Mirvish Announces Their 2015-16 Season

Matilda  Ripley Sobo

An all-Canadian production of Matilda the Musical in Toronto anchors Mirvish’s 2015-16 season

Without much fanfare or any public event Mirvish quietly sent out a press release today announcing its 2015-16 season. An open-ended engagement of Matilda the Musical featuring an all-Canadian cast anchors their season which brings Broadway hits such as Motown the Musical, If/Then and the 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder to Toronto. Mirvish will also present a new, re-staged production of The Phantom of the Opera as a bonus show.

Check out all the details of the new season, the Off-Mirvish season at the Panasonic Theatre and the bonus shows below.

Which shows are you most looking forward to seeing?

From Press Release

MOTOWN THE MUSICAL

Book by Berry Gordy

Directed by Charles Randolph-Wright

 

September / November 2015

Ed Mirvish Theatre

 

It began as one man’s story… became everyone’s music… and is now Broadway’s musical. MOTOWN THE MUSICAL is the true American dream story of Motown founder Berry Gordy’s journey from featherweight boxer to the heavyweight music mogul who launched the careers of Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Smokey Robinson and many more.

 

Motown shattered barriers, shaped our lives and made us all move to the same beat. Featuring classic songs such as “My Girl” and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” experience the story behind the music in the record-breaking smash hit MOTOWN THE MUSICAL!

 

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Rodgers + Hammerstein ’s 

CINDERELLA

Music by by Richard Rodgers

Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II

Book by Douglas Carter Beane

Original book by Oscar Hammerstein II

Directed by Mark Brokaw

 

December 2015 / January 2016

Ed Mirvish Theatre

 

Rodgers + Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA is the Tony Award®-winning Broadway musical from the

creators of The Sound of Music and South Pacific that’s delighting audiences with its contemporary take on the classic tale.

 

This lush production features an incredible orchestra, jaw-dropping transformations and all the moments you love—the pumpkin, the glass slipper, the masked ball and more—plus some surprising new twists! Be transported back to your childhood as you rediscover some of Rodgers + Hammerstein’s most beloved songs, including “In My Own Little Corner,” “Impossible/It’s Possible” and “Ten Minutes Ago,” in this hilarious and romantic Broadway experience for anyone who’s ever had a wish, a dream…or a really great pair of shoes.

 

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GASLIGHT

By Patrick Hamilton

Directed by Lucy Bailey

 

January / February 2016

Royal Alexandra Theatre

 

“Suddenly, I’m beginning not to trust my memory at all.”

 

As the ghostly living room gaslight flickers and the floorboards creak around her, Bella Manningham becomes convinced that she is losing her mind, as her mother did before her. With her husband away on business, she loses all sense of reality. Does the terror exist in her imagination or are dark secrets living in her home? The surprise arrival of a retired detective leads to a shocking discovery that will shake her respectable Victorian marriage to its core. A powerful psychological drama.

 

Patrick Hamilton’s classic mystery thriller premiered in London in 1938 and immediately became an international success. In 1944, it was adapted into an iconic film starring Ingrid Bergman. Since then, the play has become a staple of theatre companies in Britain. This brand new production will be mounted in the U.K. before travelling across the Atlantic to the Royal Alexandra Theatre.

 

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THE JUDAS KISS

By David Hare

Directed by Neil Armfield

Starring Rupert Everett

 

A HAMPSTEAD THEATRE PRODUCTION

 

March / April 2016

Royal Alexandra Theatre

 

Rupert Everett plays Oscar Wilde in David Hare’s THE JUDAS KISS —a compelling drama about the power of all consuming love and the cruelty of betrayal.

 

It is 1895 and Oscar Wilde’s masterpiece, The Importance of Being Earnest, is playing in the West End after a triumphant premiere, but already the wheels are in motion, which will lead to his imprisonment, downfall and vilification.

 

Forced to make a choice between his lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, and his freedom, the ever romantic Wilde embarks on a course towards self-destruction.

 

Directed by Neil Armfield, this critically acclaimed production arrives in Toronto after a sold-out run in London’s West End.

