GCTC brings pitch-black comedy Benevolence to Ottawa
iPhoto caption: Art by Trish Lindstrom
Ottawa’s Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC) is entering the holiday season with a production of Fanny Britt’s Governor General’s Award-winning comedy Benevolence. The show will run from December 5 to 17 at the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre in Hintonburg.
In Benevolence, big-time city lawyer Gilles Jean returns to his Quebec hometown, the titular Benevolence, for the purpose of trying a troubling case involving the child of an old friend. But with his mother asking after the state of his soul and the ghosts of his deceased male family members peering over his shoulder, homecoming is no easy thing.
Former GCTC artistic director Eric Coates is returning to Ottawa to direct the dark comedy. His production will make use of Leanna Brodie’s English translation.
Benevolence is set to star Melanie Beauchamp, Pierre Simpson, Puja Uppal, Sebastien Dijkstra, and Will Somers. The design team will be made up of Ali Berkok (sound), Brian Smith (set), Emilio Sebastio (lighting), and Isabelle Bélisle (costumes).
“On a personal note, it’s an absolute pleasure to be back at GCTC and visiting with Ottawa friends,” said Coates in a press release. “And this script is an exquisite blend of comedy and pathos that guarantees some lively discussion.”
Benevolence runs at GCTC’s Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre from December 5 to 17. Tickets are available here.
Liam Donovan
Liam is Intermission’s publishing and editorial assistant. Based in Toronto, his writing has appeared in Maisonneuve, This Magazine, NEXT Magazine, and more. He loves the original Super Mario game very much.
LEARN MORE
iPhoto caption: A stock image of Lighthouse Festival Theatre in Port Dover.
Lighthouse Festival Theatre announces 2025 season, curated by incoming artistic director Jane Spence
Lighthouse Festival Theatre, located in Port Dover and Port Colborne, has announced its jam-packed 2025 summer season.
iPhoto caption: Photo of Toronto Dance Theatre by Marlowe Porter.
Toronto Dance Theatre reveals exhilarating 2024-25 season
The season will see the return of audience favourite The Magic of Assembly, as well as new work produced in partnership with local institutions such as Nuit Blanche and the Toronto Biennale.
Stratford Festival unveils 2025 season, including the return of Robert Lepage
Next year’s season includes two beloved musicals as well as the return of acclaimed director Robert Lepage, who will direct Macbeth at the Avon Theatre.
iPhoto caption: Image courtesy of 1s1 Theatre.
Dawn Jani Birley to debut new show in the Tarragon Extraspace this September
This fall, internationally acclaimed Deaf actor Dawn Jani Birley will premiere a new work, Qalb: A Journey of the Ego, at the Tarragon Extraspace.
iPhoto caption: Two Fringers pose next to a wall of posters. Photo courtesy of Toronto Fringe.
Missing Toronto Fringe? Now’s your chance to make a difference
Following a successful festival, the Toronto Fringe continues to accept donations as part of its Tip the Fringe campaign.
iPhoto caption: Jane Spence and Derek Ritschel. Photo courtesy of Lighthouse Festival.
Lighthouse Festival announces shake-up in artistic director role
“I couldn’t have imagined how great this theatre would become, thanks to the support of our incredible community and the unwavering dedication of our team,” says Derek Ritschel, who will pivot to a new role as the company’s director in residence. Jane Spence will step into the role of artistic director in November.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Rick Clifford
REVIEWS: Toronto International Film Festival 2024
A filmed production of an experimental Egyptian opera, a TV series penned by Jordan Tannahill, and the moviemaking debut of Broadway director Marianne Elliott are among the offerings at this year’s TIFF with connections to the world of theatre.
iPhoto caption: Production photos courtesy of SummerWorks. Shows, from left to right, top to bottom: Girl's Notes III, SUBJECT TO خضوع, The Movements, Warm up.
REVIEW: This year’s SummerWorks Performance Festival embraced danger — in more ways than one
Several of this year's productions took direct aim at our present moment’s evils: Targets included corporate speaking gigs, rent payments, climate change, global wealth inequality, and the ostracization of horse girls.
iPhoto caption: Poster courtesy of GFT.
Guild Festival Theatre to present one-night-only concert version of Evalyn Parry’s SPIN
Inspired in part by the incredible true story of Annie Londonderry, who in 1895 became the first woman to ride around the world on a bicycle, SPIN travels from 19th-century women’s emancipation to the present day, forging unexpected links across time and history.
iPhoto caption: Photo courtesy of Dos Mundos
A whimsical TYA solo show about a talking snake is coming to the Toronto Fringe
Written and performed by Priscila Gonzalez, Snacey! is a high-energy tale right out of an early-2000s TVOkids television program.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Peggy Baud-Woolsey.
REVIEW: Geoff Sobelle’s HOME journeys from hyperrealism to slapstick
It’s a multivalent work that toggles between gentle and abrasive, understated and triumphant, complicated and straightforward, experimental and crowd-pleasing.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Zeeshan Safdar.
REVIEW: With the help of a daring set, The Caged Bird Sings brings Rumi into the present day
Literal and metaphorical cages abound in this radical adaptation of Rumi’s Masnavi, produced by Modern Times Stage Company and presented in the Aga Khan Museum’s courtyard.
Comments