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Musical Stage Company's - Reframed Series   He Is Coming: Book by Sara Farb Music and Lyrics by Britta Johnson   Featuring:  Andrew Scanlon, Kaylee Harwood, Eliza-Jane Scott   Orchestra: Tara Litvack, Alex Grant, Tara Davidson   Musical Direction by: Tara Litvack    Synopsis: A few years before she died, the eccentric artist Editta Sherman was evicted from one of the last remaining rent-controlled Carnegie-Hall apartments. In He Is Coming we meet Irene Newman, our heroine, who is facing the same unjust future. She is surrounded by her beloved portraits and paintings when one by one they come to life just moments before Irene is forced to vacate her legendary apartment.     Sara Farb - Playwright As an actor, Sara worked at Stratford for five seasons, with credits including Juliet, Anne Frank, Cordelia, Jessica (Merchant of Venice), Petra (A Little Night Music) Lucy (The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe), Constance (She Stoops to Conquer), and creating the role of Mary in Kate Hennig’s world premieres of The Last Wife and The Virgin Trial. She just finished playing Brigid in the Canadian premiere of The Humans, and is currently playing Medium Alison in Musical Stage/Mirvish’s production of Fun Home. As a writer, she was nominated for a Dora award for co-writing He Is Coming for Musical Stage Company/AGO’s Reframed, and she wrote and starred in her one-woman show R-E-B-E-C-C-A for Theatre Passe Muraille. She is currently writing a new musical with Britta Johnson.   Britta Johnson - Composer Britta Johnson is a Toronto-based composer, lyricist and writer. Her writing credits include: Life After (Canadian Stage/Musical Stage Company), Alligator Tears (Blyth Festival), Big Box Story (Stratford Festival special presentation). With her sister Anika Johnson: Brantwood (Theatre Sheridan; Dora Award for Audience Choice), Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang (YPT; Dora Nominee Best new musical), Trap Door (Theatre Sheridan; book by Morris Panych), Dr Silver: A Celebration of Life (Musical Stage Company/ Outside the March; Opening Fall 2018). With Sara Farb: Reframed (Acting Up Stage Company/AGO; Dora nominee Best New Musical). With Katherine Cullen: Stupidhead! (Theatre Passe Muraille; Dora Nominee Best New Play). This past Spring, she was librettist for choreographer Robert Binet’s adaptation of The Kreutzer Sonata with Ballet Moscow. She is the Crescendo Artist-in-Residence with the Musical Stage Company which includes a commitment to produce three of her shows in three years.   Painting: Otto Willem Albertus Roelofs (Dutch 1877-1920). He Is Coming, (detail) late 19th, early 20th c. Oil on panel, 37.5 x 30.5 cm. Bequest of F.W.G. Fitzgerald, 1949. Copyright 2016 Art Gallery of Ontario.

Musical Stage Company's - Reframed Series   The Preposterous Predicament of Polly Peel: Book by Julie Tepperman Music and Lyrics by Kevin Wong   Featuring:  Andrew Scanlon, Kaylee Harwood, Eliza-Jane Scott   Orchestra: Tara Litvack, Alex Grant, Tara Davidson   Musical Direction by: Tara Litvack    Synopsis: At the exact moment of his Dad's death, eleven-year-old Paulie Peel was out exploring in the ravine behind his house, when he made eye contact with a very unusual, rather confident wood frog. At the funeral, Paulie reveals a surprising theory for his Dad's sudden and untimely "death" – a conundrum that only he, as his scientist father's trusted apprentice, can solve.     Julie Tepperman - Playwright Julie Tepperman is an actor, playwright and educator, as well as co-artistic director (with Aaron Willis) of Convergence Theatre, thrice listed by NOW Magazine as the "Best Site-Specific Theatre Company in Toronto".  Past immersive Convergence productions: The Unending (amongst several “best of” critics’ picks of 2015); the Canadian premiere of Sarah Ruhl’s Passion Play (with Outside the March and Sheep No Wool; Dora Award for Outstanding Ensemble), YICHUD (Seclusion) (published by Playwrights Canada Press; Capital Critics’ Circle nomination for Outstanding Production; one of NOW Magazine’s Top Ten Productions of 2010); The Gladstone Variations (4 Dora nominations; #2 in NOW Magazine’s Top Ten Toronto Productions of the Decade); AutoShow (one of NOW Magazine’s Top Ten Productions of 2006) Selected acting: Julie has acted at theatres across Toronto, as well as two seasons at The Stratford Festival and Birmingham Conservatory for Classical Theatre Training. Favourite recent acting credits include: Radiant Vermin (Precisely Peter Productions), The Unending (Convergence); Still (Binocular Theatre); Tease (Crows’ Theatre/East End Performance Crawl); Passion Play (Convergence/Outside the March/Sheep No Wool); Mr. Marmalade (OtM); Out The Window (The Theatre Centre). Selected playwriting: The Unending (a re-imagining of Strindberg’s The Stronger and What Doesn’t Kill You…); YICHUD (Seclusion) (Convergence/Passe Muraille/Magnetic North), I Grow Old (as part of The Gladstone Variations; Dora nomination); ROSY (as part of AutoShow); a re-imagining of the August Strindberg play The Father (Winnipeg Jewish Theatre). Julie was Playwright-In-Residence at Theatre Passe Muraille in 2010/11 with the support of the Canada Council.  Recently: BRANTWOOD – a 15hr. immersive choose-your-own-adventure musical that had audiences following characters all over an abandoned high school (co-created, written and directed with Mitchell Cushman, as part of Sheridan’s Canadian Musical Theatre Project.)  Other: Julie was proud to be the Board President of Generator (generatorto.com) from 2015-2018 during the height of its transformation, and was humbled to be awarded a Harold in 2016 for her work in Indie Theatre. Currentl

Musical Stage Company's - Reframed Series   La Casati: Book by Erin Shields Music and Lyrics by Bryce Kulak   Featuring:  Andrew Scanlon, Kaylee Harwood, Eliza-Jane Scott   Orchestra: Tara Litvack, Alex Grant, Tara Davidson   Musical Direction by: Tara Litvack   Context: Luisa, Marchesa Casati (b. 1881 – d. 1957) was one of the most infamous personalities of the first half of the 20th century. A wealthy Italian aristocrat with the sensibility of an audacious performance artist, La Casati commissioned portraits of herself by the most avant-garde artists of her time. In most of her portraits, she is wearing outrageous costumes and has seemingly provoked each artist to his/her most extreme artistic expression. By contrast, Augustus John’s painting appears stripped of artifice and presents the viewer with a direct, vulnerable and unadorned portrayal of La Casati. This was the starting point for our collaboration.   Synopsis: Painter Augustus John discovers his friend and one-time lover, Luisa Marchesa Casati hiding out in her crumbling Venetian palace. His attempts to get her to come to terms with her imminent bankruptcy are hijacked by La Casati’s desperate need to avoid reality. He makes the mistake of comparing her to any other vain aristocrat commissioning portraits of herself. Enraged, La Casati lists the many reasons she abhors the tasteless upper class. To draw John into the memory of a happier time, La Casati summons her younger self (Luisa) at the party where she and John first met. John takes the bait and relives their first meeting. La Casati then transports them to later that same evening when Luisa arrives at John’s apartment demanding to be painted. Armed with a valise of eccentric costumes, Luisa commands John to choose the version of her he’d like to paint. He convinces her to drop all artifice in favour of a simple and honest portrayal. Together, they struggle to paint the portrait. After watching this reenactment, La Casati begins to come to terms with her circumstances.     Erin Shields - Playwright Erin Shields is a Montreal based playwright and actor. She won the 2011 Governor General’s Award for her play If We Were Birds, which premiered at Tarragon Theatre. Erin’s other Tarragon premieres include The Millennial Malcontent and Soliciting Temptation. Erin’s version of Ibsen’s The Lady from the Sea was part of The Shaw Festival’s 2015 season and her adaptation of Paradise Lost will premiere at the Stratford Festival this summer.   Bryce Kulak - Composer Bryce Kulak is a Toronto-based actor, singer, pianist, and composer; award-winning projects include stage works Nami Namersson, Bears, and La Casati, and the movie-musical The Man That Got Away, in which Bryce also starred. The film won the only monied prize for shorts at the Berlin International Film Festival and went on to screen and win awards at festivals worldwide. As a performer, Bryce has been seen across Canada for 25 years, including produc

Interview with Hannah Moscovitch BIO: Hannah Moscovitch - playwright Tarragon past productions: East of Berlin, The Children's Republic, This is War, Little One/Other People's Children, Infinity. Hannah Moscovitch is an internationally acclaimed playwright whose work have been produced across Canada as well as in the United States, Britain, Ireland, Greece, Japan, Germany, Austria and Australia. Hannah has been the recipient of numerous awards for her work, including the Trillium Book Award, the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play, the SummerWorks Prize for Production, both The Scotsman Fringe First and The Herald Angel Award at the Edinburgh Festival, and the prestigious Windham-Campbell Prize administered by Yale University. She is one of Tarragon Theatre's Playwrights-In-Residence. Upcoming Projects: Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story created with Christian Barry and Ben Caplan (Off-Broadway New York 59E59 Theatres), What a Young Wife Ought to Know (2b theatre/Crow's Theatre).

Bunny By Hannah Moscovitch Aroused by inappropriate love, a young woman discovers the power of her own allure. Ever the outsider, she struggles with the social acceptable only to find herself increasingly alone in her desires. Dangerous and disorienting, Bunny is a play about repressive social convention, personal inhibition and desire unleashed. A Tarragon Theatre production Featuring:Gabriella Albino, Maev Beaty, Rachel Cairns, Matthew Edison, Cyrus Lane, Jesse LaVercombe & Tony Ofori. Directed by Sarah Garton Stanley. Music by Alexander MacSween. Buy tickets: http://www.tarragontheatre.com/show/bunny/Plays at the Tarragon Theatre, Toronto, CanadaFeb 21 – Apr 1, 2018Use the discount code, "bunny20" for a 20% discount. BIOS: Hannah Moscovitch - playwright Tarragon past productions: East of Berlin, The Children's Republic, This is War, Little One/Other People's Children, Infinity. Hannah Moscovitch is an internationally acclaimed playwright whose work have been produced across Canada as well as in the United States, Britain, Ireland, Greece, Japan, Germany, Austria and Australia. Hannah has been the recipient of numerous awards for her work, including the Trillium Book Award, the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play, the SummerWorks Prize for Production, both The Scotsman Fringe First and The Herald Angel Award at the Edinburgh Festival, and the prestigious Windham-Campbell Prize administered by Yale University. She is one of Tarragon Theatre's Playwrights-In-Residence. Upcoming Projects: Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story created with Christian Barry and Ben Caplan (Off-Broadway New York 59E59 Theatres), What a Young Wife Ought to Know (2b theatre/Crow's Theatre).   Gabriella Albino At Tarragon: Debut. Other theatre credits include: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Festival Players), The Penelopiad, As You Like It, Cavalcade (GBTS), In the Heights, Beauty and the Beast, American Idiot, Jesus Christ Superstar (Yes Theatre), Emotional Creature (Nightwood/V-Day). She has worked as an actor developing new Canadian work with Studio 180, Soulpepper, Fu-GEN, Factory Theatre, and Festival Players. Gabriella is currently a member of the Factory Mechanicals, Factory Theatre’s company of emerging actors. She is a recent graduate of the George Brown Theatre School. Upcoming: Mary in Merrily We Roll Along, directed by Mitchell Cushman (Yes Theatre).   Maev Beaty Maev was last seen at Tarragon in Wide Awake Hearts. In her 18-year professional career she has gathered 50 stage credits from across the country, ranging from new plays (Maev has appeared in 25 Canadian Premieres, including Palace of the End, Proud,Terminus, Passion Play, Parfumerie, Montparnasse and Goblin Market) to the classics (Goneril, Viola, Titania, Rosaline, Hamlet, Helena and Portia, among others). She originated Bunny in her third of four recent seasons at the Stratford Festival. She is a Toronto Theatre Critics’ Award winner, three-time Dora winner and nine-time nominee in both performance and writing. She’s been a proud member of huge theatre ensemble endeavours such as Theatrefront’s The Mill series, Volcano Theatre’s Another Africa (LuminaTO/Canadian Stage) and Nightwood’s The Penelopiad. Next

Bunny By Hannah Moscovitch Aroused by inappropriate love, a young woman discovers the power of her own allure. Ever the outsider, she struggles with the social acceptable only to find herself increasingly alone in her desires. Dangerous and disorienting, Bunny is a play about repressive social convention, personal inhibition and desire unleashed. A Tarragon Theatre production Featuring:Gabriella Albino, Maev Beaty, Rachel Cairns, Matthew Edison, Cyrus Lane, Jesse LaVercombe & Tony Ofori. Directed by Sarah Garton Stanley. Music by Alexander MacSween. Buy tickets: http://www.tarragontheatre.com/show/bunny/Plays at the Tarragon Theatre, Toronto, CanadaFeb 21 – Apr 1, 2018Use the discount code, "bunny20" for a 20% discount. BIOS: Hannah Moscovitch - playwright Tarragon past productions: East of Berlin, The Children's Republic, This is War, Little One/Other People's Children, Infinity. Hannah Moscovitch is an internationally acclaimed playwright whose work have been produced across Canada as well as in the United States, Britain, Ireland, Greece, Japan, Germany, Austria and Australia. Hannah has been the recipient of numerous awards for her work, including the Trillium Book Award, the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play, the SummerWorks Prize for Production, both The Scotsman Fringe First and The Herald Angel Award at the Edinburgh Festival, and the prestigious Windham-Campbell Prize administered by Yale University. She is one of Tarragon Theatre's Playwrights-In-Residence. Upcoming Projects: Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story created with Christian Barry and Ben Caplan (Off-Broadway New York 59E59 Theatres), What a Young Wife Ought to Know (2b theatre/Crow's Theatre).   Gabriella Albino At Tarragon: Debut. Other theatre credits include: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Festival Players), The Penelopiad, As You Like It, Cavalcade (GBTS), In the Heights, Beauty and the Beast, American Idiot, Jesus Christ Superstar (Yes Theatre), Emotional Creature (Nightwood/V-Day). She has worked as an actor developing new Canadian work with Studio 180, Soulpepper, Fu-GEN, Factory Theatre, and Festival Players. Gabriella is currently a member of the Factory Mechanicals, Factory Theatre’s company of emerging actors. She is a recent graduate of the George Brown Theatre School. Upcoming: Mary in Merrily We Roll Along, directed by Mitchell Cushman (Yes Theatre).   