‘Heated Rivalry’ parody comes to Toronto’s Soulpepper Theatre as a campy hockey comedy

“I’m just really excited to unleash it onto Canada,” the Winnipeg-raised creator said in a phone interview.

“Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody” pokes fun at the unprecedented popularity of Crave’s gay hockey romance series and the romance books it was based on in a lighthearted story driven by 14 original songs, including “Big Ass, Cold Heart” and “Shane Hollander, Slap that Stick!”

The show is framed by a Greek chorus of “wine moms” who convene to obsess over the series and narrate the blossoming relationship between Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov. The comedy was written by Dylan MarcAurele, whose “Meg4n: The Unauthorized Musical Parody” takes on the horror film about a killer robot.

The “Heated Rivalry” parody first opened in New York earlier this year, with tickets selling out within days. Kliffer then expanded the production into a full off-Broadway show at Manhattan’s Culture Club. What began as an eight-week run has since been extended through Labour Day due to strong ticket sales.

The show’s Toronto debut coincides with the Fringe Festival, which begins on June 30, and Soulpepper Theatre artistic director Paolo Santalucia said the pairing is a reminder of “how great it feels when we get to celebrate Canadian artistry that travels far beyond our borders.”

“To bring that energy into our home, alongside the momentum of the Fringe and on the heels of Pride Month, feels like exactly the kind of cultural moment Soulpepper should be helping to amplify,” Santalucia said in a statement.

After its Toronto debut, the Canadian cast heads to Montreal’s Just for Laughs comedy festival where they perform twice daily from July 17 to 19.

Kliffer is also preparing a U.K. production set to open later this year, around the same time another parody inspired by the franchise, “Deep-Heat Rivalry,” is scheduled to debut in September.

The U.S. performers are also recording an official cast album in New York this week, with a release planned for a later date.

“I didn’t think this would happen so fast,” Kliffer said. “It really has been a whirlwind that continues to amaze us.”

Other companies have been circling the production, he added, including Toronto’s Mirvish Productions. The theatre company offered one of its venues for a summer run, but the creators ultimately decided it wasn’t the right fit for the production.

“I would love to go to a theatre like the Royal Alex,” Kliffer said.

“It would be great for Canada to have a huge anchor production of the show. And I think it could warrant something like that based on the popularity we have right now in the U.S. and the sales that we have seen already in the United Kingdom.”

He added: “But it would involve them taking a risk and really betting on something. Doing something risky, I think I think that’s true for all of the theatres even though I think it’s a good risk to take.”