A STRANGE LOOP, KIM'S CONVENIENCE & More Set for Soulpepper Theatre 24/25 Season
The season will also feature What the Constitution Means to Me and more.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz May. 09, 2024
Soulpepper Theatre has unveiled one of its most significant and ambitious seasons, continuing its focus on large-scale works and deep investments in artistic partnerships and Canadian voices. This powerful 27th-season lineup of 8 groundbreaking shows includes a new production of Kim's Convenience, the Canadian premiere of A Strange Loop, The Master Plan, Alligator Pie, the world premiere of Table For Two, and the Canadian premiere of What The Constitution Means to Me.
“We pride ourselves and take great care in connecting with audiences by telling timely stories that get to the heart of where we are as a country and city. The season promises to be a source of inspiration, joy, and innovation at a time when they are needed most. Each play takes audiences on a transformative journey, where characters grapple with the weight of long-standing systems and legacies. Whether it's examining our political agency in The Master Plan and What the Constitution Means to Me, exploring intergenerational relationships and cultural inheritance in Kim's Convenience and Table for Two, or navigating the quest for belonging in A Strange Loop, these narratives compel characters to confront their histories and shape their destinies. It is a season with a big heart and incredible ingenuity that celebrates Canadian voices and the resilient human spirit. You won't want to miss it.” - Weyni Mengesha, Artistic Director, Soulpepper Theatre.
After a successful season of exploration and growth, where over 50% of our audience discovered Soulpepper for the first time, we are thrilled to continue our exceptional and diverse programming with the return of the smash hit Billie, Sarah, and Ella. This Soulpepper concert remount, created by Divine Brown and directed by Weyni Mengesha, explores the stories of the women who infused jazz with a profound social purpose. Following that, coinciding with the US election is the Canadian Premiere of What The Constitution Means To Me by Heidi Schreck, reimagined for Canadian audiences. Also directed by Weyni Mengesha, this co-production with Nightwood Theatre explores the dynamic relationship between individuals and the foundational principles of their country, sparking conversations around citizenship, rights, and democracy.
Soulpepper closes out 2024 with the critically acclaimed and hugely successful The Master Plan, in partnership with Crow's Theatre. The play takes us behind closed doors and reveals the corporate drama, epic personalities, and iconic Canadian figures involved in the messy affair between Sidewalk Labs and Waterfront Toronto. Next up, and just in time for the holidays, is a new version of the beloved Soulpepper favourite Alligator Pie, which will be performed with new poems musically imagined by the incoming 2024 Soulpepper Academy.
Soulpepper kicks off 2025 with a new production of one of the most successful Canadian plays in its history, Kim's Convenience. It returns to the stage where it all began and reunites celebrated playwright Ins Choi with original director Weyni Mengesha. Choi, who originally played the son, now plays the iconic role of Mr. Kim. This play immediately resonated with Torontonians, becoming the most popular show in Soulpepper's history and a hit show on CBC and Netflix.
Following is a new play written by and starring Akosua Amo-Adem, directed by Djanet Sears, and produced in partnership with Obsidian Theatre called Table for Two, premiering in February 2025. This world premiere is a candid exploration of the digital dating landscape, where swipes, likes, and matches collide with cultural traditions and personal aspirations.
The world premiere of Ladies of the Canyon: Joni and the California Scene, a Soulpepper Concert in March 2025 features an ensemble of Soulpepper musicians led by Hailey Gillis and Raha Javanfar and follows the story of Joni Mitchell's 1968 move to California's Laurel Canyon and the artists she encountered there.
Last but not least, from April to June 2025, Soulpepper, Musical Stage Company, and Crow's Theatre are thrilled to present the Canadian Premiere of A Strange Loop, the recipient of the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, two Tony Awards, including Best New Musical, two Drama Desk Awards, two Obie Awards, and seven Lucille Lortel Award nominations.
2024-2025 MAINSTAGE PRESENTATIONS
BILLIE, SARAH, AND ELLA: REVOLUTIONARY WOMEN IN JAZZ
A Soulpepper Concert Remount
Created by Divine Brown
Directed by Weyni Mengesha
October 15 - 27, 2024
Baillie Theatre
It was the birth of the modern era, and Jazz was the soundtrack for change. This Soulpepper Concert favourite explores the stories of the women that infused jazz with a profound social purpose – Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, and Ella Fitzgerald. Soulpepper Slaight Music Associate Divine Brown pays tribute to these unsung heroes and the powerful movement they inspired.
WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME
Directed by Weyni Mengesha
A Soulpepper and Nightwood Theatre Co-Production in association with Necessary Angel and Talk Is Free Theatre
Canadian Premiere
November 1 - 9, 2024
Michael Young Theatre
What the Constitution Means to Me took Broadway by storm when it premiered in 2019, and was a Tony nominee for Best Play and a Pulitzer Prize finalist. Now, five years later and timed to overlap with the US election, playwright Heidi Schreck re-imagines the play specifically for Canadian audiences in this exclusive and limited run. Featuring a tour-de-force performance by Amy Rutherford as Heidi Schreck, this invigorating and hilarious play traces the profound relationship between four generations of women in Schreck's family and the founding document that shaped all of their lives.
Soulpepper & Crow's Theatre present
THE MASTER PLAN
Based on Sideways by Josh O'Kane
Directed by Chris Abraham
November 24 - December 29, 2024
Michael Young Theatre
It's a biting satire about the stunning failure to build a smart city in Toronto. Adapted from award-winning writer and The Globe and Mail journalist Josh O'Kane's best-selling book Sideways: The City Google Couldn't Buy, the play takes us behind closed doors and reveals the corporate drama, epic personalities, and iconic Canadian figures involved in the messy affair between Sidewalk Labs and Waterfront Toronto. The Master Plan exposes the hubris of big tech, the feebleness of government, and the dangers of public consultation with sharp wit and insightful commentary.
