Stratford Festival Unveils 2024 Casts and Creative Teams

With just two weeks’ worth of performances remaining in the 2023 season, the Stratford Festival’s preparations for 2024 are well underway. Today key casting is announced for the 12 productions of the coming season.
 
Those returning to key roles after some time away from the Stratford stages include Dan Chameroy, Juan Chioran, Conrad Coates, Deborah Hay, Jessica B. Hill, Jeff Lillico, Tom McCamus, Rick Roberts, Jake Runeckles, Vanessa Sears, Sara Topham, Mark Uhre and Scott Wentworth.
 
Returning from this season to key roles are Graham Abbey, Celia Aloma, Sean Arbuckle, Laura Condlln, James Daly, Aidan deSalaiz, Sarah Dodd, Austin Eckert, Allison Edwards-Crewe, Henry Firmston, Jonathan Goad, Jordin Hall, Andrew Iles, Matthew Kabwe, Heather Kosik, Josue Laboucane, Nestor Lozano Jr., Jonathan Mason, Gordon S. Miller, Marissa Orjalo, Lucy Peacock, Irene Poole, Glynis Ranney, Steve Ross, Tyrone Savage, André Sills, Olivia Sinclair-Brisbane, Tara Sky, Michael Spencer-Davis, Emilio Vieira, Jennifer Villaverde, Rylan Wilkie and Geraint Wyn Davies.
 
The season welcomes a number of actors who will make their Stratford debut in key roles in 2024, including Kaleb Alexander, Jo Chim, Jesse Gervais, Cynthia Jimenez-Hicks, Julie Lumsden and Kim Roberts.
 
Rounding out the 2024 company are Eric Abel, George Absi, Hilary Adams, Bola Aiyeola, Christopher Allen, Gabriel Antonacci, David Ball, Michelle Bardach, Noah Beemer, Carla Bennett, Devon Michael Brown, Jeremy Carver-James, Harriet Chung, Jarret Cody, David Collins, Joella Crichton, Howard Dai, Josh Doig, Nick Dolan, Thomas Duplessie, Justin Eddy, Jordan Goodridge, Alexandra Gratton, Steven Hao, Kim Horsman, Sara-Jeanne Hosie, Phoebe Hu, Jenna-Lee Hyde, Bonnie Jordan, Alex Kelly, Wahsontí:io Kirby, John Kirkpatrick, Bethany Kovarik, Derek Kwan, Amanda Lundgren, Gracie Mack, Ayrin Mackie, Anthony MacPherson, Jordan Mah, Kevin McLachlan, Evan Mercer, Jamie Murray, Marcus Nance, Sarah Orenstein, David Andrew Reid, Jennifer Rider-Shaw, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, Antonette Rudder, Anthony Santiago, Jason Sermonia, Agnes Tong, Chris Vergara, Nick Fangzheng Wang and Angus Yam.
 
“This extraordinary list of artists fills me with equal amounts of pride and anticipation,” says Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino: “pride in the Stratford Festival being home to such talent, and anticipation for the exciting theatre that they will create for our audiences next year.”
 
Programmed around a theme of A World Elsewhere, next season features Twelfth Night; Something Rotten!; Romeo and Juliet; London Assurance; La Cage aux Folles; Wendy and Peter Pan; Salesman in China; Cymbeline; Hedda Gabler; The Diviners; The Goat or, Who is Sylvia?; and Get That Hope.
 
“For all these productions, comic or tragic, I have brought together extraordinary artists who will offer journeys from which we hope you will return invigorated, full of hope and joy, and eager to embark on your next great adventure,” says Cimolino.
 
Early-bird sales – offering a discount of up to 25% – begin on Monday, December 11, 2023, with special advance sales to Members of the Stratford Festival beginning November 12.
 
There is still some casting to be completed. Individual casts and creative teams are detailed below.
 
