Teesri Duniya Theatre Reveals 45th Season- SEASON OF THE MIGRANT

Teesri Duniya Theatre has revealed the company's 45th season of topical, meaningful and insightful programming—Season of the Migrant. Teesri Duniya Theatre's new season features thought-provoking theatre productions, outdoor presentations, new works and comprehensive community programs including storytelling, film screenings, workshops and music. New this year, the company is implementing a tiered ticketing system with reduced prices for all shows.

Teesri Duniya Theatre is a culturally inclusive company using theatre as a transformative tool, bringing visible minorities from the margins to the centre. TDT returns to its origins to celebrate this 45th season. “Our goal is to promote inclusivity and highlight immigrant contributions to the country through showcasing their diverse achievements, ranging from significant professional success to everyday efforts, to the vital roles immigrants play in society. This season honours immigrants, humanizes their experiences, challenges misinformation, and promotes a sense of belonging,” said Varma.

Teesri Duniya Theatre Season 2026-27: Season of the Migrant Migrants experience profound effects being displaced from their home while establishing a new life in their adopted country. This new home is more than just a physical shelter; it encompasses safety and the promise to connect with new communities and contribute to the host country. This packed season offers three top-notch mainstage productions, ongoing play development, and various art-inspired outreach, all to initiate discussion and unite audiences. At multiple venues at Cité-des-Hospitalières, see below for details.

Three stage productions: TDT is dedicated to producing politically relevant, bold and profound plays that reflect life-affecting issues framed by a distinctly Canadian perspective:

Behind the Moon by Anosh Irani, directed by Chelsea  Dab  Hilke, April 3-19, 2026 at Rangshala. At Qadir's Mughlai Moon restaurant, Ayub is the sole employee, handling cooking, cleaning and serving, while he waits for his future to begin and struggles to free himself from the suffocation he feels. Behind the Moon explores the challenges faced by immigrant workers in the food industry, where over 25% in the sector are immigrants, often told that they have found a better life than the one they left behind. The play is a captivating exploration of three Muslim men from Mumbai who face the insecurities of being a minority in India, only to encounter the complexities of immigrant life in Canada.

Wine & Halva by Deniz Basar, directed by Art Babayants, May 9-23, 2026 at Rangshala, in collaboration with Sort of Productions. Wine & Halva is about the unconventional friendship between Farias, a Canadian gay white man and Derya, a Turkish woman dealing with invisible institutional discrimination. The playful text, with three actors getting in and out of the  two characters throughout, underlines the fluid nature of identity in various contexts. Wine & Halva challenges widely accepted assumptions about immigration and the impact on the human psyche, especially under conditions of extreme precarity.

The Green Line by Makram Ayache, translated by Hiba Sleiman, directed by Aladeen Tawfeek, April 2-18, 2027 at Rangshala. The Green Line observes intergenerational memory through the lens of four queer relationships in Beirut, Lebanon. In the midst of the Lebanese Civil War, Naseeb is attempting to get himself and his sister Mona out of Beirut into the safety of the mountains. Mona however, is secretly in love with her classmate, a woman named Yara, and refuses to leave the city. This poetic, heartbreaking story weaves together the Lebanese civil war and a contemporary nightclub, following one family's journey to discover their past.

This outstanding year embraces diverse collaborators including actors, playwrights, directors, multidisciplinary arts professionals and cultural workers. And, as with every TDT season, each stage production offers several postshow discussions between invited experts and the public.

Three eco-sensitive outdoor performances:

The Food/Famine Tour, created and directed by Anne-Marie St-Louis, September 3-6, 2026 at The Backyard Theatre. The Food/ Famine Tour is a community-engaged performance that delves into the political and personal aspects of food, inspired by the starvation in Gaza, growing lines at food banks and the mounting need for food programs across schools. The project aims to combat silence—both at the dinner table and in public discourse—by transforming these issues through shared storytelling and artistic resistance. The project includes workshops, sensory research, and collaboration between artists and the community to create and present performative stories centred on food, famine and social issues.

Echoes in the Streets, devised and directed by Abi Sanie, September 10-13, 2026 at The Backyard Theatre. Twenty-five percent of Montreal's population is foreign-born, many displaced by mass violence, war and ethnic rivalry. Their stories have yet to be documented. Echoes in the Streets gathers their testimonies and stories and highlights how their lived experiences have shaped the city through resistance, creativity and collective action. The project combines story gathering, interviews,  testimonies, histories and archival research from various communities and youth. It portrays Montreal as a living archive of immigrant stories and the city's development.

Migratory Birds, by the Yunta Clan collective, September 17-20, 2026 at The Backyard Theatre. Migratory Birds tells the stories of three Latin Americans who move to Canada. It explores their relationships with non-human species, their work, solitude and nostalgia as they navigate life in the city and question their inclusion in this new world. The characters grapple with cultural differences, their emotions, creativity and knowledge, forging connections that lead to encounters, recognition and love. The play shares lived experiences and examines the dynamics of labour, exclusion, language politics and borders. It  the characters' commitment to the lands they now inhabit and their ongoing efforts towards decolonization.

Fireworks- play and playwright development:

New play showcase August 13-16, 2026. TDT showcases ten new, diverse, Indigenous and cutting-edge plays developed within the Fireworks Play Development program led by Marie Barlizo and Nick Carpenter.

The theatre also offers ongoing playwrights residencies and various internships and welcomes culturally diverse script submissions that examine worldviews and historical events.

Inter-arts events by artists and community groups—varied art-inspired presentations throughout the season: