Theatre

A collection of 22 posts

Theatre

Of the Sea enchants, Bluebeard surprises, Metamorphoses meanders: this week in Toronto theatre

Also included is a call for applications for the IBPOC Critics Lab, why there was no room for Room on Broadway and a contest for Theatre Passe Muraille's Never the Last

Theatre

Reviews: The Land Acknowledgement and Anahita's Republic

A second look at Cliff Cardinal's groundbreaking monologue, plus a bold new play set in Iran, the Jon Kaplan Legacy Fund Awards deadline and a Cirque du Soleil show ticket giveaway

Theatre

10 Toronto shows to see this spring

From radical takes on classics to a love story set against COVID and the brutal war in Ukraine, here are some must-see shows this season

Out-of-town Theatre

Review: Mahabharata soars at Shaw Festival and gets ready to tour

Eight years in the making, Ravi Jain and Miriam Fernandes's adaptation of the 4000-year-old Sanskrit poem is a remarkable multidisciplinary achievement

Theatre

Under-the-table workers, glam rockers and eco explorers: this week in Toronto theatre

Review roundup includes Behind the Moon, Rock of Ages, I Love the Smell of Gasoline, The Yellow Wallpaper and Fairview

Theatre

A bold new family drama and three iconic singers: this week in Toronto theatre

Reviews of Paolo Santalucia's Prodigal, the diva-fest Billie, Sarah, and Ella and The Darkest Dark

Theatre

Review: Hamilton settles in for a good long stay

Even if you've seen Lin-Manuel Miranda's revolutionary musical live or on Disney+, this North American tour will make you appreciate its greatness anew

Theatre

Iranian students, intimate Lear and biting cultural satire: this week in Toronto theatre

Reviews of English, The Tragedy of King Lear and Redbone Coonhound, plus a look at my first month as an independent theatre blogger

Theatre

Fractured families, historic storms and brave pilots: this week in Toronto theatre

Reviews of Things I Know to be True, Pressure and The Flight, a list of holdovers and a Redbone Coonhound ticket giveaway

Theatre

Review: Sarah Gadon makes a scorching theatre debut in Yerma

The acclaimed film and TV actor delivers a white-knuckle performance as a woman who desperately wants to have a child

Personal Featured

Goodbye, dad

My father loved Les Mis and Come From Away, did a great imitation of Mr. Kim and taught me never to pretend that I liked something when I didn't

Paid-members only

Theatre

First impression of Fall on Your Knees: Part One (Family Tree)

Fans of Ann-Marie MacDonald's epic novel will likely be enraptured. But others might have a hard time caring about its characters.

Theatre

Fifteen Dogs, listings beta version and Buddies begins its search

Wagging my tail over Stephen Jackman-Torkoff and Peter Fernandes, hoping Buddies finds its way and introducing So Sumi's new listings section

Theatre Featured

Can a one-minute trailer convince you to see a show?

Long before TikTok, some savvy theatre producers figured out how to sell their product to mass audiences

Theatre

Review: Martyr is a provocative look at religious extremism

ARC's production of Marius von Mayenburg's play might not have the most elegant plot, but you can't argue with its staggering performances

Members only

Contest

Contest! Free tickets to ARC's MARTYR

Theatre Featured

10 Toronto shows to mark on your calendar this winter

From adaptations of two bestselling Canadian novels and the stage debut of Sarah Gadon to a controversial Pulitzer Prize-winning play about race, here are some of the season's must-see shows

Members only

Opinion

Starry, starry nights

Theatre

The Top 10 Toronto theatre productions of 2022

Is God Is, our place, Where The Blood Mixes, Sweeney Todd and The Antipodes stood out in arguably the most diverse and thoughtful theatre season ever

Theatre

The Top 10 Toronto theatre artists of 2022

Fatuma Adar, Deborah Drakeford, Yolanda Bonnell, Virgilia Griffith, Craig Lauzon, Vanessa Sears and others all made theatres come back to life with a vengeance

Theatre

The breakthrough Toronto stage artists of 2022

Here are six people who were so memorable they got audiences to Google their names after leaving the theatre

Theatre Featured

Wilkommen! Bienvenue! Welcome!

My name is Glenn Sumi. I've been covering the Toronto theatre scene full-time for exactly 25 years, mostly at NOW Magazine, a once wonderful news and entertainment weekly whose days are numbered. Hence this newsletter. Pre-pandemic, I saw and reviewed hundreds of shows a year, primarily theatre but also comedy,