Shaw Festival – Niagara-on-the-Lake: Casting Announced
Festival Theatre
The Magician’s Nephew
By C.S. Lewis
Adapted for the stage by Michael O’Brien
Directed by Tim Carroll
Previews April 4 ♦ Media Premiere May 9 ♦ Closes October 13
A magical and spectacular plunge into Narnia… at its very beginning as Aslan (Kyle Blair) shapes it. Sent on an adventure by his Uncle Andrew (Steven Sutcliffe), Young Digory (Travis Seetoo) and his friend Polly (Vanessa Sears) stumble on a way to explore other worlds – but accidentally unleash a malevolent queen (Deborah Hay) who could destroy everything.
The Magician’s Nephew also features Andrew Broderick, Starr Domingue, Patty Jamieson, Madelyn Kriese, Emily Lukasik, Matt Nethersole, David Andrew Reid, Jeremiah Sparks, Michael Therriault and Jay Turvey.
Grand Hotel
Book by Luther Davis
Music and lyrics by Robert Wright and George Forrest
Based on Vicki Baum’s Grand Hotel
Additional music and lyrics by Maury Yeston
Directed by Eda Holmes
Music direction by Paul Sportelli
Choreography by Parker Esse
Previews May 3 ♦ Media Premiere May 23 ♦ Closes October 14
Love, betrayal and murder are on the hotel itinerary in this musical set in the Roaring Twenties. The lives of the guests – a fading prima ballerina (Deborah Hay), an ill bookkeeper (Michael Therriault), a doctor with a love of morphine (Steven Sutcliffe), a typist enamored with the theatre (Vanessa Sears), a handsome, but poor Baron (James Daly) and a wealthy businessman (Jay Turvey) – collide over one unforgettable night at the Grand Hotel. Grand Hotel also features David Ball, Kyle Blair, Andrew Broderick, Ryan Cunningham, Starr Domingue, Kristi Frank, Élodie Gillett, Jeff Irving, Patty Jamieson, Madelyn Kriese, Allan Louis, Emily Lukasik, Marla McLean, Matt Nethersole, Kimberley Rampersad, David Andrew Reid, Kiera Sangster, Travis Seetoo, Jeremiah Sparks and Jenny L. Wright.
Mythos: A Trilogy
Gods. Heroes. Men.
Written by and starring Stephen Fry
Directed by Tim Carroll
Previews May 24 ♦ Media Premiere June 7, 8, 9 ♦ Closes July 14, 15
One of the world’s greatest storytellers, telling the world’s greatest stories. In this trilogy of plays, Stephen Fry takes to the stage in the company of the Greek gods, heroes and men whose gripping tales still echo today. Laugh-out-loud funny, mind-blowing and often personal, Mythos is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
The Hound Of The Baskervilles
By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Adapted by R. Hamilton Wright and David Pichette
Directed by Craig Hall
Previews August 1 ♦ Media Premiere August 11 ♦ Closes October 27
The murder mystery returns to the Shaw Festival with The Hound of the Baskervilles. Sir Baskerville has been scared to death – literally. Now deductive genius Sherlock Holmes (Damien Atkins) and his trusty companion Dr. Watson (Ric Reid) are on the case to find the murderer.
This whodunit mystery also features Kristopher Bowman, Patrick Galligan, Cameron Grant, Claire Jullien, Natasha Mumba, Gray Powell and Graeme Somerville.
Royal George Theatre
Stage Kiss
By Sarah Ruhl
Directed by Anita Rochon
Previews April 11 ♦ Media Premiere May 9 ♦ Closes September 1
Two bitter exes are cast in the same play as passionate lovers. They’ll either strangle or seduce each other. Heartfelt and hilarious, this modern romantic comedy stars Fiona Byrne and Martin Happer. Stage Kiss also features Neil Barclay, Rong Fu, Jeff Meadows, Sarena Parmar and Sanjay Talwar.
Of Marriage And Men: A Comedy Double-Bill:
How He Lied to Her Husband and The Man of Destiny
By Bernard Shaw
Directed by Philip Akin
Previews May 13 ♦ Media Premiere May 23 ♦ Closes September 2
Two of the best short plays about marriage. In How He Lied to Her Husband, find out what a man will do for the lady he loves – and how unexpected the consequences can be. In The Man of Destiny, Napoleon must defend his wife’s honour. This comedy double-bill about the hitches of being hitched features David Adams, Shawn Ahmed, Fiona Byrne, Martin Happer, Krystal Kiran, Andrew Lawrie and Kelly Wong.
O’Flaherty V.C.
By Bernard Shaw
Directed by Kimberley Rampersad
Previews May 31 ♦ Media Premiere June 20 ♦ Closes October 6
Young Dennis O’Flaherty has been sent back from the front to recruit more Irishmen to the war. But he’s neglected to tell his Irish Nationalist mother he’s fighting for the English. Packed with family feuding and witty repartee, this Bernard Shaw one-act features Patrick McManus, Tara Rosling, Ben Sanders and Gabriella Sundar Singh.
Oh What A Lovely War
Book by Joan Littlewood, Theatre Workshop and Charles Chilton
Directed by Peter Hinton
Previews July 14 ♦ Media Premiere August 1 ♦ Closes October 13
This provocative WWI musical is known to make audiences laugh, cry and clench their fists – all within a single number. Follow a band of singing, dancing Canadian soldiers into the Great War and rediscover the spirit behind “lest we forget.” This fiercely funny, piercing musical features David Ball, Ryan Cunningham, James Daly, Kristi Frank, Élodie Gillett, Jeff Irving, Allan Louis, Marla McLean, Kiera Sangster and Jenny L. Wright.
Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre
The Orchard (After Chekhov)
By Sarena Parmar
Directed by Ravi Jain
Previews June 7 ♦ Media Premiere June 20 ♦ Closes September 1
Sarena Parmar transforms Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard into the tale of a Punjabi-Sikh family fighting to hold on to their Okanagan Valley orchard. Based on the writer’s childhood in British Columbia, this fresh adaptation confronts life, loss and the Canadian immigrant experience with bravery and beauty. The Orchard (After Chekhov) features David Adams, Shawn Ahmed, Neil Barclay, Rong Fu, Krystal Kiran, Jani Lauzon, Andrew Lawrie, Jeff Meadows, Sarena Parmar, Pamela Sinha, Sanjay Talwar and Kelly Wong.
The Baroness And The Pig
By Michael Mackenzie
Directed by Selma Dimitrijevic
Previews June 10 ♦ Media Premiere June 20 ♦ Closes October 6
An idealistic 19th century baroness (Yanna McIntosh) has found her next maid – a feral girl (Julia Course) who can barely speak, let alone keep house. Part Pygmalion, part wildly original buddy comedy, this heart-warming Canadian play cuts to the core of what it means to be “civilized” – and to be human.
Henry V
By William Shakespeare
Co-directed by Tim Carroll and Kevin Bennett
Previews July 22 ♦ Media Premiere August 8 ♦ Closes October 28
A troop of Canadian soldiers is hunkered down in a dugout during WWI with some copies of Shakespeare’s Henry V for company. As they enter the death-haunted morally ambiguous world of the play, the play enters theirs. Starring Gray Powell, this imaginative spin on Shakespeare’s play is a powerful exploration of what it means – and costs – to fight for king and country. Henry V also features Damien Atkins, Kristopher Bowman, Julia Course, Patrick Galligan, Cameron Grant, Claire Jullien, Yanna McIntosh, Natasha Mumba, Ric Reid and Graeme Somerville.