THE SECRET CHORD: A Leonard Cohen EXPERIENCE
A Segal Centre Presentation of a Soulpepper Concert Production
Created by Frank Cox-O'Connell, Marni Jackson, & Mike Ross
Directed by Frank Cox-O'Connell
December 8, 2024 – January 12, 2025
Sylvan Adams Theatre at the Segal Centre for Performing Arts
After playing to sold-out audiences in 2023, the Soulpepper concert The Secret Chord: A Leonard Cohen Experience will head to the Segal Centre in Montreal this holiday season. This one-of-a-kind docu-concert pays tribute to Montreal's most beloved figure, the late Leonard Cohen, and will feature some of his greatest hits.
ALLIGATOR PIE
Created by Ins Choi, Raquel Duffy, Ken MacKenzie, Gregory Prest, Mike Ross
Poems by Dennis Lee
With new contributions from the 2024 Soulpepper Academy
December 11 - December 29, 2024
Baillie Theatre
This beloved Soulpepper favourite returns just in time for the holidays! Alligator Pie brings Dennis Lee's celebrated children's poems to vibrant theatrical life. Full of invention and imagination, it's a show that is joyous, musical, and fun for all family members. Watch the cast, made up of the 2024 Soulpepper Academy ensemble, as they create a world out of everyday objects that capture the child-like whimsy of each poem.
“What kind of message is this play sending to children? They'll grow up expecting to have fun at the theatre!” - Globe and Mail
KIM'S CONVENIENCE
By Ins Choi
Directed by Weyni Mengesha
A Soulpepper production, in association American Conservatory Theater and Adam Blanshay Productions
January 30 - March 2, 2025
Baillie Theatre
The play that started it all – Kim's Convenience, returns to the stage where it began and reunites celebrated playwright Ins Choi with original director Weyni Mengesha. The most successful Canadian play of the last decade, Kim's Convenience, became an internationally successful TV show on CBC and Netflix following its original run at Soulpepper and now makes its triumphant return home.
Mr. Kim is a first-generation Korean immigrant, a father of two, and the proud proprietor of Kim's Convenience for the past 30 years. After building his empire from nothing, the stubborn Mr. Kim grapples with his changing Toronto neighborhood, and the growing chasm between him and his second-generation children. Playwright Ins Choi, who will also star as the title character, calls the play his “love letter to his parents and to all first-generation immigrants who call Canada their home.” Don't miss this historic moment as we welcome Kim's Convenience back home to Soulpepper.
A Soulpepper & Obsidian Theatre Co-Production
TABLE FOR TWO
Written by and starring Akosua Amo-Adem
Directed by Djanet Sears
World Premiere
February 7 - March 2, 2025
Michael Young Theatre
In the uproarious yet poignant Table for Two, Akosua Amo-Adem takes centre stage as Abena Ohemaa Frimbog, affectionately known as Abby. Directed by the acclaimed Djanet Sears, this captivating and hilarious production delves into the trials and tribulations of modern dating. Table for Two is a candid exploration of the digital dating landscape, where swipes, likes, and matches collide with cultural traditions and personal aspirations. With razor-sharp wit and unflinching honesty, the play invites audiences to join Abby on her journey as she confronts the complexities of romance, identity, and the pursuit of happiness in the 21st century. Don't miss this world-premiere production that promises to leave hearts fuller and spirits lifted.
“What makes her piece work so well is the clarity of her writing and the intensity of her performance… Amo-Adem is astonishing.” (The Home Project) - Top 10 Stage Artists, NOW Magazine
LADIES OF THE CANYON: JONI AND THE CALIFORNIA SCENE
A Soulpepper Concert
Created by Hailey Gillis and Raha Javanfar
World Premiere
March 13 - March 23, 2025
Michael Young Theatre
Laurel Canyon is a wooded neighbourhood in the Hollywood Hills. In the ‘60s and ‘70s, it was a respite from the bustle of Los Angeles and a cultural hotbed that brought together Joni Mitchell, Steven Stills, Jackson Browne, Mamma Cass Elliot, and many more. An ensemble of Soulpepper musicians, led by Hailey Gillis and Raha Javanfar, follows the story of Joni's move to the Canyon and the artists she encountered there. We'll hear the rise and struggles of a musical moment through the music of the Canyon.
Soulpepper, The Musical Stage Company, and Crow's Theatre present
A STRANGE LOOP
Directed by Ray Hogg
Canadian Premiere
April 22 - June 1, 2025
Baillie Theatre
Meet Usher. He's dreaming of one day having a full-time career as a successful playwright. Still, currently, he's working front-of-house at Broadway's The Lion King while grappling with his artistic aspirations and personal identity. As he navigates the challenges of society's expectations, internalized racism, body image issues, self-doubt, and the complexities of his desires, Usher confronts the "strange loop" of his existence while trying to write the very musical the audience is watching. Joined by a hilarious chorus who personify Usher's larger-than-life 'Thoughts,' such as ‘Daily Self-Loathing,' ‘Sexual Ambivalence,' and caricatured depictions of his parents, A Strange Loop is bursting with unforgettable melodies and metatheatrical storytelling. This musical promises to leave audiences thoroughly entertained and equally spellbound by its poignant exploration of identity, self-expression, and the power of art to transcend barriers.
The recipient of the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, two Tony Awards including Best New Musical, two Drama Desk Awards, two Obie Awards, and seven Lucille Lortel Award nominations.
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