Graham Abbey News

Two of 2023's most popular shows, Shakespeare's hilarious comedy Much Ado About Nothing and Frances Koncan's brilliant satire Women of the Fur Trade are now available for worldwide streaming on Stratfest@Home.

It’s been a strong year for Toronto theatre. I saw 145 shows this year in Toronto and beyond, and am happy to report that theatre is alive and well. I’ve laughed, sobbed, coughed (discreetly into a mask), and cheered my way through our stages in 2023. Here are some local highlights.

Get all the latest updates on the highly anticipated 2024 season at the Stratford Festival. Find out which talented actors have been cast in which productions, and get ready to experience the magic of live theater at one of the world's most renowned festivals.

If you heard riotous laughter emanating from the Festival Theatre in Stratford on Friday evening, you may already know that MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING has officially opened at the Stratford Festival. The Shakespearean production directed by Chris Abraham, with additional text by Erin Shields, and starring Maev Beaty and Graham Abbey, boasts hilarious comedy from beginning to end. The cast fed off the energy of the audience on Friday night in such a way that this opening night felt particularly wild and special.

With a series of hit classic comedies under his belt at Stratford, Chris Abraham is bringing one of Shakespeare’s finest, Much Ado About Nothing, to vivid life at the Festival Theatre. This beloved romantic comedy, featuring Graham Abbey and Maev Beaty, starts previews today.

Artistic Director Graham Abbey and Managing Director Vikki Anderson have announced County Stage's ambitious 2023 Summer line up. Presented by BMO and Huff Estates, running from May 26 to September 9, the season brings an expansive lineup of theatre, dance, comedy and music to two different locations in Prince Edward County: The Eddie Hotel & Farm, in Bloomfield and at the newly renovated Sergeants Mess Hall at Base31, in Picton.

The Stratford Festival’s Meighen Forum will return for its 11th season with new experiences and returning favourites that promise to deepen their 71st season through compelling discussion, intimate performances, workshops, concerts, comedy and more.

The Stratford Festival's filmed performance of Hamlet is now available on Stratfest@Home for streaming worldwide.

The Stratford Festival’s filmed performance of Death and the King’s Horseman will debut for streaming world-wide on Thursday, February 9, 2023 via Stratfest@Home.

The Stratford Festival is putting the finishing touches on casting and will soon open its box office for a special holiday pre-sale for tickets to the 13 exciting shows of the 2023 season. With savings up to 25%, this is a perfect opportunity to secure tickets for your favourite shows or buy gifts for the theatre-lovers on your list.

Just as the 2022 season comes to a close, work for the 2023 season is getting underway at the Stratford Festival. Creative teams for next year's productions are coming into place and the casting department is busy confirming key roles for the season. Soon the workshops will be abuzz with artisans building the season's sets, props and costumes.

The Stratford Festival’s new Tom Patterson Theatre sees its first modern work on Thursday, August 11, as previews begin for director Tawiah M’Carthy’s production of Death and the King’s Horseman, by Nobel Prize-winning author Wole Soyinka.

A royal family crisis unfolds on stage at the Festival Theatre as Hamlet begins its run today. Making Festival history is Amaka Umeh, the first Black actor to play Hamlet at Stratford.

Prince Edward County's Festival Players' Artistic Director Graham Abbey and Managing Director Vikki Anderson announced today the lineup for an ambitious and celebratory 2022 summer season. Presented by BMO and Huff Estates and running from June 29 to September 4, the season brings an expansive lineup of theatre, dance, comedy and music to the heart of PEC at one of The County's most iconic venues – The Eddie Hotel and Farm.

Prince Edward County’s Festival Players has announced today the lineup for their 2022 summer season. Presented by BMO and Huff Estates and running from June 29 to September 4, the season brings an expansive lineup of theatre, dance, comedy and music to the heart of PEC at one of The County’s most iconic venues – The Eddie Hotel and Farm.

February marks a new beginning at the Stratford Festival with members of the 2022 acting company set to start rehearsals. Over the coming months, these dynamic artists will immerse themselves in 10 extraordinary productions and lead the Festival into the post-pandemic future.

The Stratford Festival’s popular Thursday night free viewing parties resume this week with an entertaining variety of offerings, including new and legacy films and all new original content safely created during the pandemic – adding to the rich mine of theatrical content available on Stratfest@Home, the Festival’s $10-a-month streaming service.

After a Members advance sale so busy it prompted the early extension of two productions, tickets for the Stratford Festival's groundbreaking new season go on sale to the public today. The 2020 season is one of the biggest ever and includes the much-anticipated opening of the new Tom Patterson Theatre. With the $100-million fundraising goal a hair's breadth away from completion, the bespoke theatre is one of North America's most significant new arts builds in decades.

With the new Tom Patterson Theatre taking shape on the banks of the Avon River, the Stratford Festival is thrilled to announce key casting as it builds the acting company for its monumental 2020 season.

The Stratford Festival is celebrating the World Premiere of Michael Healey's adaptation of Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur's THE FRONT PAGE at the Festival Theatre. A beloved American satire set in 1920's Chicago, THE FRONT PAGE tells the story of journalists in a courthouse pressroom doing whatever they need to do to get their story while at the same time being the only potential failsafe against political corruption at a time when the seedy Chicago subculture was in full swing. Directed by Graham Abbey, this adaptation is updated to include more diversity among the characters. It is a knee slapping night at the theatre whilst also providing a seemingly timeless commentary about the flaws and biases of the criminal justice system.