Jake Planinc on staging a Canadian classic and bringing Matchstick’s new production of “Leaving Home” to Toronto
““I’d dreamed of taking the production to Toronto, and the Coal Mine was always my #1 target. I’m incredibly grateful.” ~ Jake Planinc
Colleen A. Smith on 10 years of growth at the FirstOntario PAC and the new milestone season
“It is so important that people feel like they belong at the PAC, and further, that they see themselves on our stages,” Colleen A. Smith
Xin Wang’s “Cooo” is a responsive soundscape created especially for “new ears”
“I think sound discovery-based works are excellent choices for new ears… As long as we discover together, they are ready for it.” ~ Xin Wang
Noreen Nanja offers a refreshing remix of romance, roots and reckoning
“I wanted to write a book where the coming-of-age arc explored the dynamics of growing up between two cultures.” ~ Noreen Nanja
Rose Napoli and Suzy Wilde’s new musical “After the Rain” is here and proves “music is for everyone”
“We really wanted to embrace this idea of democratizing music – of making it something that is for everyone….a piece of four-minute, bite-sized music is kind of a miracle.” ~ Rose Napoli and Suzy Wilde
Zorana Sadiq’s new play “Comfort Food” is inspired by the love language of cooking
The fact that this act of cooking to express love has been a muscle in me from early adulthood… made it an easy and familiar place to explore the possible adjacencies of this subject.” ~ Zorana Sadiq
Colleen Furlan on the wonder of becoming Alice in Wonderland
“When I stepped into Alice, I learned invaluable lessons about myself. She was seeing the world in ways that inspired me to take a step back in my own life and start to question.” ~ Colleen Furlan
Oren Safdie’s new play “Beyond Ken Dryden” explores the personal and cultural impact of a hockey hero
“Les Canadiens were a great unifier in the city of Montreal and transcended language barriers, but the game of hockey also taught me a lot of life lessons.” ~ Oren Safdie
“Full send”: Midori Marsh sings an elephant’s journey to freedom in “Sanctuary Song”
“Whether it’s elephant to elephant, elephant to human, or human to human, in this piece music becomes our universal communicator…” ~ Midori Marsh