Maev Beaty Maev was last seen at Tarragon in Wide Awake Hearts. In her 18-year professional career she has gathered 50 stage credits from across the country, ranging from new plays (Maev has appeared in 25 Canadian Premieres, including Palace of the End, Proud,Terminus, Passion Play, Parfumerie, Montparnasse and Goblin Market) to the classics (Goneril, Viola, Titania, Rosaline, Hamlet, Helena and Portia, among others). She originated Bunny in her third of four recent seasons at the Stratford Festival. She is a Toronto Theatre Critics’ Award winner, three-time Dora winner and nine-time nominee in both performance and writing. She’s been a proud member of huge theatre ensemble endeavours such as Theatrefront’s The Mill series, Volcano Theatre’s Another Africa (LuminaTO/Canadian Stage) and Nightwood’s The Penelopiad. Next

Bunny By Hannah Moscovitch Aroused by inappropriate love, a young woman discovers the power of her own allure. Ever the outsider, she struggles with the social acceptable only to find herself increasingly alone in her desires. Dangerous and disorienting, Bunny is a play about repressive social convention, personal inhibition and desire unleashed. A Tarragon Theatre production Featuring:Gabriella Albino, Maev Beaty, Rachel Cairns, Matthew Edison, Cyrus Lane, Jesse LaVercombe & Tony Ofori. Directed by Sarah Garton Stanley. Music by Alexander MacSween. Buy tickets: http://www.tarragontheatre.com/show/bunny/Plays at the Tarragon Theatre, Toronto, CanadaFeb 21 – Apr 1, 2018Use the discount code, "bunny20" for a 20% discount. BIOS: Hannah Moscovitch - playwright Tarragon past productions: East of Berlin, The Children's Republic, This is War, Little One/Other People's Children, Infinity. Hannah Moscovitch is an internationally acclaimed playwright whose work have been produced across Canada as well as in the United States, Britain, Ireland, Greece, Japan, Germany, Austria and Australia. Hannah has been the recipient of numerous awards for her work, including the Trillium Book Award, the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play, the SummerWorks Prize for Production, both The Scotsman Fringe First and The Herald Angel Award at the Edinburgh Festival, and the prestigious Windham-Campbell Prize administered by Yale University. She is one of Tarragon Theatre's Playwrights-In-Residence. Upcoming Projects: Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story created with Christian Barry and Ben Caplan (Off-Broadway New York 59E59 Theatres), What a Young Wife Ought to Know (2b theatre/Crow's Theatre).   Gabriella Albino At Tarragon: Debut. Other theatre credits include: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Festival Players), The Penelopiad, As You Like It, Cavalcade (GBTS), In the Heights, Beauty and the Beast, American Idiot, Jesus Christ Superstar (Yes Theatre), Emotional Creature (Nightwood/V-Day). She has worked as an actor developing new Canadian work with Studio 180, Soulpepper, Fu-GEN, Factory Theatre, and Festival Players. Gabriella is currently a member of the Factory Mechanicals, Factory Theatre’s company of emerging actors. She is a recent graduate of the George Brown Theatre School. Upcoming: Mary in Merrily We Roll Along, directed by Mitchell Cushman (Yes Theatre).   Maev Beaty Maev was last seen at Tarragon in Wide Awake Hearts. In her 18-year professional career she has gathered 50 stage credits from across the country, ranging from new plays (Maev has appeared in 25 Canadian Premieres, including Palace of the End, Proud,Terminus, Passion Play, Parfumerie, Montparnasse and Goblin Market) to the classics (Goneril, Viola, Titania, Rosaline, Hamlet, Helena and Portia, among others). She originated Bunny in her third of four recent seasons at the Stratford Festival. She is a Toronto Theatre Critics’ Award winner, three-time Dora winner and nine-time nominee in both performance and writing. She’s been a proud member of huge theatre ensemble endeavours such as Theatrefront’s The Mill series, Volcano Theatre’s Another Africa (LuminaTO/Canadian Stage) and Nightwood’s The Penelopiad. Next

Interview with Kat Sandler Laura Mullin talks with playwright Kat Sandler about her play, Bang Bang. Their in-depth conversation covers a wide range of topics including where Kat draws her inspiration, her process, and the challenge of writing about race and cultural appropriation.    BIO: Kat Sandler - playwright / director Kat Sandler is a writer, director and the Artistic Director of Theatre Brouhaha. She has directed twelve of her original plays in the last six years, including Toronto Best of Fringe hits Bright Lights, Punch Up and Help Yourself (winner of the New Play Contest), Delicacy (Summerworks Spotlight Award), and Liver, Cockfight and Retreat (Storefront Theatre). Other directing credits include Big Plans, 27 Wagons Full of Cotton, Cabaret, and The Goat, or Who is Sylvia. She was a member of the Tarragon Playwrights Unit, where she developed Mustard (Dora Mavor Moore Award, Outstanding New Play), and is currently the Canada Council Playwright in Residence at Tarragon. She was the 2015 recipient of NOW Magazine’s Audience Choice Award for Best Director and Best Playwright. Kat is a graduate of the Queen’s University Drama Program.

