AMÉLIE Toronto Premiere & ONCE Return Engagement Set for Shifting Ground Collective
Shifting Ground Collective announced its upcoming season, featuring the Toronto premiere of AMÉLIE and the return of ONCE to the city's musical theatre scene.
Shifting Ground Collective has announced its 2026/27 season: two internationally celebrated musicals adapted from beloved films: the Toronto premiere of Amélie and a new immersive production of Once.
A missed train. A conversation with a stranger. A song heard at the right time. A fleeting act of kindness. Like Shifting Ground Collective's breakout 2023 production of Ordinary Days, both Amélie and Once find profound meaning in everyday encounters, exploring how even the briefest moments of human connection can quietly and irrevocably change the course of a life.
“Both Amélie and Once remind us that everything can change in an instant,” says Shannon Murtagh, Executive Producer and Co-Founder of Shifting Ground Collective. “They're stories about happenstance, about seeing the people around you, about putting your phone away and truly existing in a shared space. That feeling of human connection is at the heart of this season.”
Launching the season in September is the Toronto premiere of Amélie, arriving 25 years after the beloved film first captivated audiences at the Toronto International Film Festival. Based on the whimsical Oscar-nominated movie, the musical follows an imaginative young woman who quietly transforms the lives of everyone around her while discovering the courage to change her own. Featuring music by Daniel Messé, lyrics by Daniel Messé and Nathan Tysen, and a book by Craig Lucas, Shifting Ground Collective's production will be directed by Catie Thorne with choreography by Nicholas Rocque, whose work on The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee earned him a Dora Award. Shifting Ground Collective's own Colette Richardson is set to star in the title role, with additional casting to be announced in the coming months. Filled with theatrical magic, romance, and wonder, Amélie is a celebration of the small moments and unexpected connections that can change everything. On stage September 21 - October 10, 2026 at the Aki Studio.
In 2027, more than a decade after its celebrated Toronto run at Mirvish Productions, Once returns in an intimate new production unlike anything audiences have experienced before. Presented within a transformed bar venue, this production surrounds audiences with an intimate atmosphere inspired by the music-filled pub culture at the heart of the story, immersing audiences in a reimagined theatre-going experience — a warm and vibrant gathering place where audiences and artists alike are invited to linger, connect, and share in the music together.
Based on the Academy Award-winning film, Once features a book by Enda Walsh, with music and lyrics by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová. It tells the story of a Dublin street musician and a Czech immigrant drawn together by music, collaboration, and the possibility of something more. Featuring the iconic songs “Falling Slowly” and “Gold,” the musical has become a modern classic celebrated for its emotional honesty, intimacy, and aching beauty. With a limited-capacity venue to be announced at a later date, Once promises an unusually close encounter between audience, performers, and music, the kind of experience best shared live and in person. The creative team and casting will be revealed closer to the production. On stage March 7-27, 2027.
Videos
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10 Days in a Madhouse The Bluma Appel Theatre (6/16-6/21) VIDEOS |
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MAD HOT BALLET: Reverie Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts (6/02-6/02) |
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World On Fire The Assembly Theatre (5/27-6/07) |
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SYMPHONY UNDER THE STARS Memorial Park (7/17-7/17) |
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John Cameron Mitchell: Hedwig 25th Anniversary Movie Tour The Danforth Music Hall (6/28-6/28) |
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Grand Soft Day Young People's Theatre (4/24-5/02) |
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It's a Good Life If You Don't Weaken Theatre Aquarius (4/22-5/16) |
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Lui ( He) A Play By Ashkan Khatibi Meridian Arts Centre: Greenwin Theatre (5/21-5/23) |
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KARMA Theatre Passe Muraille (5/01-5/17) |
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Not Dead Yet! - John Cleese and the Holy Grail at 50 The Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres (10/02-10/02) |
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