10 theatre artists to watch this fall

For arts lovers, there’s nothing like autumn to get you excited about live theatre. The summer festivals are over or are winding down, summer stock has packed up its trunks, and with the slight chill in the air comes more substantial, heartier fare.

There are dozens of productions happening from now until early December — check out my listings for complete descriptions of them all. But what to choose? To help you out, here are ten artists with proven track records who are bound to impress.

And at the end, look for ticket giveaways to two other hotly-anticipated shows, To a Flame and Bootycandy.

Akosua Amo-Adem

Actor, Parfumerie (November 18 to December 20 at Soulpepper Theatre)

After starring in her own romantic comedy, Table for Two, a couple of years ago, Amo-Adem should be right at home in the world of Parfumerie, the sweetly old-fashioned romance adapted from Hungarian writer Miklós László’s play — the same story that inspired the classic movies The Shop Around the Corner and You’ve Got Mail.

But Amo-Adem brings an intensity to her performances that could give this familiar tale some extra spark. Peter Fernandes plays the man she’s secretly been corresponding with, unaware that the woman who drives him crazy at the perfume shop is the same woman he’s falling for through their letters.

There’s also some nice Soulpepper history in this production: co-adapter Brenda Robins and Oliver Dennis, who starred in the company’s original staging of Parfumerie, are back in the cast. And Morris Panych once again directs. Smells like a hit to me. See ticket info here

Evan Builing

Co-writer/actor, Macbeth (November 3 to 29 at Crow’s Theatre)

Besides being a solid actor in contemporary plays (Fulfillment Centre) and musicals (Fun Home, Natasha Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812), Buliung is one of our leading Shakespeare actors, which he’s currently proving as the chilling, demonic Iago at the Stratford Festival.