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Dylan Trowbridge

Dylan is an award-winning actor, director, playwright and a founding member of Toronto's Theatrefront.  He has performed with The Stratford And Shaw Festivals, Mirvish Productions and in London’s West End.  Dylan considers Theatrefront his creative home, and is deeply committed to our roots in the independent theatre community. For Theatrefront Dylan has appeared in eight productions, including fforward, Mojo and Tribes.  He also co-wrote and acted in Return, which received a Dora Nomination for Best New Play. Recently Dylan directed acclaimed productions of Space Opera Zero and The Harrowing OF Brimstone McReedy for Toronto’s Eldritch Theatre. He is also the director of Festival Player's of Prince Edward County's Every Brilliant Thing.

Twitter: @dylantrowbridge Instagram: dylantrowbridgeyyz

Every Brilliant Thing is a one-of-a-kind, interactive theatrical event, starring renowned actor and comedian, Gavin Crawford, that engages its audience in thrilling and original ways. At once profoundly funny and deeply moving, Every Brilliant Thing chronicles a young person’s quest to unearth every magnificent thing about being alive. “Heart-wrenching, hilarious…one of the funniest plays you’ll ever see, full stop” -The Guardian.

www.festivalplayers.ca Twitter: @FestivalPlayers Instagram: festivalplayers Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FestivalPlayers Tickets: https://festivalplayers.ca/events/every-brilliant-thing/

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False Claims

From the gut-busting pen of Eli Pasic and the producing/acting talents of Isaiah Kolundzic, comes this fast-paced, knockabout, zany comedic bauble!

False Claims traces the despicable schemes of Dennis—a devious, layabout nephew who poses as his late aunt’s husband in order to collect her life insurance money!

DATES: Limited run of only 9 performances. Friday August 2nd, 8pm - Opening Night! Saturday August 3rd, 8pm Sunday August 4th, 2pm Tuesday August 6th, 8pm - PWYC Charity Fundraiser Wednesday August 7th, 8pm Thursday August 8th, 8pm Friday August 9th, 8pm Saturday August 10th, 8pm Sunday August 11th, 2pm - Closing

TICKETS: https://falseclaims.simpletix.com/

CAST & CREW: WRITTEN BY Eli Pasic DIRECTED BY Blair Haynes FEATURING Isaiah Thomas Kolundzic, Kevin Forster, Heather Dick, Kevin Hare, Melissa Taylor, Zachary Groombridge, Kathleen Welch and Judith Fiore DESIGNED BY Emily Dix PRODUCED BY Isaiah Thomas Kolundzic, Emily Dix ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS Blythe Haynes, Eli Pasic STAGE MANAGED BY Jeremy Pearson

Instagram: FalseClaimsTO Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/falseclaimsfarce/

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Brian Jansen

Brian Jansen is an actor from Etobicoke, Ontario. Uniquely talented and hard working, he has been acting since he was 14 years old. A recent graduate of the Acting for Film & Television program at Niagara College. Brian is the director and one of the Stars of You Want it What Way? A Boy Band Tale.

You Want it What Way? “You Want It What Way? A Boy Band Tale” is a sketch comedy dance show all about boy bands. We dance and sing to all of the hits and perform hilarious sketches that poke fun at all the absurdity that comes with being in a boy band. You’ll dance, laugh and sing your Justin Timberlake loving hearts out. www.youwantitwhatway.com Instagram: boybandtale Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/youwantitwhatway Tickets: http://hamiltonfringe.ca/shows/you-want-it-what-way/

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Laura Kyswaty

Laura Kyswaty knew from the time she was six years old that she wanted to be a performer. As she grew up she explored her passion through theatre, dance and television.There's a confidence that comes with doing what you love, and loving what you do! In her many years of experience, Laura Kyswaty has appeared on screens both large and small around the world, and onstage across the country.Roles have ranged from comedy to drama, leading lady to supporting cast.Her studies in improvisation at the Second City Conservatory, along with her performance degree from York University, allow her to tackle a wide variety of projects. In her spare time she dances and choreographs for a local Toronto company, is a communication coach for executives in some of North America's top companies, and hangs out with her dog.