 
 

Twelfth Night

By William Shakespeare
 
April 26 to October 26 | Opens May 27
Production support is generously provided by Priscilla Costello,
by Dr. Desta Leavine in memory of Pauline Leavine, by Peggy Ptasznik, by Laurie J. Scott,
by The Whiteside Foundation and by Catherine Wilkes in memory of David.
 
Director Seana McKenna’s production of Shakespeare’s delightful comedy Twelfth Night will feature Laura Condlln as Malvolio and Jessica B. Hill as Viola, with Sarah Dodd as Maria, Deborah Hay as Feste, Vanessa Sears as Olivia, André Sills as Orsino, Scott Wentworth as Sir Toby Belch, and Rylan Wilkie as Sir Andrew Aguecheek.
 
The cast also includes Hilary Adams, David Collins (Captain), Nick Dolan, Thomas Duplessie, Austin Eckert (Sebastian), Jenna-Lee Hyde, Andrew Iles (Valentine), John Kirkpatrick (Priest), Jonathan Mason, Marissa Orjalo, Glynis Ranney, Antonette Rudder, Michael Spencer-Davis (Fabian) and Emilio Vieira (Antonio).
 
In addition to Seana McKenna, the creative team includes Set and Costume Designer Christina Poddubiuk, Lighting Designer Bonnie Beecher, Composer Paul Shilton and Sound Designer Verne Good.
 
In this celebrated romantic comedy, Viola finds herself shipwrecked in a foreign country. Seeking safety and income, she disguises herself as a young man, Cesario, and gains employment with Count Orsino, who is pining for his beloved Olivia. Drama arises in a tangle of mistaken identities and passions, with Olivia falling for Cesario, whose heart belongs to Orsino, who is still smitten with Olivia. When Viola’s twin brother appears, complications peak.
 

Something Rotten!

Book by Karey Kirkpatrick and John O'Farrell
Music and Lyrics by Wayne Kirkpatrick and Karey Kirkpatrick
Conceived by Karey Kirkpatrick and Wayne Kirkpatrick
April 16 to October 27 | Opens May 28
The production is co-sponsored by RBC.
Production support is generously provided by John & Therese Gardner, by Robert & Mary Ann Gorlin,
by The William and Nona Heaslip Foundation and by Riki Turofsky & Charles Petersen.
 
This hilarious new musical will hit the Stratford stage in a production directed and choreographed by Donna Feore, featuring Henry Firmston as Nigel Bottom, Jeff Lillico as Shakespeare, and Mark Uhre as Nick Bottom, with Dan Chameroy as Nostradamus, Juan Chioran as Brother Jeremiah, Steve Ross as Shylock and Olivia Sinclair-Brisbane as Portia/">Portia.
 
The cast will also include Eric Abel, Gabriel Antonacci, Michelle Bardach, Carla Bennett, Devon Michael Brown, Jeremy Carver-James (Minstrel), Jarret Cody, Josh Doig, Jordan Goodridge, Alexandra Gratton, Bonnie Jordan, Alex Kelly, Heather Kosik, Bethany Kovarik, Amanda Lundgren, Gracie Mack, Anthony MacPherson, Jordan Mah, Kevin McLachlan, Jamie Murray, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah (Lady Clapham) and Jason Sermonia.
 
In addition to Donna Feore, the creative team includes Music Director Laura Burton, Set and Costume Designer Michael Gianfrancesco, Lighting Designer Bonnie Beecher and Sound Designer Haley Parcher.
 
Brothers Nick and Nigel Bottom are struggling playwrights in Renaissance London and they desperately need a hit. That’s easier said than done when your chief competition is William Shakespeare. Nick visits a soothsayer who predicts that the next great thing in theatre will be something called “a musical.” Wary but trusting, the brothers set off to create a new theatrical genre – only to find Shakespeare wants in on the act. Featuring songs like “God, I Hate Shakespeare”, “Will Power” and “Hard to Be the Bard”, the Tony Award-winning musical Something Rotten! is a rollicking song-and-dance extravaganza that sends up the Bard and Broadway – and everything in between.
 

Romeo and Juliet

By William Shakespeare
May 6 to October 26 | Opens June 1
Production support is generously provided by The Jentes Family.
 
