4th Line Theatre presents its 19th annual Breaking Ground on Saturday, January 31 at Bagnani Hall at Catherine Parr Traill College in Peterborough featuring a free public reading of excerpts from Maja Ardal’s The Legend of Pearl Hart. Born in Lindsay, Ontario in 1871, Pearl Hart was the first woman tried and convicted of stagecoach robbery in the U.S. Pearl’s journey takes her from small town Ontario through Chicago’s World’s Fair, Buffalo Bill’s Wild West shows and rough mining frontiers of Arizona. Her trial, imprisonment, and wild escapades (disguised as a boy) made her a notorious celebrity of the times.

4th Line is proud to be working on this new project with Ardal and a long-time 4th Line collaborator. Ardal has thrilled 4th Line audiences with her much-loved plays The Hero of Hunter Street (2016) and Wishful Seeing (2022).

This free event will take place at Bagnani Hall at Catherine Parr Traill College in Peterborough on Saturday, January 31st at 2:00 p.m. Seating is very limited so book early to avoid disappointment. Bagnani Hall at Traill College is located at 315 Dublin Street, Peterborough. There is plenty of free parking available on London and Dublin streets and the hall is fully accessible. To reserve a seat call 4th Line Theatre’s Box Office at 705-932-4445 or email boxoffice@4thlinetheatre.on.ca.

Breaking Ground is part of 4th Line Theatre’s New Play Development program, designed to support, nurture and encourage the creation of environmentally-staged historical plays. This ongoing process of dramaturgical support, workshops and public readings is vital to 4th Line Theatre’s commitment to provide audiences with the highest quality Canadian drama.

“Public readings are an important part of the creation of plays,” says Kim Blackwell, 4th Line’s Managing Artistic Director. “This forum gives the writer the opportunity to figure out what resonates with audiences. The audience’s feedback during the discussion afterward may be the most valuable aspect of Breaking Ground.”

Kim Blackwell will dramaturge the reading, directed by Anita La Selva, which will feature performers: Robert Winslow, 4th Line Theatre’s Founder; Amy Keating; Colin A. Doyle; Lindsay Wilson; Ryan Tobin and Celine Gadoury.

Breaking Ground: The Legend of Pearl Hart

Saturday, January 31, 2026 at 2:00 p.m.

Bagnani Hall at Catherine Parr Traill College - 315 Dublin Street, Peterborough, ON K9H 0C3. Free street parking available on London and Dublin streets. The hall is fully accessible.

Seating is very limited. To reserve a seat call 4th Line Theatre’s Box Office at 705-932-4445 or email boxoffice@4thlinetheatre.on.ca

4th Line Theatre is committed to preserving and promoting our Canadian cultural heritage through the development and presentation of regionally-based, environmentally-staged historical drama.

Photo: Pearl Hart in the Yuma Territorial Prison. © 1899.