The Promised Land The Promised Land at the Hamilton Fringe is a comedic homage to 1940s film noir, filled with fast-talking fellas and femme fatales, an ingenue, or two, and a wisecracking former hobo; all inhabiting a world of loose morals and suspicious intentions. Tickets: http://hamiltonfringe.ca/shows/promised-land/

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Toronto Fringe Roundup II

The Second of Two Fringe 2019 Roundup episodes. On each of the Saturdays of the Fringe, we gather a group of performers together to talk about their shows, their Fringe experience so far, and what shows they've loved, and more.

Monica Ogden Monica vs. The Internet: Tales of a Social Justice Warrior Instagram: socialjusticewarriorfringe Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonicavsTheInternetShow/ Twitter: @ragesweater Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/monica-vs-internet-tales-social-justice-warrior

Shane Adamzack The Ballad of Frank Allen weepingspoon.com Instagram: weepingspoon Facebook: https://facebook.com/weepingspoonproductions Twitter: @weepingspoon Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/ballad-frank-allen

Carlyn Rhamey The ADHD Project www.squirrelsuit.ca Instagram: TheADHDProject Facebook: https://facebook.com/SquirrelSuitProductions Twitter: @SquirrelSuitT Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/adhd-project

Madeleine Brown News Play Instagram: PrairieFirePlz Facebook: https://facebook.com/PrairieFirePlz Twitter: @PrairieFirePlz Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/news-play

Recorded 9:30AM, July 13, 2019

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Sarah Joy Bennett & Ginette Mohr

Sarah Joy Bennett

Sarah Joy Bennett is an actor, writer and designer. She is a member of Keystone Theatre, which creates original works in the style of silent film, and with them has toured Canada with their shows The Last Man On Earth and Gold Fever.

Other past projects as a co-creator include Theatre Sasa’s puppetry-based The Pressed Fairy Book, and Power Of Flight’s original musical The Ballad Of One-Eyed Jack. She has also performed with Classic Theatre Festival, Odyssey Theatre, Brookstone Theatre, and Metaphysical Theatre. As the burlesque performer Cherry Temple, she has been featured in international burlesque festivals, and at Le Tambour Royal Theatre, in Paris.

Her writing work includes Postcards (CBC Radio, Out Front), and Trophy, a Summerworks Festival installation for which she was part of a team of writers and storytellers.

Ginette Mohr

Ginette is an award-winning performer, director and playwright. Her twenty-year career in the performing arts has galvanized her love for live experiences and direct contact with people. Driven by curiosity, she works to motivate a more conscious and compassionate community through the creation of imaginative, participatory theatre.

She has created theatre with companies that include: The Stratford Shakespeare Festival, Neptune Theatre, Young People’s Theatre, Theatre New Brunswick, Drayton Entertainment, Theatre Direct, Theatre Aquarius, The Quickening Theatre, Keystone Theatre, and The Second City. Ginette recently directed and co-created Snack Music and Table Top Tales with SNAFU Dance Theatre.

Night Feed

As an exhausted new mother nurses in the dark of yet another night, her apartment comes to life; possessions possessed with the demons of fear, self-doubt and anxiety, a chorus of objects and body parts. You know, standard parenting stuff.

Fringe veterans-turned-mothers Sarah Joy Bennett and Ginette Mohr return to Toronto Fringe with CLUNK Puppet Lab, turning their brand of imaginative storytelling to tackle motherhood, injecting a healthy dose of the bizarre and surreal to make sense of “the most meaningful time of your life”.

www.nightfeed.ca Instagram: nightfeedplay Twitter: @nightfeedplay Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nightfeedplay Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/night-feed

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2019 Toronto Fringe Roundup I

The First of Two Fringe 2019 Roundup episodes. On each of the Saturdays of the Fringe, we gather a group of performers together to talk about their shows, their Fringe experience so far, and what shows they've loved, and more.

