Season 49! at Theatre Direct brings new work from across Canada and around the world to Toronto audiences, while we hit the road across the province to bring you our best. Chock-full of partners, we’ll take your family on an outdoor adventure, and then invite teens into intimate spaces to take a closer look at what’s going on inside. We’ll guide you into the digital space and then take you out to the ball park…
~ Kids, teens, families – I invite you to come rummage through the season with us, and gather the stories you need as we scurry through this time together and get to the other side.
Our season started in July with a wildly successful edition ofLet’s Play Ball, our theatre baseball camp. We had such a long waiting list this year that we’ve decided to extend the camp next summer to include one session designed specifically for girls with game, plus a session for baseball players with theatre chops who will work with us to turn our camp scrimmage into a touring production. Registration opens for Let’s Play Ball 2026 summer camp in January. Sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know.
It is with immense pride and anticipation that I bring you the first production of the season – the Canadian Premiere of Guardians of the Gods, an international project that I had the privilege to collaborate on alongside Unga Klara, Sweden’s National Theatre for Young Audiences. We’re so excited to be one of 11 countries premiering Guardians of the Gods this season around the world. This raw and revealing show offers uncanny insights about what kids think about grownups that are both unique and universal. For ages 8+ and anyone who always knew they were never “just a kid”.
Next up is the development of A Raccoon Solstice by the award-winning Animacy Theatre Collective, produced in partnership with Common Boots Theatre. An anti-consumer anthem to help keep the holidays real, this outdoor performance will promenade down the West Toronto Railpath. Join us on the winter solstice weekend for two preview performances featuring original music, a chorus of raccoons, and members of the VIVA Singers. Alongside a stellar cast, we’ll be gearing up for a month-long December run in 2026.
Also in development this season is A Period Piece. Created by Spicy Day.This funny and refreshingly honest show for middle schoolers is a must-see health lesson that entertains as it educates. A Period Piece takes the mystery out of this monthly moment by letting stories flow with fun and fury. With support from Theatre Passe Muraille, we’ll share A Period Piece in their legendary backspace for school and public audiences as we prepare for a full production next season.
From the one and only George F. Walker, we bring you a brand new play for teens. Syndrome illuminates conversations around teen mental health as it examines climate grief, questions the status quo, and measures the depths of hope. A Theatre Direct commission starring some of your favourite Toronto actors, Syndrome will be at The Assembly Theatre in Parkdale for high school classes and the public over its two week run in March 2026.
All the way from the East Coast, we are proud to present Zuppa Theatre’s internationally acclaimed production, The Archive of Missing Things. This digital piece fuses live performance and is designed for a group of people–each on a solo mission. The Archive of Missing Things will be presented in partnership with York University Arts Media Performance and Design Program and York University Libraries. We can’t wait to bring you on campus to participate in this multi-media story at the iconic Scott Library.
If you are looking for an amazing play for kids in a city near you, look no further. Our beloved Dora-award winning Finding Home: A Salmon Journey Upstream by Animacy Theatre Collective is hitting the Ontario Presents circuit this season! The show will visit theatres in Brampton, Oakville, St. Catharines, Guelph, and Peterborough and also return to school audiences here in Toronto. Don’t miss it this time because Sojo and Beagle will be swimming upstream again before you know it!
AND… Next Draft is back again for its FIFTH SEASON! This skill building initiative invites local teens to build community through theatre in afterschool playmaking sessions, a facilitation training program, professional PA Day workshops, and its sought after Teen-In-Residence program. Apply now.
Finally, we are so proud to hold up Balancing Act Canada as this nation-wide sector service program builds its wings and gets ready to take flight as its own incorporated entity! A program designed to support artists and caregivers in the arts, Balancing Act has expanded its programming to include collaborations with visual arts, music and screen-based industries along with performing arts companies. With over 150 partners across the country, this care-led program continues to lead systemic change that is making it more possible for artists who have children and other caregiving responsibilities to keep telling stories and creating art.
To make it all happen, we’ve welcomed new collaborators to our team at Theatre Direct. They are all beautiful and talented and really really nice. You can find them here, but I recommend meeting them in person at one of our productions!
As we look ahead to next year’s golden 50th Anniversary season, we could not be more proud of the artists, partners, collaborators, fish, raccoons, friends and family who are a part of Theatre Direct. We’ll be sharing more throughout the season about our plans to celebrate our 50th, and we sincerely can’t wait for you to be a part of it.
We’re so grateful to our season supporters including the Toronto Arts Council, The Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts for their ongoing and lasting support. Seasons like this can’t happen without you.
And of course, thank YOU for showing up however and whenever you can. Theatre makes everything better, if only just for a moment. Come share a few moments with us this season and then you’ll know exactly what I mean…
See you soon! – Lisa Marie & all of us at Theatre Direct
Season 49!
