Stage Door News
Stage Door News
February 21, 2018: Soulpepper Theatre Company today announced a programming update to Soulpepper’s 2017-2018 season: this May, award-winning Canadian artist Tanja Jacobs will direct David Hirson’s whip-smart La Bête, a Laurence Olivier Award Winner for Best Comedy.
La Bête is a modern comedy of classical insanity. When the Royal Patron grows weary of their theatre troupe, actors Elomire and Valere fight for survival, as art squares off with ego in a riotous theatrical showdown for the ages.
La Bête replaces a remount production of Alan Ayckbourn’s A Chorus of Disapproval, previously scheduled for May. Patrons with tickets to A Chorus of Disapproval are being contacted by the Young Centre Box Office regarding exchange.
David Hirson’s La Bête runs from May 16 to June 22, 2018, running in repertory with Innocence Lost: A Play About Steven Truscott by Beverley Cooper, and alongside August Wilson's Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.
Exclusive ticket access for subscribers is available as of February 21. Single tickets go on sale February 27. For more details, visit soulpepper.ca or call the Young Centre Box Office at 416.866.8666.
UPDATED PROGRAMMING & CASTING - MARCH TO JUNE 2018:
Idomeneus
Roland Schimmelpfennig
Translated by David Tushingham
Directed by Alan Dilworth
The Trojan War is over, but for Idomeneus the greatest struggle awaits his return – a crucible of the soul. A chorus weaves fates and stories into a wrenching lyrical epic from one of Europe’s most exciting contemporary playwrights. The cast includes Akosua Amo-Adem, Alana Bridgewater, Courtney Ch’ng Lancaster, Laura Condlln, Frank Cox-O’Connell, Jakob Ehman, Kyra Harper, Soulpepper Founding Members Stuart Hughes and Diego Matamoros, and Michelle Monteith. Idomeneus is designed by Lorenzo Savoini (set and lighting), Gillian Gallow (costumes), and Debhasis Sinha (sound).
Canadian Premiere
Mature Content
Idomeneus runs from March 3 to 24, 2018. Opening night is March 8. American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted performances are March 20 and 23, 2018.
Animal Farm
George Orwell
Adapted by Anthony MacMahon
Directed by Ravi Jain
The tyrannical Farmer Jones must be overthrown! How long will the animal utopia last when a charismatic new leader emerges? An innovative new adaptation of George Orwell’s classic satire bites just as much today as when it was first written. The cast includes Leah Cherniak, Oliver Dennis, Raquel Duffy, Miriam Fernandes, Rick Roberts, Paolo Santalucia, Sugith Varughese, Guillermo Verdecchia, Jennifer Villaverde, Michaela Washburn, and Sarah Wilson. Animal Farm is designed by Ken MacKenzie (set, costumes, and video), André du Toit (lighting), and Richard Feren (sound).
World Premiere
Project imagiNation Commission
Mature Content
Animal Farm runs from March 9 to April 7, 2018. Opening night is March 15.
August Wilson's
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Directed by Mumbi Tindyebwa Otu
Chicago in the 1920s is a city on a collision course with change - and through it all plays the Blues. In August Wilson’s masterpiece a routine music recording session becomes the front line for issues of race, power, and opportunity. The cast: Alana Bridgewater as Ma Rainey; Lovell Adams-Gray; Derek Boyes; Beau Dixon; Virgilia Griffith; Carl Kennedy; Diego Matamoros; Lindsay Owen-Pierre; Alex Poch-Goldin; and Marcel Stewart. The show is designed by Ken MacKenzie (set and lighting), Alexandra Lord (costumes), and Mike Ross (sound and music).
New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best American Play
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom runs from May 4 to June 2, 2018. Opening night is May 10.
Innocence Lost: A Play About Steven Truscott
Beverley Cooper
Directed by Jackie Maxwell
It’s 1959 in a small Ontario town with summer vacation on the horizon. And then a girl goes missing. Innocence Lost is a riveting take on the Steven Truscott criminal case that rocked the country for decades, and scarred a generation forever. The cast: Akosua Amo-Adem; John Cleland; Christef Desir; Deborah Drakeford; Caroline Gillis; John Jarvis; Courtney Ch’ng Lancaster; Dan Mousseau; and Soulpepper Founding Member Nancy Palk. Innocence Lost will be designed by Camellia Koo (set), Sue LePage (costume), Bonnie Beecher (lighting), and John Gzowski (sound).
Innocence Lost: A Play About Steven Truscott runs from May 14 to June 23, 2018. Opening night is May 24.
American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted performances: June 6 and 9, 2018.
Warning – Mature Subject Matter.
La Bête
David Hirson
Directed by Tanja Jacobs
A modern comedy of classical insanity. When the Royal Patron grows weary of his theatre troupe, actors Elomire and Valere fight for survival, as art squares off with ego in a riotous theatrical showdown for the ages. Featuring: Ghazal Azarbad; Oliver Dennis; Raquel Duffy; Gregory Prest; Paolo Santalucia; James Smith; and Sarah Wilson. La Bête will be designed by Ken MacKenzie (set), Shannon Lea Doyle (costume), Bonnie Beecher (lighting), and John Gzowski (sound).
Laurence Olivier Award Winner for Best Comedy
La Bête runs from May 16
to June 22, 2018. Opening night is May 29.
SOULPEPPER MUSIC
Each original Soulpepper Concert revolves around a time, place, or artist crafted by a team of incomparable performers. The Concert Series is led by Slaight Family Director of Music Mike Ross.
A Moveable Feast: Paris in the ‘20s
In the decade following the first World War the French economy boomed, and Paris re-established itself as a capital of art, music, literature and sophisticated Bacchanalia…Hemingway, Joyce, Picasso, Fitzgerald, and Gertrude Stein were all there… as was Josephine Baker, Igor Stravinsky, Man Ray and Kiki of Montparnasse. Bienvenue.
NEW DATES ADDED: March 30-April 10.
Located in its multi-venue home, the Young Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto’s Distillery Historic District, Soulpepper is Toronto’s largest not-for-profit theatre company. Founded and guided by artists, Soulpepper has an integrated mission which includes: industry-leading youth and community outreach initiatives; artist training and mentorship programs; and a year-round diverse repertory season which is grounded in the classics and committed to the creation of new works, new forms, and innovative practices. Tickets to Soulpepper productions are available by calling the Young Centre Box Office at 416.866.8666 or by visiting soulpepper.ca.
Tickets for Soulpepper productions start at $35. Tickets for Soulpepper Concerts start at $25. $20 tickets for Soulpepper productions are available for arts workers and deaf community members. $20 StagePlay tickets for under-30 year-olds are available at soulpepper.ca/stageplay, sponsored by TD Bank Group. Youth 21 years old and under can access free tickets online via the MyPlay Program presented by Sun Life Financial: visit soulpepper.ca/myplay for more details. $25 Rush tickets and $5 Youth Rush tickets are offered one hour before most performances (in person), subject to availability. All ticket prices include a Young Centre facility fee, service charge and HST. Pricing is subject to change.
Illustration: Animal Farm. ©2017 Paul Blow.
2018-02-21
Toronto: Soulpepper releases 2018 programming and casting update