Kaho Koda Decaying Tongue website: https://www.humanburrito.com/ instagram: humanburritoproductions facebook: https://www.facebook.com/humanburritoproductions/ Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/decaying-tongue

Monica Ogden Monica vs. The Internet: Tales of a Social Justice Warrior Instagram: socialjusticewarriorfringe Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonicavsTheInternetShow/ Twitter: @ragesweater Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/monica-vs-internet-tales-social-justice-warrior

Sarah Joy Bennett Night Feed Instagram: nightfeedplay Facebook: https://facebook.com/nightfeedplay Twitter: @nightfeedplay Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/night-feed

Shane Adamzack The Ballad of Frank Allen weepingspoon.com Instagram: weepingspoon Facebook: https://facebook.com/weepingspoonproductions Twitter: @weepingspoon Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/ballad-frank-allen

Carlyn Rhamey The ADHD Project www.squirrelsuit.ca Instagram: TheADHDProject Facebook: https://facebook.com/SquirrelSuitProductions Twitter: @SquirrelSuitT Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/adhd-project

Recorded 9:30am, July 6, 2019

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Michael Ross Albert

Michael Ross Albert is the author of several plays including Miss (FringeNYC; Unit 102 Actors Company); The Farmers Lit the Fields on Fire (Edinburgh Fringe Festival); The Grass is Greenest at the Houston Astrodome (FringeNYC, published by Applause in Best American Short Plays 2014-2015); and Karenin’s Anna (Toronto Fringe Festival, “Outstanding New Play,” — NOW Magazine), as well as the 2018 Toronto Fringe hit, Anywhere.

Along with the Storefront Theatre, Michael produced the sold-out world premiere production of his play Tough Jews in the heart of Toronto’s Kensington Market. The production was nominated for 6 Dora Mavor Moore Awards, including Outstanding New Play and Outstanding Production.

His play Starfishes opened Off-Broadway at the Theatre at Dance New Amsterdam and is included in Best American Short Plays 2010-2011. It has since been performed across the United States and Canada.

Michael received an MFA in Playwriting from the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University. Michael is an associate member of the Dramatists Guild of America, and a member of the Playwrights Guild of Canada.

  The Huns The morning after a break-in at a tech company, three co-workers assemble for a conference call to discuss the burglary. What starts as a civilized, professional meeting swiftly devolves into a brutal showdown that puts everyone's careers-- and their hopes for future happiness-- in jeopardy.

STREETCAR CROWSNEST: GULOIEN THEATRE 345 Carlaw Ave.

Friday July 5, 9:30pm Saturday July 6, 6:15pm Sunday July 7, 8:30pm Tuesday July 9, 7:30pm Thursday July 11, 5:30pm Friday July 12, 10:15pm Sunday July 14, 4:00pm

Instagram: OneFourOneCollective Twitter: @OneFourOneCo Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/onefourone/ Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/huns

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Mark Brownwell

Mark Brownell is a Toronto-based playwright and co-artistic director of the Pea Green Theatre Group with his wife, Sue Miner.

He is the author of a number of plays, including Monsieur D'Eon is a Woman, which was nominated for a Governor General's Award. His libretto for the opera Iron Road won a Dora Mavor Moore Award and he was nominated for a Dora for his 2006 play, Medici Slot Machine.

Three Men on a Bike From the company that brought you the award-winning Toronto Fringe smash hit Three Men in a Boat. Based upon the further writings of Victorian author Jerome K. Jerome. Pea Green Theatre Group proudly presents Three Men on a Bike! (Being the further adventures of three Victorian gentlemen as they embark upon a disastrous bicycling trip to the continent.) Not to be missed!

Three Men on a Bike Tarragon Theatre Mainspace Thu 4th Jul 6:15 pm Sat 6th Jul 10:00 pm Mon 8th Jul 8:45 Wed 10th Jul 5:45 pm Sat 13th Jul 8:00 pm Sun 14th Jul 2:00 pm

Directed By: Sue Miner Adapted for the Stage By: Mark Brownell Featuring: Matt Pilipiak, Victor Pokinko and David DiFrancesco Period Costumes By: Nina Okens Period Music By: J. Rigzin Tute

peagreentheatre.com Twitter: @Montmorency3Men Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/three-men-bike

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Tita Collective

The Tita Collective, an all Filipina collective of multidisciplinary artists in Toronto, will present Tita Jokes as part of the 2019 Toronto Fringe FestivalJuly 3 - 14 at the Tarragon Theatre. They sing, they dance, and they’ll make you snort-laugh halo-halo through your nose!

Tita Jokes is a musical sketch comedy spectacle to remember. The show revolves around the Filipinx people in their lives such as aunts, moms, daughters, and partners. Tita Jokes reveals their struggles and heartaches, but also how they cope through comedy and songs. 

