Announcing the 22nd Annual
SUMMERWORKS THEATRE FESTIVAL
August 9th-19th, 2012
Toronto, ON –The largest juried theatre Festival in Canada announces it’s final selections for 2012. The 22nd Festival, running from August 9th to 19th, features over 40 plays, a return of the Performance Bar, a Live Art Series, practical workshops and a new twist on the Music Series. The National Series features a new play by award-winning playwright, actor and director Daniel MacIvor.
“We were humbled and proud of the quality of the work this year,” says Artistic Producer, Michael Rubenfeld. “We programmed an exciting, challenging season of work that is political, entertaining, provocative and virtuosic.”
New plays by Daniel MacIvor, Anton Piatigorsky, Sean Dixon, Waawaate Fobister, Richard Sanger, Rosa Laborde, Nicholas Billon, Erin Brandenburg, Ron Jenkins, Anthony Black, The Scandelles and more. Work directed by Richard Greenblatt, Tara Beagan, Brendan Healey, Sarah Stanley, Edward Roy, Natasha Mytnowych, Ron Jenkins, Alistair Newton and others.
This year’s National Series welcomes four very different, exciting shows, including a brand new Daniel MacIvor piece, I, Animal. This will be the first time SummerWorks has presented a new full-length by the award winning playwright and actor.
SummerWorks welcomes back to the Festival Halifax’s 2b Theatre, with their production of When It Rains, by Anthony Black (Invisible Atom). When It Rains was nominated for 8 Merritt Awards (Halifax Doras) and won one for performance. From Montreal, the Festival features two provocative solo shows: My Pregnant Brother, by Johanna Nutter and One/Un, by Mani Soleymanlou. Each of these works garnered considerable attention in previous productions, and SummerWorks is pleased to offer their Toronto premiere’s at this year’s Festival.
THE 2012 SUMMERWORKS FULL LINE-UP
| SHOW NAME | COMPANY NAME | CREATORS |
| A Song For Tomorrow | New Harlem Productions & Eventual Ashes | by Christina Wong, directed by Donna Michelle St. Bernard |
| A Thousand Words | UnSpun Theatre | Written and directed by Chris Hanratty |
| Ajax (por nobody) | Hot House Theater | by Alice Tuan, directed by Zack Russell |
| Ally & Kev | j.squared theatre | by Jason Maghanoy |
| Aneemah’s Spot | Motion Live Presents | by Motion, directed by Dian Marie Bridge |
| Artaud: un protrait en decomposition | TheatreRUN | by Adam Paolozza, Michele Smith, Antonin Artaud |
| Barrel Crank | Suitcase In Point | by Erin Shields, directed by Rose Plotek |
| Breath in Between | Breath Collective in Association with Crow’s Theatre | by Anton Piatigorsky, directed by Brendan Healy |
| Breathe For Me | Real Eyes Theatre | by Jesse Stong, directed by Edward Roy |
| Dumbo Squid | Birdtown & Swanville | by Aurora Stewart de Peña |
| Extinction Sing | The Theatre Department | Written and directed by Ron Jenkins |
| Facts | The Facts Assembly | Writen and directed by Arthur Milner |
| Fierce Monsters | The Pop Group | by Rebecca Buttigieg |
| FRANCE (or, The Niqab) | Old Pirate | by Sean Dixon, directed by Tanja Jacobs |
| Haunted | Tango Co. | by Daniel Karasik, directed by Alisa Palmer |
| HUFF | Dependent Theatre Projects | by Cliff Cardinal |
| Iceland | The Iceland Collective | by Nicolas Billon |
| Les Demimondes | Operation Snatch | by Alexandra Tigchelaar and Catherine Nimmo (The Scandelles) |
| Marine Life | Company Theatre Crisis | by Rosa Laborde, directed by Natasha Mytnowych |
| Medicine Boy | Anishnaabe Theatre Performance | by Waawaate Fobister, directed by Tara Beagan |
| Petrichor | Kitchenband | by Erin Brandenburg |
| Pieta | Pieta Productions | by Astrid Saalbach, translated by Michael Evans, directed by Sarah Stanley |
| Such Bounty | Snap Productions | by Richard Sanger, directed by Mary Francis Moore |
| Terminus | Outside the March | by Mark O’Rowe, directed by Mitchell Cushman |
| Terre Haute | Ecce Homo Theatre | by Edmund White, directed by Alistair Newton |
| The Fever | Cohort Theatre Company | by Wallace Shawn, directed by Rose Plotek |
| The Frenzy of Queen Maeve | Live Lobster Theatre | by Anthony MacMahon |
| The Hearing of Jeremy Hinzman | Foundry Theatre Company | by Josh Bloch and Oonagh Duncan, directed by Richard Greenblatt |
| Violent Be Violet | Fine Wine Theatre Co | by Tanisha Taitt |
| Willow Bunch | Willow Bunch Productions | by Rona Waddington |
| Your Side, My Side, and The Truth | Compass Productions | by Rebecca Auerbach, directed by Tova Smith |
| NATIONAL SERIES | ||
| I, Animal | KAZAN CO-OP | by Daniel MacIvor, directed by Richie Wilcox |
| My Pregnant Brother | Freestanding Productions | by Johanna Nutter, directed by Jeremy Taylor |
| One/Un | Orange Noyée | by Mani Soleymanlou |
| When It Rains | 2b theatre company | Written and directed by Anthony Black |
| OFFSITE | ||
| Big Plans | Two Wheeler Productions | by Jeremy Taylor |
| Dutchman | lemonTree Creations | by Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones) |
| Invitations/Into/Traces | Cara Spooner | by Cara Spooner |
Twitter: @SummerWorks
About SummerWorks Theatre Festival:
As the largest juried theatre festival in Canada featuring predominantly New Canadian plays, SummerWorks programs a festival that uniquely reflects Toronto and Canada’s cultural zeitgeist. Since 1991, SummerWorks has continued to explore and respond to the needs and wants of audiences and the theatre community. The festival has grown to become of the country’s preeminent multi-disciplinary hubs featuring a Music Series, a mentorship program (SummerWorks Leadership Intensive Program –S.L.I.P.); and the National Series, showcasing works from across Canada. The festival adds new initiatives yearly, including performance-based programs such as the Performance Bar. The 2012 SummerWorks Festival runs August 9th to 19th in venues across Toronto.
