Cheap Theatre for the Week of March 18, 2014

This is a fantastic week to check out some top-notch inexpensive theatre in Toronto. Though the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival wrapped on the weekend doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty of side-splitting comedy to be had. Bad Dog Theatre Company still has their regular shows ready to tickle your funny bone at under $15 a ticket. Check out their website and keep an eye out for Final Frontier,  Book Club, and People City. If you’re still itching for more laughs, The Comedy Bar has a whole slew of other sketch and improv shows also at under $10.

If you’re looking for something of a different ilk, there’s plenty of wallet-friendly dance performances, staged readings, magic and variety shows to be had. Check our weekly play listings for more.

Still unsure of what to see? Read below the cut for some that have caught our eye, all for $20 or less.

Belle Gunness: The Black Widow of LaPorte by Justin Cummings and Peter Grant Mackechnie (UC Follies Theatre Company). Based on a true story, this play looks at a woman who may have killed up to 40 people in 19th-century America. Opens Mar 14 and runs to Mar 22, Thu-Sat 8 pm, mat Mar 22 at 2 pm. $20, stu/srs $12. Al Green Theatre, 750 Spadina. 416-978-8849, uofttix.ca.

Blackbird by Adam Rapp (Pinchback Productions). Two heroin addicts try to crawl out of the gutter on Christmas Eve in late-90s NYC. Opens Mar 14 and runs to Mar 23, Fri-Sun 8 pm, mat Mar 16 at 1 pm. $10-$15. Hub 14, 14 Markham. blackbird.brownpapertickets.com.

Dark Matter (Circlesnake Productions). Captain Marlow must retrieve the brutal Kurtz from a distant space colony in this adaptation of Joseph Conrad’s Heart Of Darkness. Opens Mar 14 and runs to Apr 6, Thu-Sat 8 pm, Sun 2 pm. $20, Sun pwyc ($10 reserved). The Storefront Theatre, 955 Bloor W. circlesnake.com.

Ephemeral (Theatre Orenda/Devised Theatre Festival). This play explores the influence and power of time on the human psyche. Mar 20-22, Thu-Sat 7:30 pm, mat Sat 2 pm. $12, stu $10. York University Accolade East Bldg, room 207, 4700 Keele. facebook.com/DevisedTheatreFestival.

Road by Jim Cartwright (Theatre @ York). In 1980s England, the unemployed residents of a small town use sex, religion, nostalgia, suicide and drink to escape their bleak reality. Previews Mar 23-24. Opens Mar 25 and runs to Mar 29, daily at 7:30 pm, mats Wed and Fri at 1 pm. $17, stu/srs $12, preview $5. York University, Joseph G Green Studio, 4700 Keele. 416-736-5888, theatre.finearts.yorku.ca.