Tita Collective are an all Filipina collective composed of award-winning playwrights, comedians, musicians, dancers, theatre makers and actors. They explore different mediums to tell the stories about the Filipinx diaspora. 

Directed Tricia Hagoriles, Tita Jokes is created and performed by Ann Paula Bautista, Belinda Corpuz, Isabel Kanaan, Ellie Posadas, Alia Rasul, and Maricris Rivera. The Music Director is Ayaka Kinugawa and Stage Manager is Justine Cargo.

In addition to Toronto Fringe, Tita Collective will also appear at TAWA Festival May 27 and 28 at Bad Dog Theatre, Celebration of Filipino Heritage Month at Earl Bales Park on June 1, and Notorious’ Music Comedy Festival on June 14 - 15. Tita Collective will host a workshop called “Powered by Community” on May 23 at Artscape Daniels Launchpad.

Tita Collective is Ann Paula Bautista (Disenchanted US Tour), Belinda Corpuz (Prairie Nurse), Isabel Kanaan (CBC’s Air Farce), Alia Rasul (Generally Hospital), and Maricris Rivera (A New World Being Born). Tita Collective won the 2019 Steamwhistle Producers’ Pick at the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival and were named as part of “19 Asian Millennial Women You Should Know” by Cold Tea Collective. 

Twitter: @tita_collective Instagram: tita.collective Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/titacollective Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/tita-jokes

Tita Jokes July 3 - 14, 2019 at Toronto Fringe Tarragon Theatre, Mainspace 30 Bridgeman Avenue Thursday July 4, 8:30PM Saturday July 6, 4:45PM Sunday July 7, 1:15PM Tuesday July 9, 9:45PM Wednesday July 10, 8:00PM Friday July 12, 4:00PM Sunday July 14, 6:00PM

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Kaho Koda and Sachi Lovatt

Kaho Koda is a Japanese theatre creator located in Toronto. Her recent credits include Koki Mitani's University of Laughter (Translator & Director) and Shakespeare's Richard III (Lighting Designer). She is delighted to present her first play Decaying Tongue (Writer & Director) at the Toronto Fringe Festival 2019. 

Sachi Lovatt is an actress originally from Ottawa. She trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in the UK, where she earned her MA in Professional Acting. After three years in England, she now calls Toronto home and is a proud member of both Equity and ACTRA. Recent credits include The Handmaid’s Tale and narrating the Alarm of War trilogy into audiobooks. Being half Japanese and half British, Decaying Tongue holds a special place in her heart.

Decaying Tongue How do you answer the question “where are you from from”? Aya navigates through life as she experiences culture shocks between her two worlds: Japan and Canada. Will she find peace with her constantly evolving identity? Decaying Tongue explores clash of cultures and what it means to find your footing with a diverse background in the 21st century.

Randolph Theatre 5th July 4:15pm 7th July 8:00pm 8th July 2:15pm 11th July 10:45pm 12th July 4:30pm 13th July 1:00pm 14th July 5:15pm

www.humanburrito.com Instagram: humanburritoproductions Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/humanburritoproductions Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/decaying-tongue

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Jennifer Busuttil

Jennifer is a writer, producer, and multi-disciplinary performing artist. Favourite performing credits include: "All of Me"(Theatre Insomnia), "Bitchcraft"(PureCarbon), and "The Last Days of Judas Iscariot" (RCPA). As a writer, Jennifer has released two zines under the name Buzzkill, which is now the name of her theatre company. Jennifer is a graduate of Randolph College for the Performing Arts, has completed Canada's National Voice Intensive, and currently trains privately at Armstrong Acting Studios.

Get Better Life changing concussions aren’t just for football players. What happens when a busy perfectionist bumps her head too many times? Get Better is a quirky, and dark look into the emotional journey of recovering from a minor traumatic brain injury. Using narrative and physical theatre, "Get Better" reveals the uncomfortable truths about living with invisible injury. This mostly true story explores how this common injury effects relationships, and identity.