Season 49! at Theatre Direct brings new work from across Canada and around the world to Toronto audiences, while we hit the road across the province to bring you our best. Chock-full of partners, we’ll take your family on an outdoor adventure, and then invite teens into intimate spaces to take a closer look at what’s going on inside. We’ll guide you into the digital space and then take you out to the ball park…
~ Kids, teens, families – I invite you to come rummage through the season with us, and gather the stories you need as we scurry through this time together and get to the other side.
Our season started in July with a wildly successful edition of Let’s Play Ball, our theatre baseball camp. We had such a long waiting list this year that we’ve decided to extend the camp next summer to include one session designed specifically for girls with game, plus a session for baseball players with theatre chops who will work with us to turn our camp scrimmage into a touring production. Registration opens for Let’s Play Ball 2026 summer camp in January. Sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know.
It is with immense pride and anticipation that I bring you the first production of the season – the Canadian Premiere of Guardians of the Gods, an international project that I had the privilege to collaborate on alongside Unga Klara, Sweden’s National Theatre for Young Audiences. We’re so excited to be one of 11 countries premiering Guardians of the Gods this season around the world. This raw and revealing show offers uncanny insights about what kids think about grownups that are both unique and universal. For ages 8+ and anyone who always knew they were never “just a kid”.
Next up is the development of A Raccoon Solstice by the award-winning Animacy Theatre Collective, produced in partnership with Common Boots Theatre. An anti-consumer anthem to help keep the holidays real, this outdoor performance will promenade down the West Toronto Railpath. Join us on the winter solstice weekend for two preview performances featuring original music, a chorus of raccoons, and members of the VIVA Singers. Alongside a stellar cast, we’ll be gearing up for a month-long December run in 2026.
Also in development this season is A Period Piece. Created by Spicy Day.This funny and refreshingly honest show for middle schoolers is a must-see health lesson that entertains as it educates. A Period Piece takes the mystery out of this monthly moment by letting stories flow with fun and fury. With support from Theatre Passe Muraille, we’ll share A Period Piece in their legendary backspace for school and public audiences as we prepare for a full production next season.
From the one and only George F. Walker, we bring you a brand new play for teens. Syndrome illuminates conversations around teen mental health as it examines climate grief, questions the status quo, and measures the depths of hope. A Theatre Direct commission starring some of your favourite Toronto actors, Syndrome will be at The Assembly Theatre in Parkdale for high school classes and the public over its two week run in March 2026.
All the way from the East Coast, we are proud to present Zuppa Theatre’s internationally acclaimed production, The Archive of Missing Things. This digital piece fuses live performance and is designed for a group of people–each on a solo mission. The Archive of Missing Things will be presented in partnership with York University Arts Media Performance and Design Program and York University Libraries. We can’t wait to bring you on campus to participate in this multi-media story at the iconic Scott Library.
If you are looking for an amazing play for kids in a city near you, look no further. Our beloved Dora-award winning Finding Home: A Salmon Journey Upstream by Animacy Theatre Collective is hitting the Ontario Presents circuit this season! The show will visit theatres in Brampton, Oakville, St. Catharines, Guelph, and Peterborough and also return to school audiences here in Toronto. Don’t miss it this time because Sojo and Beagle will be swimming upstream again before you know it!
AND… Next Draft is back again for its FIFTH SEASON! This skill building initiative invites local teens to build community through theatre in afterschool playmaking sessions, a facilitation training program, professional PA Day workshops, and its sought after Teen-In-Residence program. Apply now.
Finally, we are so proud to hold up Balancing Act Canada as this nation-wide sector service program builds its wings and gets ready to take flight as its own incorporated entity! A program designed to support artists and caregivers in the arts, Balancing Act has expanded its programming to include collaborations with visual arts, music and screen-based industries along with performing arts companies. With over 150 partners across the country, this care-led program continues to lead systemic change that is making it more possible for artists who have children and other caregiving responsibilities to keep telling stories and creating art.
To make it all happen, we’ve welcomed new collaborators to our team at Theatre Direct. They are all beautiful and talented and really really nice. You can find them here, but I recommend meeting them in person at one of our productions!
As we look ahead to next year’s golden 50th Anniversary season, we could not be more proud of the artists, partners, collaborators, fish, raccoons, friends and family who are a part of Theatre Direct. We’ll be sharing more throughout the season about our plans to celebrate our 50th, and we sincerely can’t wait for you to be a part of it.
We’re so grateful to our season supporters including the Toronto Arts Council, The Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts for their ongoing and lasting support. Seasons like this can’t happen without you.
And of course, thank YOU for showing up however and whenever you can. Theatre makes everything better, if only just for a moment. Come share a few moments with us this season and then you’ll know exactly what I mean…
See you soon!
– Lisa Marie & all of us at Theatre Direct