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IF/ THEN

Book & Lyrics By Brian Yorkey

Music by Tom Kit

Directed by Michael Greif 

 

April / May 2016

Princess of Wales Theatre

 

IF/THEN is a contemporary Broadway musical about living in New York today— and all the possibilities of tomorrow.

 

With unforgettable songs and a deeply moving story by the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award®-winning creators of Next to Normal, this “fascinating, ambitious, and original new musical” (New York Post) simultaneously follows one woman’s two possible life paths, painting a deeply moving portrait of the lives we lead, as well as the lives we might have led.

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A GENTLEMAN’S GUIDE TO LOVE & MURDER

Book by Robert L. Freedman

Lyrics byRobert L. Freedman and Steven Lutvak

Music bySteven Lutvak

Directed by Darko Tresnjak 

 

May / June 2016

Royal Alexandra Theatre

 

Getting away with murder can be so much fun… and there’s no better proof than the knock-‘em-dead hit show that’s earned unanimous raves and won the 2014 Tony Award® for BEST MUSICAL—A GENTLEMAN’S GUIDE TO LOVE & MURDER!

 

Direct from New York, where a most gentlemanly NPR critic said he’d “NEVER LAUGHED SO HARD AT A BROADWAY MUSICAL,” GENTLEMAN’S GUIDE tells the uproarious story of Monty Navarro, a distant heir to a family fortune who sets out to jump the line of succession by—you guessed it—eliminating the eight pesky relatives (all played by one courageous man) who stand in his way. All the while, he’s got to juggle his mistress (she’s after more than just love), his fiancée (she’s his cousin but who’s keeping track?), and the constant threat of landing behind bars! Of course, it will all be worth it if he can slay his way to his inheritance… and be done in time for tea. The Hollywood Reporter raves, “GENTLEMAN’S GUIDE RESTORES OUR FAITH IN MUSICAL COMEDY” and The New York Times cheers, “IT WILL LIFT THE HEARTS OF ALL THOSE WHO’VE BEEN PINING FOR WHAT SOMETIMES SEEMS A LOST ART FORM.”

 

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MATILDA THE MUSICAL

Book by Dennis Kelly

Music by Tim Minchin

Directed by Matthew Warchus

 

Begins July 2016

Princess of Wales Theatre

 

TIME Magazine’s #1 Show of the Year! Winner of 50 international awards, including four Tony Awards® and a record-breaking seven Olivier Awards®, MATILDA THE MUSICAL is the story of an extraordinary girl who, armed with a vivid imagination and a sharp mind, dares to take a stand and change her own destiny.

 

Based on the beloved novel by Roald Dahl, MATILDA continues to thrill sold-out audiences of all ages on Broadway and in London’s West End. The Wall Street Journal says, “The makers of MATILDA have done the impossible— triumphantly! It is smart, sweet, zany and stupendous fun.”

 

This will be the Canadian premiere production of the show, playing a sit-down run and starring an all-Canadian cast.

 

OFF-MIRVISH SERIES at the Panasonic Theatre

 

SEMINAR

By Theresa Rebeck

Directed by Stewart Arnott

Starring Tom McCamus

 

Co-production with the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre

 

November 2015

Panasonic Theatre

 

Four aspiring young writers have paid big bucks to seek wisdom at the feet of the fearsome Leonard—once a celebrated novelist, now a cantankerous editor, teacher and grandstanding chronicler of third-world war zones. 

 

Under Leonard’s recklessly brilliant but brutally unorthodox teaching style, competition for his approval is intense. Alliances are made and broken, tactical schemes are hatched—how far are the students willing to go to make it to the top?

 

Pulitzer Prize-nominee Theresa Rebeck’s mordant comedy is a sparkling cocktail of ambition, power and lust—and one with an unexpected kick. Theresa is the creator of the hit television series Smash and her previous plays include Dead Accounts and Mauritius.

 

Stratford Festival star Tom McCamus plays Leonard in this new production.