Tarragon Theatre - Solo Room Thursday July 4th - 7:45 PM Saturday July 6th - 10:15 PM Monday July 8th - 5:45 PM Tuesday July 9th - 3:15 PM (relaxed performance) Wednesday July 10th - 8:15 PM Thursday July 11th - 6:15 PM Saturday July 13th - 10:15 PM Sunday July 14th - 4:30 PM

Instagram: buzzkillcreations Facebook: https://facebook.com/buzzkillcreationsTO Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/get-better

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Bryn Kennedy and John Wamsley

John Wamsley is a gay, Indigenous actor, dancer, and choreographer born and raised in Kitchener, Ontario. Since graduating from the Theatre and Drama Studies program at Sheridan College and the University of Toronto, he has been fortunate enough to work both on and off stage developing a passion-project entitled off my chest., which was presented at this year's Dark Crop Performance Festival. John's recent credits include the sold out run of the Fringe 2018 Patron's Pick, Everyone Wants a T-Shirt!, Private Harris in The Grand Theatre's production of Timothy Findley's The Wars, and participation within the 31st annual Weesageechak Festival. John is currently the Communications Manager for the Paprika Festival, and continues to do graphic and video design for several theatre companies in the GTA. He also works in a restaurant… typical.

Bryn Kennedy has been an actor ever since she can remember, but found her passion for directing in high school when she lead a production of ‘night Mother at the Sears Drama Festival, winning an Award of Excellence in Directing and Producing. Since then, Bryn has continued this journey, taking Directing with Richard Rose at Tarragon Theatre and as a member of Nightwood Theatre’s Young Innovators Unit. She is also an arts educator and is growing her experience as an arts administrator with companies such as SOULO Theatre, Rabbit in a Hat Productions, Binocular Theatre and Nightwood Theatre. Her directing credits include, Jean Anouilh’s Antigone(co-director Rachel VanDuzer, UTMDC), Overtones, Beneath the Bed (Erindale Fringe Festival), Happy Family (Toronto Fringe Festival), Selections from Vitals (Paprika Festival Directors’ Lab), Reasons to be Pretty (RTBP Collective), Vitals (Theatre Born Between) and A Bear Awake in Winter (Assistant Director, Canadian Stage Workshop and Next Stage Theatre Festival with Binocular Theatre). She is a graduate of the joint Theatre and Drama Studies Program at Sheridan College and University of Toronto earning an Acting Diploma and an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree. Her special skills include baking, knitting and finding a way to mention her recent haircut in almost any situation.

BENEATH THE BED Written by Gabe Golin Directed by Bryn Kennedy In the aftermath of a trauma, a young child meets a monster living under their bed and together they discover through searching the stars that this too will pass. An exploration of childhood and imagination, grief and loss, Beneath the Bed is a twisted tale exploding with music, wit, heart, and joy.​

SHOW DATES: Thursday, July 4 – 7:00 p.m. – Performance 1 Friday, July 5 – 8:00 p.m. – Performance 2 Saturday, July 6 – 2:00 p.m. – Performance 3 Sunday, July 7 – 2:00 p.m. – Performance 4 Monday, July 8 – 7:00 p.m. – Performance 5 Tuesday, July 9 – 8:00 p.m. – Performance 6 Thursday, July 11 – 8:00 p.m. – Performance 7 Friday, July 12 – 2:00 p.m. – Performance 8 Friday, July 12 – 8:00 p.m. – Performance 9 Saturday, July 13 – 3:30 p.m. – Performance 10 Sunday, July 14 – 2:00 p.m. – Performance 11

www.theatrebornbetween.com Twitter: @tbornbetween Instagram: theatrebornbetween Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theatrebornbetween Tickets: https://fringetoronto.com/fringe/show/beneath-bed (on sale June 6)

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Natalia Bushnik and Robin Luckwaldt

Natalia Bushnik and Robin Luckwaldt are ​KAIROS Theatre who present their award-winning, touring show, 'The Bathtub Girls' (Critics' Choice - Hamilton Fringe, 2016; Official Selection - Twin Cities Horror Festival, USA, 2018) in Toronto, in the Assembly Theatre's 2019 curated season, May 21st - June 1st!

'The Bathtub Girls' is a fiction inspired by the first documented case of sibling matricide in Canada. Two sisters, encouraged by their friends, drown their mother in the bathtub of their family home. We join the girls in their irreconcilable waking nightmare of survival and atonement, which began long before we arrived, and which we have no power to stop. When the water stills, the door’s broken down, the body carried away, who do we punish? Who do you judge?.

