The theatre shows to watch on Toronto stages right now

The 17th-century English author and literary critic John Dryden once called Shakespeare’s “Troilus and Cressida” a “heap of rubbish under which many excellent thoughts lay wholly bury’d.” Unfortunately, Shakespeare Bash’d’s latest revival of the work, now running at the Theatre Centre, only manages to clear about a third of that rubbish, before spritzing some perfume to mask the stench of the rest. And despite some fine performances from a cast that includes a handful of Stratford Festival veterans, director James Wallis’s production is largely as impenetrable as the material itself. Putting the “problem” in problem play, “Troilus and Cressida” swings wildly in tone. It’s a spoof on Homer’s “The Iliad” that’s part satire, tragedy, romance and history — all wrapped up in one. Until Feb. 8 at the Theatre Centre. 

Read Joshua Chong’s full review of “Troilus and Cressida.”

Pu Songling: Strange Tales

At the beginning of Theatre Smith-Gilmour’s haunting new play, “Pu Songling: Strange Tales,” five members of the ensemble casually enter the deep, narrow studio space at Crow’s Theatre and stand among the audience. Co-founder Dean Gilmour polls the crowd to see if anyone is familiar with the author, who was born in China in the 17th century and wrote approximately 500 short stories in his lifetime. A few hands shoot up. Then the Chinese-Canadian actors — John Ng, Diana Tso, Madelaine Hodges and Steven Hao — provide quick summaries of a handful of tales, ending with a story about people turning off their cellphones. This, it turns out, is a sly and clever way of guiding us into a world that, over the next 100 minutes, will prove to be as surprising as it is enchanting. Until Feb. 8 at Streetcar Crowsnest’s Studio Theatre.

Read Glenn Sumi’s full review of “Pu Songling: Strange Tales.”

Mischief

We may only be three weeks into 2026, but I’m ready to call it: Lisa Nasson’s “Mischief,” now running at Tarragon Theatre in a co-production with Native Earth Performing Arts and Halifax’s Neptune Theatre, marks one of the year’s most impressive debuts. The Mi’kmaq artist’s first full-length play is a riotous, blow-up-the-colonizers comedy stuffed with laughs, and supplemented with a sensitive, emotional core that’s filled with heart. Not only did Nasson write this piece, but she stars in it too, in an impeccable production directed by Mike Payette with Joelle Peters. There are echoes of Tony Kushner’s “Caroline, or Change,” but especially Ins Choi’s “Kim’s Convenience.” In some ways, though, “Mischief” offers even more depth than Choi’s family comedy. Until Feb. 8 at Tarragon Theatre Mainspace. 

Read Joshua Chong’s full review of “Mischief.”

Company

In theory, there are few greater pleasures in musical theatre than hearing the sound of unamplified Sondheim, each syllable of his lyrics hitting in the ear with perfect clarity, pure and undistorted. You can experience tantalizing samples of this brilliance in Toronto’s latest revival of “Company,” Sondheim and George Furth’s genre-breaking musical study of companionship and the institution of marriage. But what may sound good in theory doesn’t always translate in reality. Such is the case with Talk is Free Theatre’s production, now running at the Theatre Centre. Despite several inspired flourishes in Dylan Trowbridge’s pared-down, mic-free staging, this revival more often feels like a workshop presentation of “Company” rather than a cogent and fully realized production of it. Until Feb. 8 at the Theatre Centre. 

Read Joshua Chong’s full review of “Company.”

Kimberly Akimbo 

We’re still in the middle of cold and flu season. How else to explain Louise Pitre’s vocally underpowered performance in the demanding title role of “Kimberly Akimbo” at the opening night performance? As recently as late August, she was in fine form as Marya in “Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812.” But Marya is a supporting part and Kimberly Levaco, the teenage protagonist of Jeanine Tesori and David Lindsay-Abaire’s best musical Tony Award winner, is the lead. If you’re wondering why Pitre is playing a teen in the first place, that’s part of the show’s unique premise. Kimberly was born with a rare genetic disorder that has caused her to age about four or five times faster than normal. Until Feb. 8 at the CAA Theatre. 

Read Glenn Sumi’s full review of “Kimberly Akimbo.”

Rigoletto

Sarah Dufresne wasn’t supposed to appear in the Canadian Opera Company’s (COC) production of “Rigoletto,” which opened Saturday at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts. Up until last month, the leading role of Gilda, the title character’s pious daughter, who is seduced by her father’s boss, the depraved Duke of Mantua, was to be performed by American soprano Andrea Carroll. But Carroll’s late withdrawal from the production meant Dufresne stepped in for director Christopher Alden’s polarizing staging of the Verdi classic, last performed by the COC in 2018. And it’s a star-making, “bravissima”-worthy turn. Until Feb. 18 at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.

Read Joshua Chong’s full review of “Rigoletto.”

& Juliet

David West Read’s irreverent Shakespearean musical rewrite — asking what if Juliet didn’t kill herself at the end of “Romeo and Juliet” — is back in Toronto following its pre-Broadway run in 2022. And while the two productions are nearly physically and materially identical, this Canadian remount somehow feels sharper, funnier and (dare I say) even better than than the one that was here before. Much of that is thanks to this cast, including Vanessa Sears, who delivers a career-high star turn in the title role. She’s a veritable triple-threat performer with powerhouse vocals that make these new arrangements of Max Martin’s hit tunes sound fresh. Until July 5 at the Royal Alexandra Theatre. 

Read Joshua Chong’s full review of “& Juliet.”