AS YOU LIKE IT

BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

DIRECTED BY CHRIS ABRAHAM

VENUE: FESTIVAL THEATRE

MAY 3 – OCTOBER 24 | OPENS MAY 26

"WE THAT ARE TRUE LOVERS RUN INTO STRANGE CAPERS..." 

The Forest of Arden , reimagined in this production, sees its pastoral calm upended by the arrival of a motley cast of courtiers, fools, dukes and ladies exiled from the pitiless world of court politics and dynastic succession. The latest arrivals: Orlando, banished by his cruel older brother after their father's death, and Rosalind who, in her attempt to flee an equally cruel uncle, arrives on the scene disguised as a boy. When Orlando and Rosalind fall for one another, the question then becomes, can Orlando recognize the object of his affection through her cunning disguise and Arden's shaded vales? Beloved for its wit and banter, As You Like It promises classic Shakespearean comedy befitting of modern audiences.

Production Underwriters: John & Therese Gardner

Production Co-Sponsors: Martie & Bob Sachs

    Sara Farb and Christopher Allen. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

ANNIE

BOOK BY THOMAS MEEHAN

MUSIC BY CHARLES STROUSE

LYRICS BY MARTIN CHARNIN

ORIGINAL BROADWAY PRODUCTION DIRECTED BY MARTIN CHARNIN

BASED ON LITTLE ORPHAN ANNIE BY PERMISSION OF TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC

DIRECTED BY DONNA FEORE

CHOREOGRAPHED BY DONNA FEORE

VENUE: FESTIVAL THEATRE

APRIL 19 – NOVEMBER 2 | OPENS MAY 27

"YOU'RE NEVER FULLY DRESSED WITHOUT A SMILE" 

Annie has reigned as one of the world's most beloved family musicals since its original six-year Broadway run. Annie Bennett is the iconic mop-topped orphan who knows the sun will come out tomorrow for her, no matter how dark it gets today. (Even if "today" is under the domain of Miss Hannigan, the caretaker of the orphanage and an over-the-top misopedist.) When Annie and her scrappy dog, Sandy, are taken in by the secretary of the billionaire Daddy Warbucks, the girl's lifelong search to find her birth parents sets off a chain of wacky, heartwarming adventures.

Production Co-Sponsor:

Robert & Mary Ann Gorlin

Riki Turofsky & Charles Petersen

Peter & Carol Walters

    Laura Condlln, Harper Rae Asch and Dan Chameroy. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

SENSE and Sensibility

ADAPTED BY KATIE HAMILL

BASED ON THE NOVEL BY JANE AUSTEN

DIRECTED BY DARYL CLORAN

VENUE: FESTIVAL THEATRE

MAY 28 – OCTOBER 25 | OPENS JUNE 19

"IF YOUR WAY OF THINKING IS SO... PRACTICAL, I AM NOT SURPRISED THAT YOU ARE CALM." 

Kate Hamill's adaptation of Jane Austen's beloved novel follows the travails of the Dashwood sisters—sensible, subdued Elinor and the passionately emotional Marianne—after their father's passing leaves their family dependent on the whims of wealthy relations. When suitors, both suitable and otherwise, start courting the Dashwood girls, the sisters must blend sense with sensibility to protect their hearts and their reputations. Bristling with wit, cutting social commentary and old-fashioned romance brimming with longing and tender affection, Sense and Sensibility is pure Regency Period delight.

Production Co-Sponsors:

The William and Nona Heaslip Foundation

The Tremain Family

    Jessica B. Hill and Olivia Sinclair-Brisbane. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

DANGEROUS LIAISONS

BY CHRISTOPHER HAMPTON

BASED ON THE NOVEL LES LIAISONS DANGEREUSES BY CHODERLOS DE LACLOS

DIRECTED BY ESTHER JUN

VENUE: FESTIVAL THEATRE

AUGST 6 – OCTOBER 25 | OPENS AUGUST 22

"LOVE IS SOMETHING YOU USE, NOT SOMETHING YOU FALL INTO." 