“A dark but compelling piece of theatre” ​- CBC “Gripping storytelling��​ - City Pages, Minneapolis “Truly phenomenal”​ - Fringe Review

Directed, Written, and Performed by Natalia Bushnik and Robin Luckwaldt Sound / Set Design by Phoebe Wang Lighting Design by Waleed Ansari Promotional Trailer by William Innes : https://youtu.be/xUKPop7ccgI

https://kairostheatrecollective.com/ Instagram : @kairostheatre

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Kiran Friesen

Kiran Friesen is an actress and writer, known for Bruiser (2000), The Unusual Suspects (2012) and First Round Down (2016).

Theatrically, she has enjoyed a number of strong Shakespearean roles such as Gertrude (Hamlet), Lady M (Macbeth), Desdemona (Othello) and Lady Capulet (Romeo and Juliet), not to mention a smattering of other theatrical wonders and oddities (see resume).

She wrote, produced and performed her play "Peeler" for the Toronto Fringe Festival to rave reviews.

Kiran is appearing in Cement Factory and NightShift Theatre's production of George F. Walker's Risk Everything at the Red Sandcastle Theatre from May 14 - 25, 2019.

www.cementfactorytheatre.ca Twitter: @CementTheatre Tickets: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4207407

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Judith Thompson

Judith is a playwright, director, actor and professor of theatre at the University of Guelph, and the Artistic Director of RARE Theatre Company.  She is the author of 15 published plays, many of which are performed all over the world. They include The Crackwalker, Lion in the Streets, Perfect Pie, and Palace of the End. Her play Who Killed Snow White will premiere at the 4th Line Theatre in August, 2018. She has directed and co-created four plays with artists with exceptionalities including Body and Soul, Sick, RARE, and Borne  Most recently, she wrote the play Wildfire specifically for 7 performers with Down syndrome, all of whom had appeared in Rare. She wrote two feature films, Perfect Pie and Lost and Delirious, several TV movies and many radio plays.  She has twice won the Governor General's award for playwriting, as well as the Toronto Arts Award, a Dora Award, the Susan Smith Blackburn Award, and the Amnesty International Award for Freedom of Expression. She is honoured to have the privilege of collaborating with performers with exceptionalities.

Welcome to my Underworld In Soulpepper’s fifth partnership with RARE Theatre Company, Canadian theatre pioneer and two-time Governor General award-winner Judith Thompson directs and dramaturges the World Premiere of Welcome to my Underworld, taking the Tank House theatre stage by storm from May 9th to May 25th, 2019 with a preview performance at 8pm on May 8th.

In Soulpepper’s fifth partnership with RARE Theatre Company, Canadian theatre pioneer and two-time Governor General award-winner Judith Thompson directs and dramaturges the World Premiere of Welcome to my Underworld, taking the Tank House theatre stage by storm from May 9th to May 25th, 2019 with a preview performance at 8pm on May 8th.

Welcome to my Underworld is a beautiful odyssey that erupts with heightened, illusory and playful language, as it follows Willow, a 10-year-old girl, as she gracefully weaves from one unique story to the next in search of her truest self.

Nine blazing hot works written and performed by new Canadian dramatists have been woven into one spectacular play. Each playwright brings their own gate-crashing ideas and compelling characters who have never been seen on our stages until now.

“What I love about RARE is that our plays cut through the artifice of so much common theatre, they aren’t ripped from the headlines but they do hold a mirror up to our society” says RARE Theatre’s Executive Director, Nick Hutcheson.

Join the riveting performers Bilal Baig, Nikoletta Erdelyi, Radha S. Menon, Grace Thompson, Maddie Bautista, Samson Brown and Carolyn Hetherington as they dive fearlessly into their particular Underworld. What each piece has is the joyous discovery of a unique self, whether it be gender fluid, queer, proudly disabled and Roma, non-human, wounded, or an elder; in the face of social oppression they are unafraid to roar: This is Me. I am Here. Deal with It.

Accompanying director Judith Thompson on this journey is Irish and Anishinaabe from Nipissing First Nation composer, Olivia Shortt, award-winning choreographer, Monica Dotter, and set designer, Brett Haynes. RARE Theatre is thrilled to welcome emerging lighting designer, Sharmylae Taffe-Fletcher to the RARE family.

