Ingram, Matthew Donovan, and Zachary Knowles – respectively) all swung by after a rehearsal at which, you can hear for yourself, they proba…

This episode’s upcoming production is a play which touches on themes at the forefront of many minds as Remembrance Day nears. Monique “Mo” Renaud is the artistic director of Rarely Pure Theatre, a company built to act as a creative hub. Her play, Until Our Paths Cross Again, was conceived as a study of Captain Nichola Goddard, the first female Cana…

Pastel Supernova is the podcast’s first guest from the wickedly wild world of burlesque. Here’s your opportunity to learn what makes her company, Love Letters Cabaret, different from other burlesque you may have seen around town. The only thing more provocative than the true story of the day of her first burlesque show is her description of what yo…

Much like her plays, conversations with Kat Sandler inspire reflection, prompt action, and evoke laughter. Theatre Brouhaha‘s next production, Delicacy, promises to continue the company tradition of deliciously dark comedies. Here’s hoping the episode is as fun to listen to as it was to record.By Kat Sandler & Marty Chodorek