SOMETHING ROTTEN! and LA CAGE AUX FOLLES Extended at Stratford Festival

Great news from the Stratford Festival today! Both musicals – Something Rotten! and La Cage aux Folles – are being extended to mid-November. These shows are thrilling audiences and reminding people of the joys of live theatre.

Something Rotten!, the show that launched the Festival's 2024 season in April, is being hailed by critics and audiences as one of the best musicals ever.

Helmed by director-choreographer Donna Feore with music director Laura Burton, Something Rotten! is a hilarious, laugh-a-minute musical, filled with dazzling dance numbers and unforgettable songs, including “God, I Hate Shakespeare,” “Hard to Be the Bard” and “Welcome to the Renaissance.”

It follows a pair of discouraged playwrights, Nick and Nigel Bottom – played by Mark Uhre and Henry Firmston – as they try to find a way to succeed in theatre when their main competitor is the rock star William Shakespeare, played by Jeff Lillico. When Nick consults the soothsayer, Thomas Nostradamus, played by Dan Chameroy, he sets out on a path to develop the world's first musical, and true hilarity ensues.

The production also features Starr Domingue as Bea, Juan Chioran as Brother Jeremiah (did we mention there are singing and dancing Puritans?), Steve Ross as Shylock and Olivia Sinclair-Brisbane as Portia.

Each and every performance is producing super-fans, who are returning time and again, asserting that Something Rotten! is really something fantastic. Less than halfway into the run, more than 4,000 people have returned to see the show for a second time – some more than twice!

If you love musicals, this show's for you! If you love Shakespeare, this show's for you! And if you HATE Shakespeare and/or musicals, you will revel in the good-hearted roasting both genres take in this hilarious theatrical sendup. 

Over at the Avon Theatre, the musical La Cage aux Folles has earned its extension, as it packs houses and makes headlines with a dazzling production, which at its heart is a touching family story about acceptance in a politically divided world.

It features Sean Arbuckle, as Georges, the manager of a drag club in St. Tropez, and Steve Ross as Albin, his life partner and the club's star performer. Georges agrees to “play it straight” to meet the ultra-conservative parents of their son's new fiancé, while Albin is shocked to discover that he is being sidelined. The ensuing clash unravels truth and consequences with heartwarming grace – and fabulous drag performances!

The production is directed by Thom Allison and choreographed by Cameron Carver with music director Franklin Brasz. It features Juan Chioran as Edouard Dindon, James Daly as Jean-Michel, Aidan deSalaiz as Francis, Starr Domingue as Jacqueline and Heather Kosik as Anne.

The production features the unforgettable anthem “I Am What I Am,” sung by Steve Ross in what many are calling the performance of a lifetime, as he brings the character of Albin to vivid life: by day, a caring, if dramatic, spouse and parent, by night a star performer, the headliner of La Cage aux Folles, home of Les Cagelles. These drag performers entertain in supreme style, with opulent costumes and sensational hair and makeup. Their cabaret-style performances range from sexy and sultry to zany and outrageous. The show is a perfect combination of guts and glitter – with a whole lot of love thrown in.

Tickets for the additional performances listed below go on sale Friday, July 19, and are available at www.stratfordfestival.ca or by calling the box office at 1.800.567.1600. Tickets are still available for current performances.

SOMETHING ROTTEN! EXTENSION DATES:

Wednesday, October 30 at 2 p.m.

Thursday, October 31 at 2 p.m.

Saturday, November 2 at 8 p.m.

Sunday, November 3 at 2 p.m.

Tuesday, November 5 at 2 p.m.

Wednesday, November 6 at 2 p.m.

Saturday, November 9 at 2 p.m.

Sunday, November 10 at 2 p.m.

Wednesday, November 13 at 2 p.m.

Thursday, November 14 at 2 p.m.

Saturday, November 16 at 8 p.m.

Sunday, November 18 at 2 p.m.

LA CAGE AUX FOLLES EXTENSION DATES:

Tuesday, October 29 at 2 p.m.

Friday, November 1 at 2 p.m.

Saturday, November 2 at 2 p.m.

Thursday, November 7 at 2 p.m.

Friday, November 8 at 8 p.m.

Saturday, November 9 at 8 p.m.

Tuesday, November 12 at 2 p.m.

Friday, November 15 at 2 p.m.

Saturday, November 16 at 2 p.m.

For more information on Something Rotten!, including full artistic credits, visit:

https://www.stratfordfestival.ca/WhatsOn/PlaysAndEvents/Production/Something-Rotten

For more information on La Cage aux Folles, including full artistic credits visit:

https://www.stratfordfestival.ca/WhatsOn/PlaysAndEvents/Production/La-Cage-aux-Folles

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