Bang Bang By Kat Sandler A Factory commissioned world premiere. Featuring: Sébastien Heins, Jeff Lillico, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, Karen Robinson and Richard Zeppieri. A white playwright uses the shooting of an unarmed young Black man by a police officer as a “jumping off point” for his hit play that is soon to be adapted into a major movie. As Hollywood comes knocking for the writer, he makes a surprise visit to the home of the officer involved. With Sandler’s trademark wit, BANG BANG traces the impact of what it means to be inspired by true events. Buy tickets: https://www.factorytheatre.ca/Plays at the Factory Theatre, Toronto, CanadaFebruary 1-24, 2018Use the discount code, "playmepod" for a 10% for PlayME listeners. BIOS: Kat Sandler - playwright / director Kat Sandler is a writer, director and the Artistic Director of Theatre Brouhaha. She has directed twelve of her original plays in the last six years, including Toronto Best of Fringe hits Bright Lights, Punch Up and Help Yourself (winner of the New Play Contest), Delicacy (Summerworks Spotlight Award), and Liver, Cockfight and Retreat (Storefront Theatre). Other directing credits include Big Plans, 27 Wagons Full of Cotton, Cabaret, and The Goat, or Who is Sylvia. She was a member of the Tarragon Playwrights Unit, where she developed Mustard (Dora Mavor Moore Award, Outstanding New Play), and is currently the Canada Council Playwright in Residence at Tarragon. She was the 2015 recipient of NOW Magazine’s Audience Choice Award for Best Director and Best Playwright. Kat is a graduate of the Queen’s University Drama Program. Sébastien Heins Sébastien Heins is an acclaimed actor and playwright. After two seasons in Stratford (The School for Scandal, Timon of Athens, Breath of Kings: Rebellion & Redemption), he is thrilled to be making his Factory Theatre debut in BANG BANG, alongside such a dynamic team, lead by Kat Sandler. He is a founding company member of Outside the March (Mr. Burns, Vitals, Mr. Marmalade), the creator of the one-man show Brotherhood: The Hip Hopera (Toured Canada, NYC, and India), and will return to Stratford this year in The Tempest, as Ferdinand. He thanks his family, friends, and amazing partner Dasha for their love, support, and dedication.   Jeff Lillico For Theatre: Factory debut. Soulpepper (including Signature Theatre, NYC), Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Shaw Festival, Stratford Festival, Canadian Stage, Mirvish, Buddies in Bad Times, Tarragon, Studio180, Theatre Panik, Musical Stage Company, Theatre20, National Arts Centre, Alberta Theatre Projects, Theatre Calgary, GEVA Theater & Charlottetown Festival. Jeff received a Dora award for his work in The Light in The Piazza, and four Dora nominations for Tom at the Farm, Grey Gardens, Our Town & The Glass Menagerie. For Screen: On the Basis of Sex, Designated Survivor, Rocky Horror Picture Show (2016), Copper, Flashpoint, Murdoch Mysteries, Separation, The Ticket.   Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah is a Dora-nominated, actor, writer, and producer. Since completing the Humber Theatre Performance Program, she has made a point of aligning herself with artists that share her desire to create and tell stories that push our societal boundaries. Notable credits include; Laertes in Ravi Jain’s Prince Hamlet, Claudette in How Black Mothers Say I Love You, Queen Elizabeth I in The Queen’s Conjuror, Black Woman in We Are Proud to Present..., St. Monica in Unit 102’s The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Othello in Go Play Producing’s Othello, and Jessica in Scapegoat Collective’s Cloud.   Karen Robinson Recent: Prince Hamlet (WhyNot); Measure For Measure & The Winter’s Tale (Groundling). Six seasons at Stratford in

Bang Bang By Kat Sandler A Factory commissioned world premiere. Featuring: Sébastien Heins, Jeff Lillico, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, Karen Robinson and Richard Zeppieri. A white playwright uses the shooting of an unarmed young Black man by a police officer as a “jumping off point” for his hit play that is soon to be adapted into a major movie. As Hollywood comes knocking for the writer, he makes a surprise visit to the home of the officer involved. With Sandler’s trademark wit, BANG BANG traces the impact of what it means to be inspired by true events. Buy tickets: https://www.factorytheatre.ca/Plays at the Factory Theatre, Toronto, CanadaFebruary 1-24, 2018Use the discount code, "playmepod" for a 10% for PlayME listeners. BIOS: Kat Sandler - playwright / director Kat Sandler is a writer, director and the Artistic Director of Theatre Brouhaha. She has directed twelve of her original plays in the last six years, including Toronto Best of Fringe hits Bright Lights, Punch Up and Help Yourself (winner of the New Play Contest), Delicacy (Summerworks Spotlight Award), and Liver, Cockfight and Retreat (Storefront Theatre). Other directing credits include Big Plans, 27 Wagons Full of Cotton, Cabaret, and The Goat, or Who is Sylvia. She was a member of the Tarragon Playwrights Unit, where she developed Mustard (Dora Mavor Moore Award, Outstanding New Play), and is currently the Canada Council Playwright in Residence at Tarragon. She was the 2015 recipient of NOW Magazine’s Audience Choice Award for Best Director and Best Playwright. Kat is a graduate of the Queen’s University Drama Program. Sébastien Heins Sébastien Heins is an acclaimed actor and playwright. After two seasons in Stratford (The School for Scandal, Timon of Athens, Breath of Kings: Rebellion & Redemption), he is thrilled to be making his Factory Theatre debut in BANG BANG, alongside such a dynamic team, lead by Kat Sandler. He is a founding company member of Outside the March (Mr. Burns, Vitals, Mr. Marmalade), the creator of the one-man show Brotherhood: The Hip Hopera (Toured Canada, NYC, and India), and will return to Stratford this year in The Tempest, as Ferdinand. He thanks his family, friends, and amazing partner Dasha for their love, support, and dedication.   