Director Sam White’s production of Shakespeare’s heartbreaking tragedy Romeo and Juliet will feature Jonathan Mason as Romeo and Vanessa Sears as Juliet, with Graham Abbey as Capulet, Jessica B. Hill as Lady Capulet, Andrew Iles as Mercutio, Glynis Ranney as Nurse, and Scott Wentworth as Friar Lawrence.
 
The cast will also include Hilary Adams, David Collins, Howard Dai (Gregory), Nick Dolan (Escalus), Thomas Duplessie (Peter), Austin Eckert (Paris), Steven Hao (Benvolio), Jenna-Lee Hyde, John Kirkpatrick (Balthasar, Friar John), Derek Kwan, Marissa Orjalo, Antonette Rudder (Lady Montague), Michael Spencer-Davis (Montague), Emilio Vieira (Tybalt), Rylan Wilkie and Angus Yam.
 
In addition to Sam White, the creative team includes Set and Costume Designer Sue Lepage, Lighting Designer Louise Guinand and Composer and Sound Designer Debashis Sinha.
 
When two young star-crossed lovers lock eyes across a crowded dance floor, their fate – and the fate of two rival families, the Capulets and Montagues – is sealed. The most celebrated romance of all time, Romeo and Juliet is a cautionary tale, timeless in its warning against insatiable revenge, blind hatred and familial pride.
 

London Assurance

By Dion Boucicault
August 7 to October 25 | Opens August 22
Production support is generously provided by Dr. Dennis & Dorothea Hacker, by Jane Fryman Laird,
by Dr. M.L. Myers, by Catherine Elliot Shaw and by Dr. Robert J. & Roberta Sokol.
 
Directed by Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino, the hilarious Victorian comedy London Assurance will feature Geraint Wyn Davies as Sir Harcourt Courtly, with Austin Eckert as Charles Courtly, Deborah Hay as Lady Gay Spanker, Marissa Orjalo as Grace Harkaway, Michael Spencer-Davis as Adolphus Spanker, Emilio Vieira as Richard Dazzle and Rylan Wilkie as Cool.
 
The cast will also include Graham Abbey (Mark Meddle), Hilary Adams (Pert), Bola Aiyeola, David Collins (Max Harkaway), Joella Crichton, Sarah Dodd, Nick Dolan, Thomas Duplessie, Jenna-Lee Hyde, Andrew Iles, John Kirkpatrick, Jonathan Mason, Glynis Ranney, Antonette Rudder, Vanessa Sears and Scott Wentworth (Constable Solomon Isaacs).
 
In addition to Antoni Cimolino, the creative team includes Set and Lighting Designer Lorenzo Savoini, Costume Designer Francesca Callow, Composer Wayne Kelso and Sound Designer Ranil Sonnadara. 
 
This delightful comedy follows Sir Harcourt Courtly, an over-the-hill London fop, as he arrives at Oak Hall to claim his wealthy and scandalously young bride. But Courtly’s plan for a get-rich-quick weekend in the country is scuttled by the arrival of his dissolute son, Charles, disguised as “Augustus Hamilton,” and the witty Lady Gay Spanker. Celebrated as one of the great British stage comedies, London Assurance is a brilliant precursor to the works of Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw.
 
AVON THEATRE
 

La Cage aux Folles

Book by Harvey Fierstein
Music and Lyrics by Jerry Herman
Based on the play by Jean Poiret
May 6 to October 26 | Opens May 31
Production support is generously provided by Laurie J. Scott and by Peter & Carol Walters.
 
The hit musical La Cage aux Folles, directed by Thom Allison, will feature Sean Arbuckle as Georges and Steve Ross as Albin, with Juan Chioran as Edouard Dindon and M. Renaud, James Daly as Jean-Michel, Aidan deSalaiz as Francis and Heather Kosik as Anne.
 
