A gleeful and outrageous comedy by Christopher Durang
September 22 - October 7, 2006
“Don't call the baby a baked potato.”
Unprepared first-time parents Helen and John don't know what to do when their new baby cries, can't decide what to name it, and are even uncertain of its gender. A zany Nanny (Mary Poppins, she's not!), a frighteningly oblivious school principal, and a sympathetic psychiatrist all attempt to help "Daisy" survive childhood and establish an identity.
★ ★ ★ ★ “Like a cookie laced with arsenic, Christopher Durang's Baby with the Bathwater is a sweet-natured but poisonous treat, and the Alumnae Theatre Company wolf it down with relish.”
Paul Isaacs, eye weekly • Read the Review
A touching drama by Judith Thompson
November 17 - December 2, 2006
“I will not forget you,
you are carved in the palm of my hand.”
Francesca is now a successful actress, but 30 years ago, she was an awkward girl named Marie, living in smalltown Ontario. Out of the blue, she receives a tape - and a homemade rhubarb pie - from Patsy, once her best friend, now a farmer's wife in the same small town. After such a long estrangement, they come together to rekindle their friendship and confront the terrifying incident which tore them apart. Renowned Canadian playwright Judith Thompson touches on the bonds of childhood friendship which reach across the years and miles.
“Judith Thompson hears the poetry of the inarticulate and the
semi-literate . . . She frees her words to carry their wild, unruly, seeking spirits.” - Urjo Kareda
A Victorian satire by Oscar Wilde
January 19 - February 3, 2007
“It takes a thoroughly good woman
to do a thoroughly stupid thing.”
Oscar Wilde's 1892 classic has spawned a hatful of oft-
quoted witticisms, but also juxtaposes stylish comedy with sly commentary on
the morals of Victorian society, particularly regarding women and marriage.
On her 21st birthday, Lady Windermere discovers to her horror that her husband may have been unfaithful. He insists on inviting "the other woman", Mrs. Erlynne, to his wife's birthday ball, which sets in motion a sequence of events that results in secrets revealed and a reversal of fortune.
“Oscar Wilde at his wittiest.” - Washington Times
Three weeks of new works
March 7 - 24, 2007
Since 1989, the New Ideas Festival has showcased never-before-produced short scripts, in an engaging mix of stories and styles. This annual juried festival also affords the audience an opportunity to give feedback to writers, directors and actors.
Join us for a new lineup each week, and get involved via optional talkback sessions or feedback forms. Have your say in the development of new Canadian theatre!
“The Alumnae's New Ideas Festival is an ideal environment in which to develop new work: smart, supportive and secure.”
- Dave Carley, playwright, 1992's Taking Liberties
A family comedy/drama by Joanna McClelland Glass
April 20 - May 5, 2007
“I had the longest, thickest hair.
All the hockey players were after me.”
Jessica is mourning the very recent death of her artist-lover, Martin. Her illiterate mother (a farmwife from the Canadian prairie) and her intellectual American ex-mother-in-law have come to a Connecticut beach house to help her deal with the loss. Meanwhile, Jessica's teenage daughter Polly has everyone worried when she doesn't return home after a school dance.
Saskatoon-born playwright and novelist Joanna McClelland Glass has written a moving comedy about three generations of women.
Winner of the 1994 Governor General's Award
for Literary Merit.
ALUMNAE THEATRE COMPANY
70 Berkeley Street
Toronto, Ontario • M5A 2W6
Phone: 416-364-4170
Email: contactus@alumnaetheatre.com