Jeff Lillico For Theatre: Factory debut. Soulpepper (including Signature Theatre, NYC), Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Shaw Festival, Stratford Festival, Canadian Stage, Mirvish, Buddies in Bad Times, Tarragon, Studio180, Theatre Panik, Musical Stage Company, Theatre20, National Arts Centre, Alberta Theatre Projects, Theatre Calgary, GEVA Theater & Charlottetown Festival. Jeff received a Dora award for his work in The Light in The Piazza, and four Dora nominations for Tom at the Farm, Grey Gardens, Our Town & The Glass Menagerie. For Screen: On the Basis of Sex, Designated Survivor, Rocky Horror Picture Show (2016), Copper, Flashpoint, Murdoch Mysteries, Separation, The Ticket.   Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah is a Dora-nominated, actor, writer, and producer. Since completing the Humber Theatre Performance Program, she has made a point of aligning herself with artists that share her desire to create and tell stories that push our societal boundaries. Notable credits include; Laertes in Ravi Jain’s Prince Hamlet, Claudette in How Black Mothers Say I Love You, Queen Elizabeth I in The Queen’s Conjuror, Black Woman in We Are Proud to Present..., St. Monica in Unit 102’s The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Othello in Go Play Producing’s Othello, and Jessica in Scapegoat Collective’s Cloud.   Karen Robinson Recent: Prince Hamlet (WhyNot); Measure For Measure & The Winter’s Tale (Groundling). Six seasons at Stratford in

Bang Bang By Kat Sandler A Factory commissioned world premiere. Featuring: Sébastien Heins, Jeff Lillico, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, Karen Robinson and Richard Zeppieri. A white playwright uses the shooting of an unarmed young Black man by a police officer as a “jumping off point” for his hit play that is soon to be adapted into a major movie. As Hollywood comes knocking for the writer, he makes a surprise visit to the home of the officer involved. With Sandler’s trademark wit, BANG BANG traces the impact of what it means to be inspired by true events. Buy tickets: https://www.factorytheatre.ca/Plays at the Factory Theatre, Toronto, CanadaFebruary 1-24, 2018Use the discount code, "playmepod" for a 10% for PlayME listeners. BIOS: Kat Sandler - playwright / director Kat Sandler is a writer, director and the Artistic Director of Theatre Brouhaha. She has directed twelve of her original plays in the last six years, including Toronto Best of Fringe hits Bright Lights, Punch Up and Help Yourself (winner of the New Play Contest), Delicacy (Summerworks Spotlight Award), and Liver, Cockfight and Retreat (Storefront Theatre). Other directing credits include Big Plans, 27 Wagons Full of Cotton, Cabaret, and The Goat, or Who is Sylvia. She was a member of the Tarragon Playwrights Unit, where she developed Mustard (Dora Mavor Moore Award, Outstanding New Play), and is currently the Canada Council Playwright in Residence at Tarragon. She was the 2015 recipient of NOW Magazine’s Audience Choice Award for Best Director and Best Playwright. Kat is a graduate of the Queen’s University Drama Program. Sébastien Heins Sébastien Heins is an acclaimed actor and playwright. After two seasons in Stratford (The School for Scandal, Timon of Athens, Breath of Kings: Rebellion & Redemption), he is thrilled to be making his Factory Theatre debut in BANG BANG, alongside such a dynamic team, lead by Kat Sandler. He is a founding company member of Outside the March (Mr. Burns, Vitals, Mr. Marmalade), the creator of the one-man show Brotherhood: The Hip Hopera (Toured Canada, NYC, and India), and will return to Stratford this year in The Tempest, as Ferdinand. He thanks his family, friends, and amazing partner Dasha for their love, support, and dedication.   Jeff Lillico For Theatre: Factory debut. Soulpepper (including Signature Theatre, NYC), Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Shaw Festival, Stratford Festival, Canadian Stage, Mirvish, Buddies in Bad Times, Tarragon, Studio180, Theatre Panik, Musical Stage Company, Theatre20, National Arts Centre, Alberta Theatre Projects, Theatre Calgary, GEVA Theater & Charlottetown Festival. Jeff received a Dora award for his work in The Light in The Piazza, and four Dora nominations for Tom at the Farm, Grey Gardens, Our Town & The Glass Menagerie. For Screen: On the Basis of Sex, Designated Survivor, Rocky Horror Picture Show (2016), Copper, Flashpoint, Murdoch Mysteries, Separation, The Ticket.   Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah is a Dora-nominated, actor, writer, and producer. Since completing the Humber Theatre Performance Program, she has made a point of aligning herself with artists that share her desire to create and tell stories that push our societal boundaries. Notable credits include; Laertes in Ravi Jain’s Prince Hamlet, Claudette in How Black Mothers Say I Love You, Queen Elizabeth I in The Queen’s Conjuror, Black Woman in We Are Proud to Present..., St. Monica in Unit 102’s The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Othello in Go Play Producing’s Othello, and Jessica in Scapegoat Collective’s Cloud.   Karen Robinson Recent: Prince Hamlet (WhyNot); Measure For Measure & The Winter’s Tale (Groundling). Six seasons at Stratford in