The cast will also include Eric Abel (Hanna), George Absi (Angelique), David Ball (Phaedra), Devon Michael Brown, Jeremy Carver-James, Josh Doig (Chantal), Jordan Goodridge (Mercedes), Alexandra Gratton (Colette), Sara-Jeanne Hosie (Mme. Dindon, Mme. Renaud), Alex Kelly, Amanda Lundgren, Ayrin Mackie (Babette), Anthony MacPherson, Kevin McLachlan, Jamie Murray, David Andrew Reid (Bitelle), Jason Sermonia (Tabarro) and Chris Vergara (Jacob).
 
In addition to Thom Allison, the creative team includes Choreographer Cameron Carver, Music Director Franklin Brasz, Set Designer Brandon Kleiman, Costume Designer David Boechler, Lighting Designer Kimberly Purtell and Sound Designer Brian Kenny. 
 
Jean-Michel and Anne are deeply in love and about to get married. The only problem is their parents. Anne’s father is a politician and head of the Tradition, Family and Morality Party. Jean-Michel was raised by his two fathers, Georges, a drag club owner, and Albin, the club’s star performer. Before the wedding occurs the two couples must be introduced. The ensuing clash unravels truth and consequences with heartwarming grace. Winner of 11 Tony Awards and two Oliviers, La Cage aux Folles was also adapted into the hit blockbuster movie, The Bird Cage, starring Nathan Lane and Robin Williams.
 
North American Première

Schulich Children’s Plays

Wendy and Peter Pan
Adapted by Ella Hickson
From the book by J.M. Barrie
May 21 to October 27 | Opens June 15
Production support is generously provided by The Schulich Foundation.
 
Director Thomas Morgan Jones will direct the North American première of Wendy and Peter Pan featuring Cynthia Jimenez-Hicks and Jake Runeckles in the title roles. The production will also feature Laura Condlln as Hook, Nestor Lozano Jr. as Tink and Tara Sky as Tiger Lily.
 
The cast also includes George Absi (Nibs), Sean Arbuckle (Mr. Darling), David Ball, Noah Beemer (John), James Daly (Martin), Aidan deSalaiz (Pirate), Justin Eddy (Michael), Sara-Jeanne Hosie (Smee), Wahsontí:io Kirby (Tootles), Ayrin Mackie (Doc Swain), Marcus Nance (Doc Giles, Crocodile, Skylights), David Andrew Reid (Pirate), Agnes Tong (Mrs. Darling) and Chris Vergara (Tom).
 
In addition to Thomas Morgan Jones, the creative team includes Choreographer Jera Wolfe, Set and Costume Designer Robin Fisher, Associate Set and Costume Designer Julia Holbert, Lighting Designer Arun Srinivasan and Composer and Sound Designer Romeo Candido.
 
Ella Hickson’s beautiful adaptation of J.M. Barrie’s beloved Peter Pan puts Wendy centre stage in a reimagined journey to Neverland, home of Hook and the Lost Boys. This thoroughly modern adventure delivers the same unforgettable thrills, spills and fairy dust of the original tale, along with a powerfully moving twist. Commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company, it opened to rave reviews and now the Stratford Festival has secured the rights to the North American première.
 
World Première

A Stratford Festival/Banff Centre Co-Commission

Salesman in China

By Leanna Brodie and Jovanni Sy
Suggested by the memoirs of Arthur Miller and Ying Ruocheng
Chinese translations by Fang Zhang
August 3 to October 26 | Opens August 23
Production support is generously provided by Marilyn Gropp, by Martie & Bob Sachs and by Esther Sarick.
Support for the creation of Salesman in China is generously provided by
The Foerster Bernstein New Play Development Program.
 
The world première of Salesman in China, directed by Jovanni Sy, will feature Tom McCamus as Arthur Miller. Jo Chim will play Wu Shiliang.
 
