ONE OF THE BEST PLAYS I'VE EVER SEEN
Radically Live Theatre
THE COMPANY THEATRE
The Company Theatre produces provocative international plays with Canada's best actors. Founded in 2004, we create theatre magic with authentic text-based performances that bring you the drama in real time.
TWINS
JACKPOT TWINS
When estranged siblings Mia and Lucas inherit their grandmother's struggling casino, they must confront their shared past while fighting to save the family legacy. A darkly comic thriller about luck, family, and the hands we're dealt.
By Sarah Chen • Directed by James Morrison
Past Productions
12 productions from 2005–2023
Things I Know to be True
A heart-wrenching and uplifting journey of a family struggling to stay together in a rapidly changing world. Things I Know to be True is the story of a year in the life of the Price family. Bob, recently let go from his job at a car factory, and Fran, a registered nurse, have raised their four children — Pip, Mia, Ben, and Rosie — the best they could. But a parent's job is never finished, and as the seasons change Bob and Fran find themselves guiding and supporting their children as they each face life-altering changes that shake the foundation of the once-stable family home.
Jerusalem
The Company Theatre's production of Jerusalem in 2018, starring Kim Coates (Bad Blood, Sons of Anarchy) was an award-winning success. Johnny 'Rooster' Byron, local waster and modern-day Pied Piper, is a wanted man. The council want to evict him; his son wants him to take him to the fair; Troy Whitworth wants to give him a serious kicking; and the villagers want to celebrate St George's Day with a dance around his maypole. But Rooster has other plans.
John
The Canadian premiere of Annie Baker's John. The production opened to immense critical acclaim, receiving top marks from the Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, NOW Magazine and various other publications. A young couple arrives at a bed and breakfast in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. In the home of an eccentric older woman, they are forced to confront the cracks in their relationship and the unsettling presence that seems to permeate the room.
Domesticated
TCT and Canadian Stage closed their partnership with a production of Bruce Norris's Domesticated. The play starred Paul Gross and Martha Burns, alongside a cast of nine other actors, in what was TCT's largest ensemble production since 2008's Festen. Due to the popularity of the production, Domesticated ran for an extended, completely sold-out fifth week. Bill Pulver is a politician in crisis mode. A scandalous incident in a hotel room has left his wife Judy publicly humiliated and his political career in jeopardy. As the couple navigates the fallout in front of an unrelenting media circus, Bruce Norris weaves a scathing and hilarious examination of gender politics, power, and public perception.
The Seagull
TCT's 2015 interpretation of The Seagull by Anton Chekhov, a co-production with Crow's Theatre, received a sold-out run. At a country estate, the famous actress Arkadina presides over a household brimming with unrequited love, artistic ambition, and hidden jealousies. Her son Konstantin, an aspiring playwright, yearns for her approval and the love of the beautiful Nina. When the celebrated writer Trigorin arrives, passions ignite and hearts are broken in Chekhov's timeless meditation on art, love, and human frailty.
Belleville
Co-Artistic Director and co-founder Allan Hawco returned to the stage after a five-year hiatus to perform in Amy Herzog's Belleville. He worked alongside TCT ensemble member Christine Horne, as well as newcomers Dalmar Abuzied and Marsha Regis. A young American couple, Zack and Abby, have fled the uncertainties of post-9/11 America to forge a new life in the idyllic streets of Belleville, Paris. But as the cracks in their relationship begin to show, their downstairs neighbours Alioune and Amina become unwilling witnesses to a psychological unravelling that will leave no one untouched.
Speaking in Tongues
Australian playwright Andrew Bovell's Speaking in Tongues saw the stage debut of acclaimed Australian-Canadian actor Helene Joy. After a successful run in 2012, TCT re-mounted the show at the Belfry Theatre in Victoria, BC, in January 2013. Nine parallel lives intersect in this haunting and seductive puzzle about love, betrayal, and the choices we make. A woman disappears. A marriage falters. A stranger returns home. In a dance of interconnected stories spanning years and continents, Bovell crafts a meditation on the mysteries of human connection.
The Test
The Test by Swiss playwright Lukas Bärfuss marked The Company Theatre's continued partnership with Canadian Stage. This original English translation by Birgit Schreyer Duarte presented a provocative examination of modern relationships and moral dilemmas. When Simon and Helle's carefully constructed life is thrown into question by a seemingly simple request, the couple must confront uncomfortable truths about trust, paternity, and the foundations of their relationship.
Through the Leaves
Through the Leaves by German playwright Franz Xaver Kroetz was a landmark production for The Company Theatre, earning four Dora Mavor Moore Awards. The powerful two-hander explored the complex relationship between Martha, a butcher, and Otto, a labourer, in a raw and unflinching portrayal of loneliness and human connection. A moving performance in a bleak, cold, dark play that examines the difficulty of intimacy between two wounded souls.
Festen
Festen was The Company Theatre's largest ensemble production until Domesticated in 2015. Based on the acclaimed Dogme 95 film by Thomas Vinterberg, Mogens Rukov and Bo Hr. Hansen, this powerful drama unfolds at a family celebration where dark secrets are revealed, shattering the facade of a respected Danish family. A searing examination of family, truth, and the cost of silence.
Marion Bridge
Marion Bridge by acclaimed Canadian playwright Daniel MacIvor brought The Company Theatre to the Young Centre in Toronto. The production earned a Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female. The play follows three estranged sisters who return home to care for their dying mother, confronting the wounds of their shared past.
A Whistle in the Dark
A Whistle in the Dark was The Company Theatre's debut production. Described by the National Post as 'one of the best things ever seen in Canada,' this powerful Irish drama by Tom Murphy announced The Company Theatre's arrival on Toronto's theatre scene. Settled in Coventry with his new wife Betty, Michael Carney Jr. is attempting to lead a new life. But leaving Ireland couldn't set him free, and once the Carney brothers descend, there's no way out. The production was nominated for the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Production and was remounted in 2007 at LSPU Hall in Newfoundland and Toronto's Young Centre for the Performing Arts.
RADICALLY LIVE.
Theatre can be so many different things. Ultimately, theatre strives to be something magical. Some do this with literal magic, others with song and dance, and some with contortion or clowns. At The Company Theatre, we strive to create theatre magic with nothing more than authentic text-based performances: Creating an experience that is truly live.
We combine hard-hitting, contemporary texts from around the world with some of Canada's best performers, using our unique working process to create memorable, magical theatre experiences.
We choose stories that don't shy away from the gritty, challenging elements of the human condition: picture an HBO drama, but live and onstage.
Productions
Years
Awards
"Creating theatre magic with nothing more than authentic performances"
— Philip Riccio, Artistic Director
Awards & Recognition
Dora Mavor Moore Awards
Multiple wins including Outstanding Production for Jerusalem and Through the Leaves
Toronto Theatre Critics Awards
Best Production, Best Supporting Actor, and Best International Play recognitions
Critical Acclaim
Top marks from Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, NOW Magazine, and National Post
FIND US
Location
Toronto, CanadaWe do not have our own venue. We rent or partner with other theatres. We mostly produce in Toronto, but have taken select productions across the country.
Contact
Toronto, Ontario, Canada