Theatre in Toronto: A brief and selective overview

By Barbara Fingerote, SLA Toronto Chapter

Toronto has frequently been called the third largest theatre producing city after London and New York.  It is probably not possible for any one person to see every theatrical event in Toronto.

Theatregoers have the opportunity to see shows with appeal to mass audiences -- the commercial – to the specific audience ready for something different and not for everyone’s tastes – the alternative or independent (although some independent theatre is quite accessible; I use the term in the sense of not for profit and without a large budget or its own space). 

Commercial theatre’s most prolific producers are the Mirvishes.  They own the Royal Alexandra Theatre where Mamma Mia has been playing for several years.  They also own the Princess of Wales Theatre where Hairspray ran for several months, and lease the Canon (formerly the Pantages) where The Producers also ran for several months.  Although still not totally certain at this time, they are hoping to bring We Will Rock You to the Canon beginning some time in June 2005.  The Mirvishes tend to product the shows most accessible to the broadest range of people.  Most of their shows are produced on subscription seasons, with room for those interested in purchasing tickets for a particular show, especially for the shows which run subsequent to the subscription period such as Mamma Mia.  Their tickets are also usually the most expensive.

Smaller commercial producers present shows from time to time with varying levels of target audience and accessibility.  Matt and Ben is currently completing a held-over run a the Poor Alex (yes, there is a tip of the cockeyed hat to the Royal Alex in the name:  it was established by some very poor independent companies who banded together but no longer have anything to do with the space) and was very successful for its group of producers both artistically and presumably financially.

The mid-sized not for profit theatres produce the bulk of the shows in Toronto.  Most of these companies own their own buildings and present subscription seasons.  Their shows tend to have more of an edge than the commercial ventures, but still for the most part are accessible to a broad variety of people.

The first company to appear which is still going strong is Theatre Passe Muraille.  They started producing alternative theatre in the late sixties at Rochdale College (an interesting story in and of itself and a collective is producing a play for next season on the hippie experiences of that “college”).  They still produce the more edgy shows.  They produce mostly Canadian plays with a smattering of those from other places.  A fond memory is the all-female production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream a few years ago.  The final show of their subscription season 2004-5 ends on June 5, 2005.

Next came Factory Theatre and Tarragon Theatre.  Factory presents only Canadian plays, although they may be written about other places.  Tarragon presents mostly Canadian plays with a smattering of others.  Tarragon is the more accessible series of these mid-sized companies.  Both of their 2004-5 seasons end before June 2005.

The closest company to a regional theatre in Toronto is CanStage.  They  produce generally more accessible plays in the St. Lawrence Centre location while the more challenging ones are presented at their Berkeley Street location.

At the more alternative and experimental end of the spectrum is the Theatre Centre.  They have recently renovated their space (you don’t want to know what the old washrooms were like!) and currently have five independent companies working with them to develop shows.  Their season opens in December 2004 with a double header of Brecht and Beckett:  a collective have worked on a show about Brecht’s women done in his style for one half of the show while the other half includes five Beckett plays of varying lengths.  One of the more memorable experimental pieces at the old Theatre Centre was breath(e), a thirty-one minute piece in which we heard Jane Miller’s breathing (recorded) and saw a lighting show designed by Steve Lucas, an award-winning lighting designer who wanted to experiment by doing a play with no actors) to go with it.  Some were moved by the experience while others just moved on. 

There are also special interest companies, some of which have their own space (e.g., Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Nightwood Theatre, etc.) and some of which rent space for their productions (e.g., the Irish Players, those presented in various languages, etc.).  Although they have a narrower constituency they usually welcome members of the general public who wish to see their shows.

There are a number of companies and co-ops (Actor’s Equity approved shows where the actors come together to produce a show on their own and if it makes any money they are paid and if not they are not, which is why they need approval) which rent space to produce shows on an irregular basis.  Although not all of them are members of the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA, formerly the Toronto Theatre Alliance), you may see a list of  TAPA’s membership here: http://www.theatreintoronto.com (list of members link is in the left hand frame) to get a flavour of some of the companies in the area.

TAPA runs the half-price ticket booth, T.O. Tix, located at Yonge and Dundas, and as of November 23, 2004, makes purchases also available online (http://www.totix.ca).  TAPA also produces the Dora Mavor Moore awards, which award excellence in theatre, Toronto’s answer to New York’s Tonys.  The year I served on the jury for independent theatre there were forty-eight eligible productions; the previous year there were sixty-five!  The jurors for the general theatre division (which includes all of the commercial and subscription companies) have to see probably closer to one hundred eligible shows.  There are also children’s, opera, and dance categories with their own sets of jurors.  One is a juror for only one season.

During the summer the Soulpepper Theatre Company presents classical theatre productions at Harbourfront Centre.  They are currently building their own facility in the Distillery District complex.  Many of the small theatre companies have offices in the complex and will be able to share rehearsal other space within the Soulpepper facility. 

Also during the summer the Toronto Fringe Festival and the Summerworks Festival present all kinds of strange and wonderful productions.  The Fringe runs a lottery for its entrants while Summerworks is juried, but they are similar in that one can see lots of shows in a very short time.

Plus there are all those shows in parks during the summer:  The Dream in High Park (CanStage), Shakespeare in the Rough, etc.  Plus the out of town festivals such as Stratford, Shaw, etc.

I haven’t touched on community theatre groups such as Alumnae Theatre or Cabbagetown Players.

There is no right answer to theatre – a brilliant counterpoint to our profession in which we must find the right answer – which is one of the reasons I love it so much.