In a competitive field that recognized the growing impact of intimate and independent theatre across the city, two shows emerged as the top winners of the 2025 Toronto Theatre Critics Awards (TTCAs): Mahabharata, Why Not Theatre’s expansive retelling of the ancient Sanskrit epic, and the Canadian premiere of Michael R. Jackson’s A Strange Loop, a maverick and self-reflective musical exploring identity and authorship. Each production took home three major awards, including the top prizes for Best Production of a Play and Best Production of a Musical, respectively.
In a season that saw more than 100 new productions debut across the city, the awards were decided during an almost four-hour deliberation by a committee of 12 Toronto theatre critics, which included Sesaya Arts’ Arpita Ghosal and Scott Sneddon.
Mahabharata, created by Ravi Jain and Miriam Fernandes, also earned Best New Canadian Work, shared with Monks, and Best Sound Design and Music for composers John Gzowski and Suba Sankaran. The production, which uses diverse narrative approaches and multiple performance styles to bring a 4,000-year-old text into contemporary conversation, was recognized for both its ambition and execution.
A Strange Loop, co-produced by Soulpepper Theatre, Musical Stage Company, Crow’s Theatre, and TO Live, follows a 25-year-old fat, Black, queer musical theatre writer whose thoughts become characters onstage. It earned Best Lead Performance in a Musical for Malachi McCaskill and Best Ensemble Performance in a Musical for its six-person ensemble, who were celebrated for their tight cohesion and emotional range.
New Canadian work was particularly strong this year, with the clown comedy Monks by Veronica Hortigüela and Annie Luján sharing the top prize. A Toronto Fringe breakout that was remounted at the Theatre Centre, Monks follows two hilariously distracted friars, and delighted audiences with its absurdist charm.
Several categories resulted in shared honours, reflecting the breadth of excellence across the city: The complete list of 2025 TTCA Award Winners are as follows:
- Best New Canadian Work
- Mahabharata by Miriam Fernandes and Ravi Jain (Why Not Theatre)
- Monks by Veronica Hortigüela and Annie Luján (Theatre Centre)
- Best International Work
- Infinite Life by Annie Baker (Coal Mine Theatre), a quietly devastating play about chronic pain and the search for spiritual clarity
- What the Constitution Means to Me by Heidi Schreck (Soulpepper, Nightwood Theatre, Necessary Angel Theatre Company, Talk Is Free Theatre), adapted for its Toronto run to reflect on Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms
- Best Production of a Play
- Mahabharata (Why Not Theatre), directed by Ravi Jain with associate director Miriam Fernandes
- Mahabharata (Why Not Theatre), directed by Ravi Jain with associate director Miriam Fernandes
- Best Production of a Musical
- A Strange Loop by Michael R. Jackson, directed by Ray Hogg (Soulpepper, Musical Stage Company, Crow’s Theatre, TO Live)
- Best Lead Performance in a Play
- Noah Reid in A Case for the Existence of God (Coal Mine Theatre), for his moving portrayal of a single father navigating economic hardship
- Ins Choi in Kim’s Convenience (Soulpepper Theatre), for playing the role of Appa for the first time in the play he wrote 14 years ago in a performance praised for its emotional nuance and comedic power
- Best Lead Performance in a Musical
- Malachi McCaskill, A Strange Loop
- Best Supporting Performance in a Play
- Nancy Palk, Infinite Life, for her portrayal of quiet resilience in a play about living with chronic pain
- Dan Mousseau, There is Violence and There is Righteous Violence and There is Death, or, The Born-Again Crow, for his fluid and compelling multi-character transformations
- Best Supporting Performance in a Musical
- Julia Pulo, Life After, for her standout turn in Britta Johnson’s introspective musical
- Best Ensemble Performance in a Play
- Goblin: Macbeth by Rebecca Northan and Bruce Horak, performed by the anonymous trio known only as Kragva, Moog, and Wug in an interactive and wildly funny clown reimagining of Shakespeare’s tragedy
- Best Ensemble Performance in a Musical
- Cast of A Strange Loop: Charlie Clark, Sierra Holder, Nathanael Judah, David Lopez, Marcus Nance, Matt Nethersole, David Andrew Reid, and Amaka Umeh
- Best Solo Performance
- Haley McGee, Age is a Feeling, for her lyrical and resonant one-woman show chronicling the unpredictable course of adulthood and the passage of time
- Best Director of a Play
- Dylan Trowbridge, Cock, for his sharp and emotionally precise revival of Mike Bartlett’s relationship drama
- Best Director of a Musical
- Ilana Khanin, I Was Unbecoming Then, a chamber musical about a girls’ choir in Vancouver, staged as part of the Toronto Fringe’s Next Stage Festival
- Best Scenic Design
- Ken Mackenzie, Last Landscape (Bad New Days/Common Boots Theatre)
- Best Lighting Design
- Bonnie Beecher and Jeff Pybus, People, Places and Things (Coal Mine Theatre)
- Chris Malkowski, Measure for Measure (HOUSE + BODY/Crow’s Theatre)
- Best Costume Design
- Pythia, co-created with Denim for the drag-futurist theatrical work Oraculum
- Pythia, co-created with Denim for the drag-futurist theatrical work Oraculum
- Best Sound Design and Music
- John Gzowski and Suba Sankaran, Mahabharata
Special Citations:
- There is Violence and There is Righteous Violence and There is Death, or, The Born-Again Crow by Caleigh Crow (Buddies in Bad Times and Native Earth Performing Arts) — recognized for its sharp, playful script, inventive direction, and evocative portrayal of younger working-class disenchantment. The production was also praised for the dynamic synergy displayed between the two co-producing companies, reflecting their distinct, yet complementary artistic visions.
- Weyni Mengesha, outgoing Artistic Director of Soulpepper Theatre — recognized for her transformative leadership since 2018, and her commitment to resilience, artistic risk, and institutional renewal.
Winners will receive a certificate and a personalized written tribute from a member of the jury. Congratulations to all of the winners.
© Arpita Ghosal and Scott Sneddon, Sesaya Arts Magazine, 2025