Two aristocrats in pre-Revolutionary France, bored of their own privilege and the decadence gilded to its shell, embark on a dangerous game of manipulation and seduction. The victim of their subterfuge is a beautiful young woman, Madame de Tourvel, whose virtue and piety will put the players to shame. A scandalously clever period drama, the play delivers a nasty bite, guaranteed to sting the conscience of its audiences.

Production Co-Sponsors:

Cathy & Paul Cotton

Doug Kennedy

    Jesse Gervais, Jessica B. Hill and Celia Aloma. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

Macbeth

BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

CREATED IN COLLABORATION WITH EX MACHINA

DIRECTED BY ROBERT LEPAGE

VENUE: AVON THEATRE

MAY 10 – NOVEMBER 2 | OPENS MAY 28

"IT WILL HAVE BLOOD, THEY SAY; BLOOD WILL HAVE BLOOD." 

Three witches speak a prophecy of power to an ambitious warrior. When the prophecies prove true and the bodies pile up, where lies the blame: in prophecy, fate or Macbeth's own secret desires? What alignment of stars guides the anti-hero Macbeth's bloody hand? This bold reimagining of Shakespeare's darkest tragedy by visionary director Robert Lepage sets the uncanny action during the biker wars of the 1990s.

Production Underwriters:

The Fabio Mascarin Foundation

Laurie J. Scott

Production Co-Sponsors:

Sylvia Soyka

Carol Stephenson, O.C.

Catherine Wilkes in Memory of David

    Lucy Peacock and Tom McCamus. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS

BOOK BY JEFFREY LANE

MUSIC AND LYRICS BY DAVID YAZBEK

BASED ON THE FILM DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS WRITTEN BY DALE LAUNER AND STANLEY SHAPIRO & PAUL HENNING

ORIGINAL BROADWAY PRODUCTION DIRECTED BY JACK O'BRIEN

DIRECTED BY TRACEY FLYE

CHOREOGRAPHED BY STEPHANIE GRAHAM

VENUE: AVON THEATRE

MAY 3 – OCTOBER 25 | OPENS MAY 29

"IT WAS JOY, IT WAS SUBLIME, A SPLENDID WAY TO EARN A DIME." 

Lawrence Jameson is no stranger to the high life—he's lived it for years by separating lonely rich ladies from their fortunes in a swanky Riviera town. When he and his chief competitor in the con business, Freddy Benson, make a bet to swindle an heiress out of $50,000, the professional scoundrels soon discover they may not always be the smartest people in the room. Inspired by the hit 1988 film, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, the musical comedy earned 11 Tony Award nominations for its hilarious hijinks and frivolity—beautifully reminiscent of an earlier age.

Production Co-Sponsors:

Sylvia D. Chrominska

The Whiteside Foundation

    Shakura Dickson, Liam Tobin and Jonathan Goad. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

Schulich Children's Plays

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES

A NEW ADAPTATION BY KAT SANDLER

BASED ON THE NOVEL BY LUCY MAUD MONTGOMERY

DIRECTED BY KAT SANDLER

A STRATFORD FESTIVAL COMMISSION

VENUE: AVON THEATRE

APRIL 25 – OCTOBER 25 | OPENS MAY 31

"IT SEEMS LIKE SUCH A WASTE TO LOOK AT A PERSON AND NOT ASK ABOUT ALL THE THINGS THEY'RE THINKING AND FEELING AND WONDERING, DOESN'T IT?" 

Generations of readers have fallen in love with Lucy Maud Montgomery's timeless tale of imagination, resilience and the transformative power of love. When freckle-faced orphan Anne Shirley arrives in Avonlea, she has little more than the clothes on her back. Soon her vivid imagination, fiery temper and tenacious spirit win over her adoptive parents and schoolmates, including her arch nemesis, Gilbert. In this playful take on the beloved classic novel, audiences meet Anne illuminated by her signature charm and irrepressible glory—minus the show tunes!

Production Sponsors:The Schulich Foundation

   Caroline Toal. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

the winter's tale

BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

DIRECTED BY ANTONI CIMOLINO

VENUE: TOM PATTERSON THEATRE

MAY 7 – SEPTEMBER 27 | OPENS MAY 30

"IT IS REQUIRED YOU DO AWAKE YOUR FAITH." 

