Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Richard Rose, Artistic Director of Tarragon Theatre, is pleased to announce today the casting for the first three productions in Tarragon’s 2017/18 season.
Tarragon opens its 47th season on September 19 with the world premiere of Undercover, a new piece from Spontaneous Theatre by Rebecca Northan, the creator of the Dora Award-winning and international sensation Blind Date. Along with Co-Creator Bruce Horak, Undercover is part scripted, part improvised and sees an audience member on stage taking the lead role as an undercover detective tasked with unearthing the truth behind a mysterious case. This work is particularly special as it reunites a cast who have been collaborating and improvising together for over 25 years and who’ve been trained by Dennis Cahill, Artistic Director of Loose Moose Theatre in Calgary and performer in Undercover. After its six week premiere at Tarragon, Undercover will travel to Vertigo Theatre in Calgary and The Citadel Theatre in Edmonton. Undercover features Christy Bruce (THEATRE: Tarragon and London’s West End Blind Date, TV: “The Handmaid's Tale”, “Orphan Black”), Denni Cahill (Artistic Director of The Loose Moose Theatre in Calgary, FILM: FUBAR 2, The Legend of Whitey), Gemini nominated actress Terra Hazelton (THEATRE: Loose Moose Theatre, FILM: FUBAR 2, TV: “Orphan Black”, “Mary Kills People”), Jamie Northan (THEATRE: US tour, Canadian tour, London’s West End Blind Date) and Dora Award-winning Rebecca Northan (THEATRE: co-writer, US tour, Canadian Tour, London’s West End Blind Date, FILM: The 'F' Word, Mr.Magorium's Wonder Emporium, TV: “This Hour Has 22 Minutes”, RADIO: Because News, CBC) and Bruce Horak (THEATRE: co-writer, Assassinating Thomson, This Is Cancer. TV: “Warehouse 13”, RADIO: The Life Game, CBC).
Following in the Mainspace from November 7 is the 2016 Summerworks smash-hit, Mr. Shi and His Lover, a co-production by Macau Experimental Theatre, Music Picnic and Point View Art Association. With text by Wong Teng Chi (Amsterdam Études, Hiu Kok), musical direction by Njo Kong Kie (Infinity, Volcano/Tarragon; knotty together and La Señorita Mundo, SummerWorks; Picnic in the Cemetery, Edinburgh Fringe) and directed by Tam Chi Chun (SummerWorks, Mr. Shi and His Lover), this theatrical opera is inspired by the real-life love affair between a Chinese opera singer and his French Diplomat lover who believed him to be a woman caused a sensational political scandal in the 1980s. Stylistically varied and emotionally rich, the score draws inspiration from opera, musicals and vintage pop. Featuring an international cast and performed entirely in Mandarin with English surtitles, Mr. Shi and His Lover stars Derek Kwan (Blood Wedding, Aluna Theatre/Modern Times; The Lesson of Da Ji, Toronto Masque Theatre) and Jordan Cheng (Art School Musical, Edward Lam Dance Theatre).
The Extraspace opens for the season November 8 with Marine Life, produced in collaboration with Aluna Theatre. This romantic comedy written and directed by Rosa Laborde (Tarragon playwright-in-residence and finalist for the Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama) sees Sylvia, an ecological activist, caught between her own environmental extremism and falling in love with a man who has a secret dependency on plastic. This play features Nicola Correia-Damude (TV: “Shadowhunters”, “Annedroids”, “The Strain” THEATRE: Stratford Festival, Shaw Festival, Canadian Stage), Matthew Edison (THEATRE: Soulpepper, Canadian Stage TV: “Murdoch Mysteries”) and Toronto-based alternative country singer-songwriter Justin Rutledge.
Undercover
World premiere
Mainspace
A Spontaneous Theatre production
Co-produced by Tarragon Theatre and Vertigo Theatre
Created by Rebecca Northan with Bruce Horak
Directed by Rebecca Northan
Featuring Christy Bruce, Dennis Cahill, Terra Hazelton, Jamie Northan, Rebecca Northan & Bruce Horak
September 19 – October 29, 2017 (Opens September 27, 2017)
One grizzled cop. One audience-member-turned-rookie-detective. One unsolved case.
MURDER on the Tarragon stage! Rebecca Northan (creator of Dora Award-winning, international sensation Blind Date) and her partners in crime are back at Tarragon to recruit one intrepid audience member for an undercover ride into the criminal mind. When everyone’s a suspect, will our rookie detective be able to sort the clues from the red herrings, point the finger at the right perpetrator and see that justice is served?
“Do you believe in love at first sight? I do, because I once spent 90 minutes under the spell of Rebecca Northan.” – Toronto Star
Mr. Shi and His Lover
Mainspace
Text by Wong Teng Chi
Music and Musical Direction by Njo Kong Ki
Directed by Tam Chi Chun
featuring Jordan Cheng & Derek Kwan
November 7 – December 17, 2017 (Opens November 15, 2017)
An espionage scandal rocks the political world in this intriguing contemporary opera about the delusion of love. Featuring performers from Toronto and Macau, Mr. Shi and His Lover illuminates the real-life affair of a French diplomat in China who falls in love with a mysterious opera singer. But is she who she says she is? This classic tale is told through music inspired by Chinese opera and vintage pop from both East and West. Performed in Mandarin with English surtitles.
SummerWorks Performance Festival 2016 Wrap-Up: Outstanding Direction, Outstanding New Play, Outstanding Production, Outstanding Ensemble
NNNN “Stunningly sung!" - Now Magazine
"A mesmerizing, slow dance with what it means to wish for more [...] Njo’s score is a brilliant mix of atmosphere and muscle." - Musical Toronto
“Mr. Shi and His Lover is well worth a visit. Don’t miss the opportunity to see a superb contemporary Chinese musical.” - Mooney on Theatre
Marine Life
Extraspace
Written and Directed by Rosa Laborde
Featuring Nicola Correia-Damude, Justin Rutledge & Matthew Edison
November 8 - December 17, 2017 (Opens November 16, 2017)
Save the world or save yourself? Sylvia is on a mission to clean up microplastics infesting our oceans. Can our heroine save the world from environmental disaster, fall in love with an unscrupulous corporate lawyer and caregive her obsessive brother, a one-man Mariachi band? When the rains come and the flood water rises, who will survive the deluge?
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Tickets range from $22 - $60 and can be purchased online at www.tarragontheatre.com, or by phone at 416-531-1827. Tarragon offers the most flexible subscription packages in the city with savings of up to 40%, allowing patrons to choose their productions, change their dates free of charge, and offering many different price points to suit all schedules and budgets. Visit the website or call Patron Services today for more information.
Rush tickets are sold for $20 cash only, in person at the theatre two hours before showtime. This year Tarragon will also be offering online rush tickets at varying discounts, 24h prior to the show. Both Rush ticket options are subject to availability.
Audiences are invited to venture Beyond the Stage with a regular Lecture Series, a Talkback Week for each production, Tarragon Tasting Nights hosted by local food and beverage companies every Friday night, and other events and activities. Tarragon’s Workspace continues to grow as a centre for experimentation, exploration and extensive play development for Tarragon, independent artists, collectives and theatre companies.
For more information on Tarragon’s events and activities, visit www.tarragontheatre.com/calendar.
Photo: Jordan Cheng and Derek Kwan in Mr, Shi and His Lover. ©2017.
2017-09-06
Toronto: Tarragon Theatre announces casting for its 2017 fall season