Summer Stages: Toronto's Summer Theatre Offerings
By: Kelly Cameron Jun. 14, 2013
Summer in Toronto offers an exciting range of theatrical productions, festivals and events to keep people from all avenues of life entertained. Outside of the city we have the world renowned Stratford and Shaw Festivals, and within Toronto we are blessed with a wide range of summer festivals showcasing theatre, music, art and food. This is in addition to all the wonderful productions we are accustomed to year round.
As in previous years, BWW Toronto is participating in 'Summer Stages' which attempts to pick five of the most anticipated productions hitting our city of the summer. It was harder than ever to narrow the list down, but we hope you enjoy these pics for summer theatrical entertainment:
TOMMY (The Stratford Festival)
May 4th - Oct 19th
The 2013 Stratford Season is an ambitious one, with a lot of exciting shows on the bill (many of which opened to rave reviews just last week). One of the most anticipated of these is TOMMY, which brings Des McAnuff back to the Festival to re-create the show which was a hit on Broadway and in Toronto twenty years ago. With new tricks and special effects, expect to see even more pinball wizardry than ever before.
CATS (The Panasonic Theatre)
June-Aug 2013
The Jellicle Cats are back in Toronto for the first time in 28 years in a revamped and reinvisioned production helmed by Canadian theatrical collaborating with her son, Geoffrey Smith, NuMu Inc.'s chief business officer; Corey Ross, president of Starvox Entertainment; and David Galpern and Charles Roy of Classical Theatre Project. When Cats first lit up the Elgin Theatre in 1985 it was credited as starting our city's love affair with the mega musical, so it'll be interesting to see how Toronto reacts to this new version.
THE TORONTO FRINGE FESTIVAL
July 3-14, 2013
The cities annual Fringe Festival is gearing up to get under way in late June. For theatre lovers in Toronto, the Fringe is two of the most exciting weeks of the year as more than 150 productions get presented throughout the city. See a show, grab a drink in the beer tent and mingle with other like minded people who love supporting our up and coming artists. It's fun, friendly and Fringe!
THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA (Shaw Festival)
July 4 - October 13
There has been a lot of buzz surrounding Shaw's presentation of Light in the Piazza, one of arguably the most hotly anticipated musicals of the season. Josh Young left the production to pursue another opportunity and Shaw Festival veteran Jeff Irving stepped in to replace him. While you're checking out the Piazza be sure to check out many of the other wonderful shows being offered up in Niagara on the Lake this summer.
SHAKESPEARE IN HIGH PARK - Canadian Stage
June 26-Sep 2
Summer in Toronto wouldn't be complete without paying a visit to the gorgeous High Park for Canadian Stage's pay what you can presentations of Shakespeare in High Park. A time honoured tradition, guests can bring a blanket and sit underneath the stars as they enjoy the classics as presented by the wonderful team at Canadian Stage. This year features Macbeth and The Taming of The Shrew.
LES MISERABLES - The Princess of Wales Theatre
After a few false starts, many rumours and much debate - Les Miserables finally returns to the Toronto stage as Cameron Mackintosh's all new 25th Anniversary production debuts at The Princess of Wales Theatre in late September. One of Toronto's favourite shows, this new version promises to delight and entertain while keeping the core of the incredible story and music intact. Featuring a mostly Canadian cast and 'hometown boy' Ramin Karimloo in the lead role of Jean Valjean, Les Miserables is shaping up to be one of the hottest tickets of the season.
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