For actor Jasmine Case, stepping into the role of Letitia in Clyde’s means navigating a space where survival, care, and creativity are as multi-layered as the sandwiches she creates in the show.
Now on stage at Canadian Stage and directed by Philip Akin, Lynn Nottage’s Clyde’s unfolds inside a struggling Pennsylvania truck-stop sandwich shop staffed by formerly incarcerated cooks who are attempting to rebuild their lives under the watchful, often volatile eye of their boss, Clyde (Sophia Walker). Alongside Rafael (Augusto Bitter), Jason (Johnathan Sousa), and Montrellous (Sterling Jarvis), Letitia (often referred to as ‘Tish’) works the line, while juggling the pressures of motherhood, low-wage labour, and the constant threat of being pulled back into “the system”.
As tensions simmer, the cooks channel their frustration and ambition into crafting the “perfect sandwich”. This quest transforms the kitchen into a site of possibility and care, where agency can be reclaimed. Equal parts comedy and meditation, the play explores second chances, dignity, and the fragile formation of chosen family—with food itself becoming a vehicle for imagination, healing, and self-worth.
Playing Letitia
Case enters the “Graduating theatre school, I never thought I’d be lucky enough to play so many incredible characters who are all so incredibly different, yet I can completely relate to and understand all of them,” she says. “I think everything about Clyde’s immediately drew me in.”
What she found in Letitia was not just strength, but a guarded resilience that felt familiar. As a young Black line cook and single mother, Letitia must provide for a daughter whose health needs make the stakes of employment especially high. At the same time, she must navigate a workplace that is at once sustaining and stressful. “When I first read it… I could see a strong, independent woman who’s been carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. And rather than asking for help, she chooses to go it alone, as so many women have to do,” Case explains.
“A lot of Black/POC women suffer in silence because they don’t want to be a burden to others…. And Letitia is no exception.” Nor is Case herself: “I know in my life I’ve brushed so many things off and said ‘for a quiet life’; which means ‘for some peace and quiet, I’ll bite my tongue and dust myself off and keep going in silence.’”
This tension between endurance and openness sits at the centre of her performance. Letitia is quick-witted, romantic, and the source of some of the kitchen’s sharpest humour; yet that energy is undercut by exhaustion and a constant awareness of her fragile circumstances. “It feels like Letitia’s resilience and vulnerability go hand in hand,” Case notes. “It’s through her resilience that she can be vulnerable with those around her, who she would never see herself connecting with.”
Nottage’s writing makes that duality legible, without forcing it. “She’s so deliberate and driven when it comes to work because she’s the only provider for her child,” Case explains, “but she also has this very soft side and wants to be taken care of.” She’s complicated but accessible, and that is thrilling for Case: “I love a character like Letitia because she’s been written off by her family, society, even sometimes by herself. But she still gets up every day and tries to be better for her daughter and herself.”
The case for Case
Case is part of a new generation of Canadian actors whose careers have moved quickly. After studying drama at Brock University, she graduated from the National Theatre School of Canada in 2023. Since then, she has built a reputation for taking on demanding, emotionally complex roles in new and contemporary Canadian theatre.
In 2024, she received the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Performance in the Theatre for Young Audiences Division for her role as Phoebe in Truth at Young People’s Theatre. (Her work has consistently centred stories that bring diverse perspectives to the stage, a throughline explored in a 2024 Sesaya Arts profile, “Jasmine Case: This Feels Like the End”). Reflecting on her work in productions such as Truth, seven methods of killing kylie jenner, and last season’s Dora Award-winning FLEX, Case is above all appreciative: “I’ve been incredibly fortunate when it comes to the shows I’ve worked on in the last couple years!”
She’s also quick to share credit with her castmates: ”On each project, everyone involved has been so dedicated to the craft and to being a part of an ensemble!” she enthuses. “When it comes to the best shows in this city, the main connector is working with others to create a real piece of art that people can relate to, question, and wonder about.” And that ethos extends to Clyde’s … and right out into the world: “With a show like Clyde’s being such an ensemble-based piece, our relationship and connection off the stage is just as important as our on-stage relationships. Our connections outside of the show really carry onto the stage—which is a gift.”
The experience of the play
The Toronto-born Case sees the play resonating locally. Her childhood was shaped by a clear sense of community underpinning the city’s many different neighbourhoods. “Toronto is such a diverse city, filled with people from all corners of the world,” she notes, so she is confident that in Clyde’s, “what takes place on stage could easily take place right outside the Bluma Appel doors.”
Part of the reason for this is that the play does not shy away from the realities of judgment and systemic barriers. Instead, it invites audiences to sit with them. “Society has a tendency to judge a book by its cover and to write people off before giving them a chance,” Case reflects. “And this play speaks to those who feel judged in the world… it shows we can choose ourselves and push past other’s expectations of us.”
And just as the kitchen in the show becomes a site of literal and metaphorical transformation, so, too is the rehearsal room. “Patience and kindness have been a big part of my process,” she notes—and this holds true with Clyde’s. “It’s such a big show…. The journeys the characters go on carry such weight that, by the end, it feels like you’ve run a marathon!” But there’s never a feeling of depletion because “I feel so blessed to work with such kind, giving and caring folks on all sides of the play!… Everyone is INCREDIBLE and cares so much—about not only the work we’re doing, but also about each other,” she says. And while she doesn’t provide details, “The heavier the show, the funnier the rehearsal room is. And this show has been no exception!”
Oh and finally, she has a secret to tell about those culinary masterpieces that look so good and mean so much thematically. “All we do throughout this show is make and eat sandwiches,” she laughs. “I have to say it really does get old!”
Clyde’s runs until April 26, 2026 at the Bluma Appel Theatre (27 Front St. E.). Tickets are available at canadianstage.com.
© Arpita Ghosal, Sesaya Arts Magazine 2026