The cast includes Harriet Chung (Auntie Zhao, Hui Li, Chinese Opera Performer), Howard Dai (Ding, Policeman), Justin Eddy (Chinese Opera Performer), Steven Hao (Li Shilong), Kim Horsman, Phoebe Hu (Zhu Lin), Derek Kwan (Cao Yu, Ying Qianli, Mo, Street Busker), Nestor Lozano Jr. (Chinese Opera Performer), Gordon S. Miller (Samuel Rosicky), Sarah Orenstein (Inge Morath), Agnes Tong (Miss Chen, Qiu, Patron), Nick Fangzheng Wang and Angus Yam (Mi Tiezeng, Red Guard).
 
Salesman in China is written by Leanna Brodie and Jovanni Sy. In addition to Director Jovanni Sy, the creative team includes Set Designer Joanna Yu, Costume Designer Ming Wong, Lighting Designer Sophie Tang, Composer and Sound Designer Alessandro Juliani and Co-Projection Designers Caroline MacCaull and Sammy Chien.
 
In 1983 Arthur Miller travels to China to collaborate with another giant of the theatre, actor and translator Ying Ruocheng. Their vision is to mount a Mandarin version of Death of a Salesman with Ying in the iconic role of Willy Loman and Miller directing (despite not speaking a word of Chinese). They soon confront the challenges of staging a play about the American Dream in the heart of Communist China. Against enormous obstacles and with the world watching, Ying and Miller must discover whether art can indeed build bridges between two seemingly irreconcilable cultures.
 
Tom Patterson THEATRE
 

Cymbeline

By William Shakespeare
May 10 to September 28 | Opens May 29
Production support is generously provided by The Westaway Charitable Foundation.
 
Director Esther Jun’s production of Shakespeare’s Cymbeline will feature Allison Edwards-Crewe as Imogen and Lucy Peacock as Cymbeline, with Jonathan Goad as Belarius, Jordin Hall as Posthumus, Irene Poole as Pisanio and Tyrone Savage as Iachimo.
 
The cast will also incluce Christopher Allen (Cloten), Noah Beemer (Arviragus), Cynthia Jimenez-Hicks (Philarmonous), Matthew Kabwe  (Caius Lucius), Wahsontí:io Kirby (Cornelius), Josue Laboucane  (Philario), Julie Lumsden  (Helen), Evan Mercer, Marcus Nance (Jupiter), Jennifer Rider-Shaw, Rick Roberts (Duke), Jake Runeckles (Lady in Waiting), Anthony Santiago (Sicillius) and Tara Sky (Queen Soldier).
 
In addition to Esther Jun, the creative team includes Set and Lighting Designer Echo Zhou, Costume Designer Michelle Bohn and Sound Designer Olivia Wheeler.
 
Forbidden love. Familial strife. Political intrigue. In Cymbeline, the final play from Shakespeare’s First Folio, the playwright fuses romance, comedy and tragedy to create a unique fantasia brimming with mistaken identities and gender-swapping disguises. Set in an ancient British kingdom, the story introduces Imogen, one of Shakespeare’s most beloved heroines, as well as the dastardly Iachimo, a worthy contender for all-time greatest villain.
 

Hedda Gabler

By Henrik Ibsen
A new version by Patrick Marber
From a literal translation by Karin and Ann Bamborough
April 25 to September 28 | Opens May 30
Production support is generously provided by M. Fainer and by three generations of the Schubert Family.
 
Director Molly Atkinson’s production of Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler will feature Sara Topham in the title role, with Tom McCamus as Judge Brack and Gordon S. Miller as Tesman.
 
The cast also includes Bola Aiyola (Juliana), Joella Crichton (Mrs. Elvsted), Allison Edwards-Crewe, Jordin Hall, Kim Horsman (Bertha), Josue Laboucane, Jennifer Rider-Shaw and Tyrone Savage.
 
In addition to Molly Atkinson, the creative team features Set and Costume Designer Lorenzo Savoini, Lighting Designer Kaileigh Krystofiak and Composer and Sound Designer Mishelle Cuttler.

In Hedda, Henrik Ibsen created one of the most fascinating heroines of the stage. Newly married to a man she finds uninteresting, Hedda becomes reacquainted with an old friend, a historian like her husband, with a fatal flaw that Hedda exploits out of jealousy. Ibsen, thought to be the father of modern drama, brings all of his skill to the character of Hedda, building an intricate psychological portrait of a woman out of step with her surroundings.

