Graeme Somerville

Experience the gripping courtroom drama as Agatha Christie's WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION takes the stage at The Shaw Festival.

It’s been a strong year for Toronto theatre. I saw 145 shows this year in Toronto and beyond, and am happy to report that theatre is alive and well. I’ve laughed, sobbed, coughed (discreetly into a mask), and cheered my way through our stages in 2023. Here are some local highlights.

In Canadian Stage’s production of Italian playwright Stephano Massini’s The Lehman Trilogy, three powerhouse performances, a surprising and meaningful staging, and a sweeping story outweigh the curious neutrality of the script to create a vital, must-see show with high stock value.

The cast and creative teams have been revealed for the Shaw Festival’s 62nd season.

Don't miss the Canadian premiere of THE LEHMAN TRILOGY at Canadian Stage. Experience the critically acclaimed play that traces the history of the Lehman Brothers, running from November 14-26.

The Shaw Festival’s 2023 season is continuing with Bernard Shaw’s The Apple Cart and Noël Coward’s Blithe Spirit. Each begin previews on June 13 and June 14, respectively.

The Shaw Festival’s Outdoors @ The Shaw returns for another year of theatre, concerts and curated experiences alfresco from June 3 to October 7 on the grounds of the Shaw Festival.  

Nearing the end of the company’s first full season since 2019 - a season that saw audiences eagerly returning to the joy and thrill of live theatre, bringing back pre-pandemic subscription levels, full houses, and sold-out shows – Canadian Stage has announced an ambitious 23.24 season defined by thrilling and urgently relevant contemporary theatre and performance work from Canada and around the world.

Artistic Director Tim Carroll has unveiled the Shaw Festival's 2023 casting and creative teams for the Festival Theatre, Royal George Theatre, Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre, BMO Stage, as well as the newly added Spiegeltent.

Two timeless holiday tales, guaranteed to make spirits bright in young and old alike, begin previews at The Shaw. The Festival's holiday spirits, um spirit, will take over the Royal George Theatre on November 9 with the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol. Irving Berlin's White Christmas, his adored musical homage to romance and snow, follows merrily along on November 18 at the Festival Theatre.

The Shaw's 2022 season comes to a merry close with Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol and Irving Berlin's White Christmas – two classic holiday tales guaranteed to thaw the frostiest of hearts and make spirits bright in young and old alike.

Three more shows from the Shaw Festival’s 2022 playbill are poised to begin previews. The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde’s masterpiece of wit, comedy and satirical social commentary, begins previews May 18. 

The Shaw Festival’s 60th season will continue with performances of the romantic musical comedy Damn Yankees, psychological thriller Gaslight and surreal tour de force Too True to Be Good. All three shows will begin welcoming audiences to preview performances in the coming days and weeks.

Artistic Director Tim Carroll has announced casting and creative teams for the Shaw Festival’s 60th anniversary season.

The Shaw Festival's 2021 season continues into fall and winter with the American classic Desire Under the Elms, the beloved Irving Berlin musical Holiday Inn and perennial Yuletide favourite A Christmas Carol.

Artistic Director Tim Carroll and the Shaw Festival have announced Outdoors @ The Shaw, a series of concerts and events scheduled to take place from July 10 to October 9, 2021 on the grounds of the Festival Theatre and Royal George Theatre in Niagara-on-the-Lake. 

Artistic Director Tim Carroll has announced casting for the Shaw Festival’s upcoming productions of Charley’s Aunt, Flush, The Devil’s Disciple, Sherlock Holmes and the Raven’s Curse, A Short History of Niagara and Trouble in Mind.

Molly Atkinson once again directs the Tim Carroll-adapted A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens's beloved tale of redemption and hope. Returning to the Shaw Festival's Royal George Theatre from November 13 to December 22, the holiday classic hits the stage just in time to herald Niagara-on-the-Lake's historic main street's transformation into the ultimate Christmas village.

To say that George Bernard Shaw's social commentaries were erudite would be an understatement. His keen eye and astute observations always allow the reader or viewer to take pause and contemplate life in a different light. The Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the Lake is producing one of his lesser works, GETTING MARRIED. Originally written for the stage in 1908, many of it's concepts remain unchanged regarding the institution of marriage and it's sanctity, but Shaw ingeniously takes us for a roller coaster of a ride in telling this story.

Getting Married, Shaw's satire scrutinizing the institution of marriage and various other "social norms", begins previews May 10 at the Shaw Festival's Royal George Theatre. Director Tanja Jacobs transfers Shaw's timeless and witty comedy to the 1950s - a decade of simmering societal change and where the age-old question "is getting marriage really worth the trouble?" resonates with new relevance.