The Toronto theatre season might be winding down, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening on stages this spring and summer. And I’m not talking about the Stratford and Shaw festivals, which should obviously already be on your to-do list.
Just a couple of hours from the GTA you’ll find plenty of entertaining plays and musicals, including a few world premieres.
Here’s a roundup of some buzzy shows in Ontario that, combined with a picnic lunch or B&B stay, would make a perfect day trip or weekend escape.
World premieres
The Wind Coming Over the Sea
Who: Emma Donoghue
Where: Blyth Festival in Blyth
The Dublin-born and now London, Ont.-based Emma Donoghue is best known as the author of the bestselling novel “Room,” which was made into an Oscar-winning film and adapted for the stage several years ago. Now she’s debuting a folk musical about Henry and Jane Johnson, a real-life couple who left the Great Irish Famine of the 1840s to settle in Southwestern Ontario. Landon Doak (“Peter Pan,” “Alice in Wonderland”) and Shelayna Christante (Bad Hats Theatre’s “Narnia”) star as the couple, and both will sing traditional songs and Irish ballads in this poignant work, directed by Blyth’s artistic director, Gil Garratt. From June 26 to Aug. 12. Visit blythfestival.com for details.
Rez Gas
Who: Cale Crowe and Genevieve Adam
Where: Capitol Theatre in Port Hope
Toronto theatregoers will recognize writer/actor Genevieve Adam from her historical dramas “Dark Heart,” “Heartless” and “Deceitful Above all Things.” Now she’s teamed up with Anishnaabe singer/songwriter Cale Crowe for “Rez Gas,” a musical about a man (John Wamsley from “1939”) who leaves his reservation to pursue a music career, only to return home. Young People’s Theatre’s Herbie Barnes directs a cast that includes Cheri Maracle, Jonathan Fisher and Dillan Chiblow. From Aug. 22 to Sep. 7. Visit capitoltheatre.com for details.
Stick Around
Who: Rebecca Northan
Where: Here for Now Theatre in Stratford
Is there anything Rebecca Northan can’t do? The Dora Award-winning creator of international hit “Blind Date,” alum of both Stratford and Shaw festivals, and one-third of the recent Toronto Theatre Critics’ Award-winning ensemble for “Goblin:Macbeth” now presents a new comedy. “Stick Around” is about a woman in her mid-40s who seeks life advice from her mother, who’s been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Directed by Kevin Kruchkywich, the play is loosely inspired by Northan’s own personal experience during the last eight weeks with her mother. So expect a mix of laughter and tears when the play helps inaugurate the company’s brand new venue. From May 28 to June 8. Visit herefornowtheatre.com for details.
A Woman’s Love List
Who: Norm Foster
Where: Orillia Opera House in Orillia
Back in the early aughts, Norm Foster — considered Canada’s most prolific and most produced playwright — wrote “The Love List,” about two middle-aged men who were searching for the ideal woman. Now Foster is creating gender parity in “A Woman’s Love List,” a new comedy about two women who write down all the qualities they want in a man … and he suddenly appears. From July 3 to 18. Visit theooh.ca for details.
Wild Irish Geese
Who: Megan Murphy
Where: 4th Line Theatre in Millbrook
Audiences at the outdoor 4th Line Theatre know to expect works that draw on the history and heritage of the rural region just southwest of Peterborough. Megan Murphy’s “Wild Irish Geese” tells the story of Irish people who left poverty in the old country (see also “The Wind Coming Over the Sea,” above) to settle in Scott’s Plains, later renamed Peterborough. The company’s managing artistic director, Kim Blackwell, directs this premiere production. From July 29 to Aug. 30. Visit 4thlinetheatre.on.ca for details.
Starry casts
Steel Magnolias
Who: Robert Harling
Where: Capitol Theatre
The film adaptation is a beloved classic, so why doesn’t Robert Harling’s comedy drama — about a group of women in the American South — get more professional revivals? Well, never you mind. Just take the 401 to Port Hope to see Courtney Ch’ng Lancaster’s production, featuring Raquel Duffy, Belinda Corpuz, Carolyn Fe, Brenda Robins and — as the play’s mother/daughter combo — Deborah Drakeford and Charlotte Dennis, who are mother and daughter in real life. Remember to bring tissues. From July 18 to Aug. 3. Visit capitoltheatre.com for details.
Jesus Christ Superstar
Who: Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice
Where: Huron Country Playhouse in Grand Bend and Hamilton Family Theatre in Cambridge
Even if you caught the recent 50th-anniversary revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s groundbreaking musical, you might want to check it out again in this Drayton Theatre production. Especially with stars like Stratford leading man Robert Markus as Jesus, Shaw Fest vet Emily Lukasik as Mary Magdalene and original “Come From Away” Broadway cast member Lee MacDougall as Pontius Pilate. They’re joined by Christopher Ning (a standout in the recent off-Mirvish production of “Titanique”) and Jade McLeod (“Jagged Little Pill” North American tour). From June 11 to 28 and July 3 to 27. Visit draytonentertainment.com for details.
Stag and Doe
Who: Mark Crawford
Where: Thousand Islands Playhouse in Gananoque
Like Foster, prolific actor/writer Mark Crawford’s comedies are hugely popular yet rarely get produced in Toronto. (The only professional production we’ve seen is “Bed & Breakfast” at Soulpepper.) So it might be worth the trek east to the gorgeous Thousand Islands area to see this side-splitting comedy about the lead-up to a wedding, with a cast that includes Shaw regular Emily Lukasik, Amelia Sargisson (“Red Velvet”) and “Come From Away” actor Kyle Brown, all directed by the Dora-winning Cherissa Richards. From Aug. 22 to Sept. 14. Visit 1000islandsplayhouse.com for details.
And don’t forget …
Bittergirl: The Musical
Who: Annabel Fitzsimmons, Alison Lawrence and Mary Francis Moore
Where: County Stage Company in Prince Edward County
I was a huge fan of Annabel Fitzsimmons, Alison Lawrence and Mary Francis Moore’s play “Bittergirl” when it premiered way back in 1999. The show, about finding the humour in getting dumped, was turned into a book several years later and then, eventually, a musical featuring songs from the 1960s and ’70s. Even the Mirvishes helped develop it. The show has been produced across the country, but never in Toronto. Prince Edward County isn’t too far from the GTA. So grab your besties, order tickets and hope you don’t run into your exes during intermission or at the neighbouring wineries. From July 18 to Aug. 13. Visit countystage.ca for details.
Quiet in the Land
Who: Anne Chislett
Where: Blyth Festival
Anne Chislett’s moving drama set in a small Amish community on the eve of the Second World War premiered at the Blyth Festival in 1981 and won the Governor General’s Award two years later. Productions of this Canadian classic are rare, so don’t miss this opportunity to see it performed at the festival’s atmospheric outdoor Harvest Stage, directed by Severn Thompson and with a cast headed by two of stalwarts of the theatre scene, Randy Hughson and Michelle Fisk. From July 3 to Aug. 23. Visit blythfestival.com for details.