 World Première

The Diviners

Based on the novel by Margaret Laurence

Text by Vern Thiessen with Yvette Nolan

August 7 to October 2 | Opens August 24

Production support is generously provided by Karon C. Bales & Charles E. Beall, by Cathy & Paul Cotton,

by the Harkins & Manning families in memory of Jim & Susan Harkins, by The Fabio Mascarin Foundation

and by The Tremain Family.

The world première of The Diviners, directed by Krista Jackson with Geneviève Pelletier, will feature Irene Poole as Morag, with Jesse Gervais as Jules, Jonathan Goad as Christie, Josue Laboucane as Lazarus, and Julie Lumsden as Pique.

The cast also includes Christopher Allen (Lachlan), Gabriel Antonacci (Gord), Michelle Bardach, Carla Bennett, Dan Chameroy (Brooke), Jarret Cody, Allison Edwards-Crewe (Crispin), Henry Firmston, Bonnie Jordan, Bethany Kovarik, Gracie Mack, Jordan Mah, Evan Mercer, Jennifer Rider-Shaw, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, Anthony Santiago (Royland), Tyrone Savage (Gus), Olivia Sinclair-Brisbane and Sara Topham  (Eva, Duchess).

In addition to Krista Jackson and Geneviève Pelletier, the creative team includes Bretta Gerecke, Set and Lighting Designer; Jeff Chief, Costume Designer; Andrina Turenne, Composer; and MJ Dandeneau, Musical Arrangements, Sound Designer and Music Director.

Considered a masterpiece of Canadian literature, Margaret Laurence’s The Diviners is the story of Morag Gunn, a woman who perseveres through every challenge life throws at her to become the person she was meant to be. Adapted by a team of some of Canada’s best theatre creators, The Diviners points us towards a path where we might reconcile with the injustices of our colonial past and achieve a collective peace.

STUDIO THEATRE

The Goat or, Who is Sylvia?

By Edward Albee

June 26 to September 29 | Opens August 9

Production support is generously provided by Sylvia Soyka.

Dean Gabourie’s production of Edward Albee’s The Goat or, Who is Sylvia? features Lucy Peacock as Stevie and Rick Roberts as Martin, with Matthew Kabwe as Ross.

In addition to Dean Gabourie, the creative team includes Set and Costume Designer Shawn Kerwin, Lighting Designer Kaileigh Krystofiak and Sound Designer Adam Campbell.

Martin is turning 50 and is at the top of his game. He has just become the youngest architect to win the prestigious Pritzker Prize. He has a perfect marriage and a loving son. But he can’t remember a damned thing! Probed by his best friend about his distraction, Martin makes a startling confession, one that will tear his life apart. Nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, this drama was written by Edward Albee in 2000 and won the Tony Award for best play in 2002.

World Première

Get That Hope

By Andrea Scott

July 21 to September 28 | Opens August 10

Production support is generously provided by Bryan Blenkin & Alan Rowe and by Sylvia D. Chrominska.

Support for the development of Get That Hope is generously provided by

The Foerster Bernstein New Play Development Program.

The world première of Get That Hope, directed by André Sills, will feature Kaleb Alexander as Simeon Whyte, Celia Aloma as Rachel Whyte, Conrad Coates as Richard Whyte and Kim Roberts as Margaret Whyte, with Jennifer Villaverde as Millicent Flores.

Get That Hope is written by Andrea Scott. In addition to André Sills, the creative team includes Set and Costume Designer Sarah Uwadiae, Lighting Designer Steve Lucas and Sound Designer Maddie Bautista.

Richard Whyte is determined to celebrate Jamaican Independence Day in style. The rice is soaking, the ginger beer is cooling but his squabbling family has other ideas. Over the course of a single sweltering day in Toronto’s Little Jamaica, a lifetime of buried secrets and dreams will surface, forcing a re-examination of true independence.

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