“I am beyond honoured to be collaborating with these nine superb emerging playwrights; as a playwright myself I was lucky enough to ride on the crest of the wave of Canadian nationalism in the early eighties, and to see that work valued not only in Canada but all over the world. Now it is my privilege to present to you the theatrical voices of Canada now; voices that will change the way we see this country and ourselves.” says RARE Theatre’s Artistic Director, Judith Thompson.

With humour, honesty, rich writing and dynamic performances by an all-star cast of emerging and seasoned Canadian artists, Welcome to my Underworld is a theatrical experience that will thrill and entertain.

RARE Theatre Company and Soulpepper Theatre Company present Welcome to my Underworld Written by Bilal Baig, Maddie Bautista, Samson Brown, Simone Dalton, Nikoletta Erdelyi, Carolyn Hetherington, Ellen Ringler, Radha S. Menon and Grace ThompsonDramaturged and Directed by Judith Thompson May 8 – 25, 2019 Starring Bilal Baig, Maddie Bautista, Samson Brown, Nikoletta Erdelyi, Carolyn Hetherington, Radha S. Menon and Grace ThompsonChoreography by Monica DottorMusic by Olivia ShorttSet Design by Brett HaynesLighting Design by Sharmylae Taffe-FletcherStage Management by Jenna Borsato Tankhouse Theatre, Young Centre for the Performing Arts 50 Tank House Lane, Toronto, ON M5A 3C4

www.raretheatre.org Twitter: @rare_theatre Instagram: raretheatre

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Miriam Goldstein & Blythe Haynes

Pregnancy Pact is a pop-rock musical which tells the story of a group of teens who make a pact to become single mothers together. The 15-year-old Maddie is devoted to her three best friends and they are to her. So, when Brynn gets pregnant, the friends all plan to have children, raising them together and living a dream. Inspired by the 2008 news story of the Gloucester pregnancy pact that took the world by storm, Pregnancy Pact provides a unique chance to examine the intense journey this kind of decision creates.  www.edgeproductions.ca Twitter: @3dgeproductions Instagram: the.edge.productions Tickets to Pregnancy Pact: https://www.edgeproductions.ca/store/c3/Toronto_Tickets.html gangwaytheatre.com Twitter: @gangwaytheatre Instagram: gangwaytheatreco

Miriam Goldstein  Miriam is a theatre director and producer based in Windsor, On. She is the founding Artistic Director of The Edge Productions, now entering its ninth season. Miriam’s work as a director focuses on underrepresented human experiences. Miriam is a graduate of the Ward Acting Studio in New York, NY where she studied the Meisner Technique, she holds a certificate in Shakespeare in Performance and Contemporary Acting from the Royal Academy of Drama in London, UK, and a Bachelor of Art in Drama from the University of Windsor. Miriam’s most recent large scale project (as of summer, 2018) was an all-female production of Henry V by William Shakespeare which focused on deconstructing gender in performance and the construct of theatre itself, putting women in roles that have historically been barred from them. This performance toured Ontario and also performed, pro-bono, in Grand Valley Institute for Women. After Pregnancy Pact (May 2nd-19th), Miriam will be directing The Clockmaker by Stephen Massicotte and 4.48 Psychosis by Sarah Kane. www.miriamrgoldstein.com Instagram: mirigc87

Blythe Haynes  Blythe is a Toronto-based actor and Producer. She is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Gangway! Theatre Co. Blythe holds a BFA from the University of Alberta in Acting. Gangway! Theatre Co was co-founded with writer KT Bryski to explore female voices and develop Canadian content. Previous to the founding of Gangway! KT and Blythe jointly proposed and established the “History Actor” museum theatre program at Black Creek Pioneer Village. Their partnership culminated in the original podcast release of Six Stories Told at Night (written by KT Bryski, performed by Blythe Haynes and funded by the Ontario Arts Council), for which it won a PARSEC Award in 2017. Six Stories debuted as a theatrical production at the Toronto Fringe Festival 2018, and was short listed for the Best of Fringe. AfterPregnancy Pact (May 2nd-19th), you can see Blythe in An Atlas, A Necktie and Other Concerns at Toronto Fringe and in the next co-productions with The Edge Productions – The Clockmaker by Stephen Massicotte in 2019. Twitter: @haynesblythe

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