 

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BIGMOUTH

Created,Directed & Performed by Valentijn Dhaenens


 

SKAGEN AND RICHARD JORDAN PRODUCTIONS LTD IN A CO-PRODUCTION WITH DE TIJD & STUK

 

January / February 2016

Panasonic Theatre

 

The sell-out hit of the 2012 & 2014 Edinburgh Festivals and an acclaimed hit at festivals around the world, from one of Europe’s hottest theatre companies to explode out of Belgium, BIGMOUTH finally has its North American premiere.

 

In a tour de force performance, Belgian actor Valentijn Dhaenens pays tribute to 2,500 years of oration. Ingeniously weaving together fragments of seminal speeches from not only the Grand Inquisitor and Socrates to Mohammed Ali and Osama Bin Laden, BIGMOUTH shows that the tricks of rhetoric have hardly changed.

 

With five microphones on a bare set, his voice and indefatigable energy, Dhaenens traverses sermons, declarations of war, farewells, final arguments, victory speeches and eulogies from across time.

 

 

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DISGRACED

By Ahyad Akhtar

Directed by Robert Ross Parker

Starring Raoul Bhaneja and Birgitte Solem

 

Co-production with Hope and Hell Theatre Company

 

March / April 2016

Panasonic Theatre

 

Following sold-out engagements in Chicago, London and New York, DISGRACED comes roaring to life in its Toronto premiere production for the Off-Mirvish series.

 

The winner of the 2013 Pulitzer Prize, DISGRACED is the “emotionally shattering” (Newsday)tale of the stories we tell our friends, the secrets we tell our lovers, and the lies we tell ourselves to find our place in the American Dream. “It’s terrific and turbulent.” (The New York Times).

 

Written by Ayad Akhtar—a new voice who “finds urgent dramatic connections that serious theatregoers crave” (The Washington Post)—this provocative tale of big city aspiration and cultural assimilation dares to face the truth hiding just below the deception.

 

 

BONUS SHOWS

 

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA

Dec 8, 2015 – Jan 23, 2016

Princess of Wales Theatre

 

Cameron Mackintosh’s spectacular new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s phenomenal musical success, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, will come to Toronto as part of a brand new North American Tour. Hailed by critics as “bigger and better than ever before,” this production boasts exciting new special effects, scenic and lighting designs, staging and choreography.

 

TRACES BY 7 FINGERS

Dec 15 – 27, 2015

Panasonic Theatre

Created in 2006, TRACES has been presented more than 1700 times in 200 cities around the world. The show has been invited to America’s Got Talent twice, was on TIME’s top 10 list in 2011, performed at the Royal Variety Performance in London and was featured at the Union Square Theater in NYC for a whole year.

 

Combining traditional acrobatic forms with street elements such as skateboarding and basketball, mixed in with some theatre and contemporary dance, it surprises, awes and delights at every turn.

 

 

OH CANADA WHAT A FEELING!

August 11 – 30, 2015

Princess of Wales Theatre

 

It’s innovative, it’s inspiring, and it’s a spectacular multi-media theatrical production! OH CANADA WHAT A FEELING! takes to the stage to celebrate the rich, vibrant musical legacy of this country. Set against a stunning backdrop of historical and musical footage, a live band and a cast of fresh young talent will provide an unforgettable concert of songs made famous by artists such as Paul Anka, Gordon Lightfoot, The Guess Who, Anne MurrayLoverboy, Rush, Bryan Adams and Neil Young, to mention a very few. Feel the pride, share in the memories and experience the music that unites this amazing country from coast to coast.

 

 

THE AUSTRALIAN BEE GEES SHOW

January 28 – 31, 2016

Princess of Wales Theatre

 

THE AUSTRALIAN BEE GEES SHOW, is a celebration of one of the most influential and famous musical groups of all time! Their record-breaking music is captivated on stage with mesmerizing resemblance in sound and mannerisms. Get ready for the new AUSTRALIAN BEE GEES SHOW, a multi-media theatrical concert experience that takes a nostalgic trip through the legacy the Bee Gees left behind while celebrating over four decades of the infectious music written by the Gibb brothers.

 

For more information about subscriptions and the new season:

416-593-4225  • 1-800-771-3933

MIRVISH.COM

Photo of the Broadway Cast of Matilda The Musical by Joan Marcus