Bang Bang By Kat Sandler A Factory commissioned world premiere.Featuring: Sébastien Heins, Jeff Lillico, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, Karen Robinson and Richard Zeppieri.A white playwright uses the shooting of an unarmed young Black man by a police officer as a “jumping off point” for his hit play that is soon to be adapted into a major movie. As Hollywood comes knocking for the writer, he makes a surprise visit to the home of the officer involved. With Sandler’s trademark wit, BANG BANG traces the impact of what it means to be inspired by true events.Buy tickets: https://www.factorytheatre.ca/Plays at the Factory Theatre, Toronto, CanadaFebruary 1-24, 2018Use the discount code, "playmepod" for a 10% for PlayME listeners.BIOS:Kat Sandler - playwright / directorKat Sandler is a writer, director and the Artistic Director of Theatre Brouhaha. She has directed twelve of her original plays in the last six years, including Toronto Best of Fringe hits Bright Lights, Punch Up and Help Yourself (winner of the New Play Contest), Delicacy (Summerworks Spotlight Award), and Liver, Cockfight and Retreat (Storefront Theatre). Other directing credits include Big Plans, 27 Wagons Full of Cotton, Cabaret, and The Goat, or Who is Sylvia. She was a member of the Tarragon Playwrights Unit, where she developed Mustard (Dora Mavor Moore Award, Outstanding New Play), and is currently the Canada Council Playwright in Residence at Tarragon. She was the 2015 recipient of NOW Magazine’s Audience Choice Award for Best Director and Best Playwright. Kat is a graduate of the Queen’s University Drama Program. Sébastien HeinsSébastien Heins is an acclaimed actor and playwright. After two seasons in Stratford (The School for Scandal, Timon of Athens, Breath of Kings: Rebellion & Redemption), he is thrilled to be making his Factory Theatre debut in BANG BANG, alongside such a dynamic team, lead by Kat Sandler. He is a founding company member of Outside the March (Mr. Burns, Vitals, Mr. Marmalade), the creator of the one-man show Brotherhood: The Hip Hopera (Toured Canada, NYC, and India), and will return to Stratford this year in The Tempest, as Ferdinand. He thanks his family, friends, and amazing partner Dasha for their love, support, and dedication. Jeff LillicoFor Theatre: Factory debut. Soulpepper (including Signature Theatre, NYC), Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Shaw Festival, Stratford Festival, Canadian Stage, Mirvish, Buddies in Bad Times, Tarragon, Studio180, Theatre Panik, Musical Stage Company, Theatre20, National Arts Centre, Alberta Theatre Projects, Theatre Calgary, GEVA Theater & Charlottetown Festival. Jeff received a Dora award for his work in The Light in The Piazza, and four Dora nominations for Tom at the Farm, Grey Gardens, Our Town & The Glass Menagerie. For Screen: On the Basis of Sex, Designated Survivor, Rocky Horror Picture Show (2016), Copper, Flashpoint, Murdoch Mysteries, Separation, The Ticket. Khadijah Roberts-AbdullahKhadijah Roberts-Abdullah is a Dora-nominated, actor, writer, and producer. Since completing the Humber Theatre Performance Program, she has made a point of aligning herself with artists that share her desire to create and tell stories that push our societal boundaries. Notable credits include; Laertes in Ravi Jain’s Prince Hamlet, Claudette in How Black Mothers Say I Love You, Queen Elizabeth I in The Queen’s Conjuror, Black Woman in We Are Proud to Present..., St. Monica in Unit 102’s The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Othello in Go Play Producing’s Othello, and Jessica in Scapegoat Collective’s Cloud. Karen RobinsonRecent: Prince Hamlet (WhyNot); Measure For Measure & The Winter’s Tale (Groundling). Six seasons at Stratford include Harlem Duet and Shakespeare In Love. Other: The Importance of Being Earnest

PlayME Past By Andrea Scott, Norman Yeung, and Griffin McInnis PlayME Past is a live radio play recording and podcast that was inspired by and recorded at the Zion Schoolhouse in Toronto, Canada.   Three playwrights were commissioned to create three new audio dramas set in this fully restored, historic building at the turn of the century.   It was recorded in front of a live audience and those in attendance were also taught the art of foley creation and made many of the sound effects featured in this episode.   PlayME Past features the work of playwrights Andrea Scott, Norman Yeung, and Griffin McInnis.   About Zion Schoolhouse:   The Schoolhouse is restored to 1910, before there was a basement or electricity in the building. The Historic Zion Schoolhouse did not have electric lights until the mid 1930’s. Evening events would probably rely on oil lamps borrowed from the neighbouring farms and set on the window ledges. Schooling was compulsory by 1910 and children ranging in age from 6 to 14 were required to attend. At Zion younger children outnumbered older children. Families that relied on the labour of their children to run the farm would remove them from school at busy times of the year – like planting and harvest. More affluent families could afford servants to perform domestic work, and hired men to do the outdoor labour on the farm.   This project is made possible through the Toronto Arts Council's Animating Historical Sites program.

