Geordie Theatre Fest goes online Feb. 3-6

 

This year, unlike any other, the Geordie Theatre Fest will be available for live streaming in the comfort of your own home!

2021’s programming features staged readings presented exclusively for schools in partnership with the National Theatre School of Canada, as well as public performances of Geordie’s acclaimed 2Play touring shows (The Little Mighty Superhero and Celestial Bodies). Geordie is eager to share these phenomenal stories with the public and continue to provide audiences of all ages with the unique opportunity to get an inside look at what’s next for Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA).

2 Staged Readings

The Fest will open on Wednesday, February 3rd with The Borrowing Man by actor and playwright Sarah Currie (A Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow, Storefront Fringe Festival) and directed by Artistic Director Mike Payette. The play tells the story of three teenagers attempting to follow a virtual internet ritual that involves summoning The Borrowing Man, a supernatural figure that is promised to answer questions about their future. As each girl copes with her own uncertain path, they are asked to question their bond as a trio and their place in each other’s lives.

On Thursday the 4th, Geordie presents Until Tenth Grade by Jena McLean (An Ocean of Evergreens, Theatre New Brunswick; I am, winner of “Notable Acts Theatre Festival’s inaugural high school playwriting competition”) and directed by former Geordie artistic director Dean Patrick Fleming. This Gen Z epic story follows teens as they grapple with realities of high school, contending with their identities, activism, and the daunting world of dating.

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2Play Touring Shows

Every year, Geordie produces two plays by exceptional playwrights and directors, one for elementary schools and one for high schools and CEGEPS.

This year, the cast is made up of the gifted performers Alyssa Angelucci-Wall, a Concordia University Theatre graduate, Wahsonti:io Kirby (National Theatre School) who was to appear in the Stratford Festival’s Hamlet 911 before its COVID cancellation, and University of Victoria alumnus Douglas Peerless, who moved to Montreal for this special tour.

These three brilliant artists have been working passionately with Geordie over the past four months, alongside tour manager Rebecca Durocher, (a graduate of NTS), to deliver a unique experience to students and their communities in such a challenging year. The tour has been performed via live stream over 60 times and seen by over 8000 students so far. The team is proud, with this new format, to be able to make our stories even more accessible to young people and keep the impact of theatre alive!

The Little Mighty Superhero is written by acclaimed Filipino-Chinese playwright Marie Barlizo who recently wrote Lucky (Next Stage Theatre Festival, Toronto), Happiness (Flipside Theatre Festival), and The Healing which was launched this summer on a digital platform as part of the 2020 Kumustahan projects by Carlos Bulosan Theatre.

The play is directed by recent META (Montreal English Theatre Award) recipient Liz Valdez (Encore, Tableau D’Hôte Theatre) and is a heartwarming journey of a young boy’s quest in rediscovering imagination and memory in the face of fear and the unknown. At the core of this vibrant and visual play is the reminder that every adventure is more memorable when you can share it with someone you love.

To involve and engage our audience, the play will be followed by a talkback, moderated by Geordie’s Artistic Director Mike Payette, accompanied by the artists.

What’s more, our popular Geordie Theatre School is offering a free, fun, pre-show storytelling workshop for ages 6 to 12 with the purchase of a ticket.

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Celestial Bodies is written by Jacob Margaret Archer, a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada, whose work has been performed all over western Canada.  It is directed by award-winning Mike Payette (Choir Boy, Centaur; Héritage, Théâtre Jean-Duceppe). Actors Kirby and Angelucci-Wall will alternate performances at 3pm and 5pm respectively.

Stella, a fast-thinking (and even-faster-talking) teenager, copes with her first year of high school in some unexpected ways, including casual binge eating, anxiety-inducing Space Facts, accidentally becoming an ice hockey goalie, and a dog named Oort Cloud. Celestial Bodies is one girl’s cosmic journey to truly owning, literally and metaphorically, the space she occupies.

Specifically, for teens, Geordie Theatre School is offering a free character creation workshop before the first performance (with the purchase of a ticket).

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GEORDIE THEATRE FEST 2021

Staged Readings (offered exclusively for schools)

• FEBRUARY 3
  Until Tenth Grade
  Written by Jena McLean
  Directed by Dean Patrick Fleming
  Featuring: Samantha Bitonti, Wahsonti:io Kirby, Anton May, Douglas Peerless, Jennifer Roberts, Espoir Segbeaya, Dakota Jamal Wellman

• FEBRUARY 4
  The Borrowing Man 
  Written by Sarah Currie
  Directed by Mike Payette
  Featuring: Alyssa Angelucci-Wall, Samantha Bitonti, Alexandra Laferriere

Public Performances (livestreamed)

• FEBRUARY 6 @ 12pm
  The Little Mighty Superhero
  Recommended Ages: 5 and up
  Written by Marie Barlizo
  Directed by Liz Valdez
  Dramaturgy by Emma Tibaldo
  Featuring: Alyssa Angelucci-Wall, Wahsonti:io Kirby, and Douglas Peerless

• FEBRUARY 6 @ 3pm & 5pm
  Celestial Bodies
  Recommended Ages: 12 and up
  Written by Jacob Margaret Archer
  Directed by Mike Payette
  Dramaturgy by Andrea Romaldi
  Featuring: Wahsonti:io Kirby (3pm performance), Alyssa Angelucci-Wall (5pm performance)

 

VENUE: Online
TICKETS: 10 $ (per household)
BOX OFFICE and INFORMATION: www.geordie.ca