Shows That Caught Our Eye in Toronto the Week of March 26th, 2018

Toronto live theatre for the week of March 26th, 2018. This week’s selections feature narratives about sex, Indigenous dance, punk rock, and a new Mirvish show. Our Assistant Editor Jess is on hand with a few of her top picks in red. Check them out below the cut:

Already reviewed by Mooney on theatre:

Animal Farm by George Orwell, adapted by Anthony MacMahon (Soulpepper Theatre). How long will the animal utopia last when a charismatic new leader emerges? An innovative new adaptation of Orwell’s classic satire about tyranny and equality. Previews from Mar 9, opens Mar 15 and runs to Apr 7, see website for times. $32-$96. At Young Centre for the Performing Arts. Show Info.

Come From Away by Irene Sankoff and David Hein (Mirvish). Newfoundlanders open their homes to stranded passengers following the September 11 terrorist attacks. Previews from Feb 13, opens Feb 18 and runs to Sep 2, Tue-Sat 8 pm, mat Wed 1:30 pm, Sat-Sun 2 pm. $69 and up. At The Royal Alexandra Theatre. Show Info.

Bunny by Hannah Moscovitch (Tarragon). A woman is caught between her sexual desires and what is socially acceptable. Previews from Feb 21, opens Feb 28 and runs to Apr 1, Tue-Sat 8 pm, mat Sun 2:30 pm (see website for other mats). $20-$60. MainSpace. At Tarragon Theatre. Show Info.

The Monument by Colleen Wagner (Factory Theatre). A soldier desperate to escape death for his war crimes agrees to give himself to the complete servitude of an unknown woman. A harrowing and visceral journey of two people forced to confront the atrocities of war. Previews from Mar 10, opens Mar 15 and runs to Apr 1, Tue-Sat 8 pm, Sun 2 pm. $20-$50. At Factory Theatre. Show Info.

What A Young Wife Ought To Know Crow’s Theatre presents a 2b theatre company production of a play by Hannah Moscovitch. Set in 1920s Ottawa, the play looks at the destructive shame enacted upon women in western society for centuries via the withholding of knowledge about sex and birth control. Previews from Mar 20, opens Mar 22 and runs to Apr 7, Mon-Sat 8 pm, mat Sat 2 pm. $20-$45.  At The Streetcar Crowsnest. Show Info.

Les Misérables by Victor Hugo (Theatre Smith-Gilmour). Theatrical adaptation of Hugo’s iconic book about justice, forgiveness and love. Previews from Mar 16, opens Mar 20 and runs to Apr 1, Tue-Sat 8 pm, mat Sat 1 pm, Sun 3 pm. Wed student shows at noon. $40, stu/arts workers $30, mat $25, previews $20. March 25: Theatre Smith-Gilmour’s fundraising gala matinee. $100, stu $40. RSVP. At The Theatre Centre. Show Info.

And everything else:

Damnnée Manon, Sacrée Sandra by Michel Tremblay (Mortar & Pestle Productions). Two very different women speak two interweaving monologues on religion and sex. Opens Mar 22 and runs to Mar 31, Thu-Fri 8 pm (and Mar 24), mat Sat 2 pm. $15 at eventbrite.ca. At Gerard Art Space. Show Info.

Niimi’iwe: Finding Wolastoq Voice. Native Earth Performing Arts and Theatre New Brunswick present a dance/theatre piece by Natalie Sappier and choreographer Aria Evans. Finding Wolastoq Voice explores personal discovery, identity and culture of a young Wolastoqiyik woman awakened by the voices of her ancestors. Mar 29-31. $20-$25. Aki Studio. Show Info.

Punk Rock. The Howland Company presents a play by Simon Stephens. Fear, anger and self-loathing bubble under the surface of the adolescent fantasies of a group of private school students in the UK. Previews from Mar 29, opens Apr 3 and runs to Apr 14, Tue-Sat 7:30 pm (and Apr 2 preview), mat Sat Apr 7 and 14 at 1:30 pm. $15-$35. At The Streetcar Crowsnest. Show Info.

Highlights from Ulysses. Opera Atelier presents performance excerpts from its upcoming production of Monteverdi’s The Return Of Ulysses featuring artists of Atelier Ballet and singers from Opera Atelier. Mar 29 at noon. Free. In the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre at The Four Seasons Centre. Show Info.

Toronto Passion Play. The Christian Performing Arts Centre, in association with Church on the Queensway, presents a theatrical and musical Easter pageant featuring singers, dancers, actors, full orchestra and live animals on stage. Mar 30-Apr 1, Fri-Sat 2 and 7 pm, Sun 4 pm. $5. Church on the Queensway. Show Info.

A Moveable Feast: Paris in the 20’s. Soulpepper Concert Series musical cabaret, Mar 30-Apr 10: Mar 30, Apr 2, 6, 9 and 10 at 7:30 pm, Mar 31 at 1:30 pm. $25 & up. At The Young Centre for the Performing Arts. Show Info.

Nerdgasm: A Del Toronto Tribute. Illuminair Entertainment presents established and emerging talent in circus, drag, variety and performance art. Featuring acts based on or inspired by Hellboy/Hellboy 2, The Strain, The Shape of Water, Pan’s Labyrinth and other Guillermo del Toro works. Mar 31 at 7 pm. $25-$55. At Isabel Bader Theatre. Show Info.

The Chalk Garden.  Stage Centre Productions present a play by Enid Bagnold. This psychological chamber piece explores the secret world of childhood through the prism of a dyed-in-the-wool British dowager and her precocious and equally eccentric granddaughter. Opens Mar 22 and runs to Mar 31, Wed-Sat 8 pm, mat Mar 25 and 31 at 2 pm. $30, stu/srs $25. At Fairview Library. Show Info.

The Overcoat: A Musical Tailoring. Adapted from Nikolai Gogol’s short story by Morris Panych and James Rolfe (Canadian Stage/Tapestry Opera). An office worker’s life is turned upside-down when he’s robbed of his new coat. Previews from Mar 27, opens Mar 29 and runs to Apr 14, Tue-Thu and Sat 8 pm, Fri 7 pm, mat Sun 1 pm. $39-$99. At Bluma Appel Theatre. Show Info.

An American in Paris. Mirvish presents the musical by George and Ira Gershwin, book by Craig Lucas. An American soldier and a mysterious French woman find each other in at the end of WWII in this musical based on the film. Opens Mar 27 and runs to Apr 29, Tue-Sat 8 pm, mat Wed 1:30 pm, Sat-Sun 2 pm. $59-$175. At The Princess of Wales Theatre. Show Info.

Bloom. Modern Times Stage Company presents a play by Guillermo Verdecchia, inspired by TS Eliot’s The Wasteland. A war orphan and a war veteran live on the fringes of a ruined world – one is trying to remember, while the other is trying to forget. Previews Mar 23-25, opens Mar 27 and runs to Apr 8, Tue-Sat 8 pm, Sun 2:30 pm. $18-$30, preview $15, Sun pwyc at the door. At Buddies in Bad Times Theatre. Show Info.

 

Listings based primarily on NOW! Stage Listings.