Essay: That time I wrote a play about consent and didn't know it By Rose Napoli   Rose Napoli's play, Lo (or Dear Mr. Wells) is running at Crow's Theatre in Toronto Canada from Oct. 25 - Nov. 11 as part of Nightwood Theatre's Consent Event. Episode 53 of PlayME features a recording of Rose's essay on consent inspired by this production.   You can listen to the archived audio version of Lo (or Dear Mr. Wells) at http://www.playmepodcast.com/lo-or-dear-mr-brown-by-rose-napoli/ You can by tickets to the theatre production at http://www.nightwoodtheatre.net/index.php/whats_on/lo_or_dear_mr._wells

THE ORANGE DOT by Sean Dixon   Two city workers are called to take down a large tree blighted with termites. The equipment they are meant to use is stuck in traffic, so they wait . . . armed with their smartphones, a stethoscope, an ancient arrowhead, a soupçon of boredom, and a large dose of existential dread about what the world is coming to.    They talk, argue, flirt and while away the morning together. At times, Natalie seems overcome by the tree. At other times, she just seems unable to cope. Joe tries to understand but is ultimately bewildered, until the unthinkable transpires.   An unsettling drama in the vein of Becket's Waiting for Godot and Pinter's The Dumb Waiter, THE ORANGE DOT is a blend of absurdity and realism that delves into the dynamics of power, the nature of partnerships and the modern human condition.   Sean Dixon - Playwright   Sean Dixon's Governor General nominated play, 'A God in Need of Help' (produced by Tarragon Theatre and published by Coach House Books), serves as a companion piece to 'The Orange Dot' even though the former is set in Venice in 1605 and the latter in Toronto in 2017. He has written extensively for BC's Caravan Farm Theatre, Ontario's Blyth Festival, Toronto's Summerworks Festival and Victoria's Theatre SKAM. His novels and short stories include 'The Girls Who Saw Everything', 'The Many Revenges of Kip Flynn', and 'Sic Transit Gloria at the Humber Loop'. Currently he is writing a play for the Tarragon about adoption among Neanderthals and Early Modern Humans, as well as a novel set in Toronto's Roncesvalles neighbourhood about a kidnapping gone awry.   Shawn Doyle - Actor Shawn is a multiple award-winning actor who works extensively in Film and Television. The Orange Dot marks his first time back on stage in ten years. Past theatre credits include the original production of Problem Child (Factory Theatre); A Number (Canstage, Dora Award); Gagarin Way (Crows Theatre/World Stage Festival); A Christmas Carol (YPT); Where Is Kabuki (Factory); Four Lives Of Marie (Tarragon Theatre); Safe Haven (Neptune Theatre); Digging For Fire (Factory); The House Of Martin Guerre/ Fabulous Party (Livent).   Daniela Vlaskalic - Actor   Daniela is an award winning actor and writer and has worked extensively across Canada. Selected credits include: The Orange Dot(Theatre Front); Disgraced (Magnus Theatre); Cockroach (Alberta Theatre Projects); Pith! The Exquisite Hour, The Bull the Moon and the Coronet of Stars (Theatre Department); The Money Shot (Ground Zero Theatre); Goodnight Desdemona, Good Morning Juliet (Belfry Theatre); Drama (Alberta Theatre Projects; playRites '12; Betty Nomination); Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure (Theatre Aquarius); Doubt(Canadian Stage); The Drowning Girls (Tarragon Theatre, Gateway Theatre, Belfry Theatre, Persephone Theatre, Citadel Theatre, MTC); All's Well That Ends Well, Hamlet, The Taming of the Shrew (Stratford Shakespeare Festival). As a playwright, Daniela co-wrote the multiple award-winning play; The Drowning Girls, which has received multiple productions nationally and internationally and is published by Canada Playwrights Press. @danivlaskalic