Blinded by jealousy, King Leontes falsely accuses his pregnant wife of infidelity, setting into motion a series of catastrophes that will destroy his wife and son and leave his infant daughter abandoned to the elements on a distant island. Seeing the folly of his ways, Leontes vows to live out his days atoning for his actions. Sixteen years later, the king is offered an unlikely chance at redemption. A late play from Shakespeare, The Winter's Tale offers a beguiling blend of comedy, tragedy and mystery.

Production Co-Sponsors:

Dr. Dennis & Dorothea Hacker

Dr. Desta Leavine in Memory of Pauline Leavine

Dr. M.L. Meyers and Peggy Ptasznik in Memory of Vic Ptasznik

   André Sills, Sara Topham and Graham Abbey. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

FORGIVENESS

BY HIRO KANAGAWA

ADAPTED FROM THE BOOK FORGIVENESS: A GIFT FROM MY GRANDPARENTS BY MARK SAKAMOTO

DIRECTED BY STAFFORD ARIMA

VENUE: TOM PATTERSON THEATRE

MAY 23 – SEPTEMBER 27 | OPENS JUNE 18

"IT'S SAID THE SCARS OF WAR, THE WOUNDS, THE PAIN, GET PASSED DOWN THROUGH GENERATIONS." 

Adapted from the Canada Reads-winning memoir by Mark Sakamoto, Forgiveness tells the story of two people traumatized but not broken by the Second World War. Mitsue Sakamoto and her family are sent to a civilian internment camp in the Canadian interior after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Ralph MacLean joins the Canadian army and endures years of privation in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp. When the conflict ends, Mitsue and Ralph are forced to confront their long-buried anger and grief when Mitsue's son and Ralph's daughter fall in love. An emotional map across time, this story of love and family is a testament to the power of choosing forgiveness over hatred.

Production Co-Sponsors:

Jody & Deborah Hamade

Three Generations of the Schubert Family

   Jeff Lillico and Yoshie Bancroft. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

RANSACKING TROY

BY ERIN SHIELDS

DIRECTED BY JACKIE MAXWELL

A STRATFORD FESTIVAL COMMISSION

WORLD PREMIÈRE

VENUE: TOM PATTERSON THEATRE

AUGUST 6 – SEPTEMBER 28 | OPENS AUGUST 21

"THE WOMEN STANDING BESIDE YOU POSSESS A BRAVERY THE WORLD HAS NEVER SEEN." 

Everyone knows the story of the Trojan War: Trojan boy elopes with married Greek girl; angry husband tracks the lovers to the boy's hometown; 10 years of siege warfare later, the angry husband and his posse reduce Troy to rubble. But did it have to end that way? In Ransacking Troy, playwright Erin Shields imagines a less testosterone-fuelled conclusion, in which the women of Greece—tired of waiting for their husbands to return from war—stage an intervention of historical proportions.

Production Co-Sponsors:

Marilyn Gropp

Jane Fryman Laird

Dr. Robert J. & Roberta Sokol

Anonymous Donor

   Irene Poole and Maev Beaty. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits

The Art of War

BY YVETTE NOLAN

DIRECTED BY KEITH BARKER

VENUE: STUDIO THEATRE

AUGUST 1 – SEPTEMBER 27 | OPENS AUGUST 20

"THIS WAR WILL BECOME A PART OF THE NATIONAL PSYCHE-AND WE'LL NEED A WAY TO TALK ABOUT IT." 

Nick is a young Canadian artist sent to the front lines of the Second World War to capture in paint the experiences of the young nation's soldiers. Though he wears the uniform of the Canadian army, Nick is set apart from the other men by his unique role as chronicler and eyewitness to the carnage. What Nick observes—what he documents through paint—will transform not only himself, but Canada's idea of itself in the emerging postwar world.

Production Underwriters: The Harkins Manning Family in Memory of Jim & Susan Harkins

Production Co-Sponsors: 

Karon Bales & Charles E. Beall

Bryan Blenkin & Alan Rowe

Catherine Elliot Shaw

Esther Sarick

   Josue Laboucane. Photography by Ted Belton. View full production credits