Opening June 13th and running until June 28th at the Pumphouse Theatre in Calgary, Untold Stories presents Heathers, The Musical. Kyle sits down with producer and apprentice director Nicole Dickinson and musical director Becky Salmond to talk abut the complexity of putting up this production, and how valuable community theatre is.
Tickets: https://untoldst.booktix.ca/dept/main/e/HTM
About the show:
Based on the classic 1989 film. Westerberg High is ruled by a shoulder-padded, scrunchie-wearing junta: Heather, Heather and Heather, the hottest and cruelest girls in all of Ohio. But misfit Veronica Sawyer rejects their evil regime for a new boyfriend, the dark and sexy stranger J.D., who plans to put the Heathers in their place - six feet under.
Brought to you by the award-winning creative team of Kevin Murphy (Reefer Madness, “Desperate Housewives”), Laurence O’Keefe (Bat Boy, Legally Blonde) and Andy Fickman (Reefer Madness, She’s the Man). Heathers The Musical is a hilarious, heartfelt, and homicidal new show based on the greatest teen comedy of all time. With its moving love story, laugh-out-loud comedy, and unflinching look at the joys and anguish of high school, Heathers will be the most popular new musical. Are you in, or are you out? HEATHERS: THE MUSICAL CONTAINS CONTENT THAT MAY NOT BE APPROPRIATE FOR YOUNGER AUDIENCES. PARENTAL DISCRETION IS ADVISED. SUGGESTED AGE: 16+
Opening May 15th and running through May 31st at the Pumphouse Theatre in Calgary, Front Row Centre Players presents Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, directed by Lindsay Kurtze. Kyle sits down with Lindsay on the day of opening to discuss the difficulties of putting up this gargantuan show, in size, scope, set and length and the difficulties inherent in presenting a modern American opera by a Community Theatre Company. Lindsay talks at length about the love of the show, the artform and what FRC has done to proudly bring this show before an audience.
Tickets: https://www.artscommons.ca/whats-on/sweeney-todd-frc?hs_preview=OpSTSmgp-171519437223
About the Show: Innocence twists into vengeance on the cobblestone streets of 19th century London. Come along on a sophisticated, macabre, and uncompromising tale as Benjamin Barker, a barber, becomes Sweeney Todd, the demon butcher, and his landlady, the local pie proprietress, goes from making The Worst Pies in London to creating a culinary crime described only as God that's Good. This barbarous ode to vengeance accomplishes the rare task of offering intense drama, darkly side-splitting humour and a ripping musical score.
Opening April 25th and closing May 10th at the Pumphouse in Calgary, Morpheus Theatre presents an adaptation of Gilbert and Sullivan's The McAdo, directed by Sean Anderson. Kyle sits down with Sean to talk about what this production means to him given that this is Morpheus' 30th season and his favorite of all of the G&S operettas.
Tickets: https://www.morpheustheatre.ca/?page_id=7805
About the Show: It’s the show you love, in a brand new setting! The Mikado has been moved to the highlands of Scotland and becomes The McAdo. The McAdo, or “The Town of Ballydew”, a refreshing take on Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado, featuring all the music and dialogue you know and love, but with a wee Scottish twist… This new production relocates the beloved comic opera from Japan to a fictional clan in the Scottish Highlands, where warriors and clansfolk combat love, death and obscure laws. With joyous songs, Scottish dances and Highland-inspired dress, this is The Mikado as you’ve never seen it before. In this adaptation by Gilbert & Sullivan Austin, Gilbert’s libretto and Sullivan’s score has been kept virtually intact, while the costumes will reflect the Scottish moors. It’s a farcical tale of a wand’ring minstrel, a cowardly executioner, an iron-fisted ruler, and some of the greatest songs in musical theatre!
Opening April 11th and running through April 18th at the Pumphouse in Calgary, Misfit Theatre presents Guys & Dolls directed by Jeremy Walker. Kyle sits down with Jeremy, Nimue Nova the choreographer and Donna Pearson, producer, to talk about the struggle in bringing this larger than life 1950s Broadway Musical to life.
Tickets: https://www.morpheustheatre.ca/?page_id=7805
About the Show: A co-production between MisFit Theatre YYC and Morpheus Theatre It's time to roll and beat those dice as the beloved musical takes a bow! A screwball romantic comedy, Guys and Dolls takes us into the heart of 1950s New York, as imagined by Damon Runyon and scored by Frank Loesser and includes toe-tapping musical theatre classics including "Sit Down, You're Rockin' The Boat" and "Luck Be a Lady". The story brings together a collection of colorful characters. First, there's Sarah Brown, the upright but uptight 'mission doll' out to reform the evil-doers of Times Square. Next up is Sky Masterson, the slick, high-rolling gambler who woos her on a bet and ends up falling in love. Adelaide is a chronically ill nightclub performer whose condition is brought on by the fact she's been engaged to the same man for fourteen long years. And last but not least there's her devoted fiance Nathan Detroit, desperate as ever to find a spot for his world-renowned floating crap game! Guys and Dolls takes us from the heart of Times Square to the cafes of Havana, Cuba, and even into the sewers of New York City, but eventually everyone ends up right where they belong.
Kyle sits down with Charlotte Loeppky and Harold Squire to discuss their creation of The Horse and His Boy for the stage for Imagine YYC Theatre opening April 4th and running through April 12th at the Lantern Church in Calgary.
Tickets: https://www.ticketor.com/Account/Events?searchTerm=imagine%20theatre
About the show: Far away from Narnia, across a vast desert, lies Calormen where the animals don’t talk, the rulers are tyrants, and poor boys like Shasta are slaves to mean old fishermen. But when a stranger’s mighty warhorse takes a chance and reveals to Shasta that he can talk, Shasta learns that not all is as it seems in Calormen. The Horse and His Boy is a grand tale of mistaken identity, escape, adventure, and self-discovery. Join Imagine Theatre at the historic Lantern Church in Inglewood as we follow Shasta and Bree on their journey to freedom!
Opening March 27th and running through April 5th at the New West Theatre in Calgary, Full Circle Theatre presents Porcelain Dolls. Kyle sits down with director Danielle Baker and performer, co-writer and intimacy coordinator Gillian Klassen to discuss what it takes to present this original work for the second time after an 8 year gap and some integral re-writes to the production.
Tickets: https://events.humanitix.com/porcelain-dolls
About the Show: Get ready for Porcelain Dolls, an all-new, reimagined version of the bold, original play that’s back with fresh dialogue, a new era, and the perfect cast to bring it all to life.
Originally created in 2017, Porcelain Dolls has been completely rewritten to capture the dynamic energy and unique talent that Full Circle Theatre saw during last season’s auditions. Now reimagined and set in 2012, this production captures the unique energy of the era—before social media became ever-present, when a night out was just about being in the moment. This edgy and emotionally charged production immerses you in the women’s washroom at Sage nightclub, where friendship, love, grief, and life’s messy moments take center stage. As the characters deal with the chaos of a bachelorette party, secrets are revealed, emotions are laid bare, and everything changes.
Prepare for a theatrical experience that’s funny, raw, and real. With stunning performances and a story that balances humor and heart, Porcelain Dolls explores the complexity of female friendships, examining how these relationships shape who we are and who we become.
Kyle sits down with Maren Ord Burnham to discuss her approach to the creation of a musical and in particular how she found her way to creating, and now staging, The Night of the Murder, opening at the Glenmore Christian Academy March 28th through April 5th.
Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.ca/cc/the-night-of-the-murder-4065193
About the Show: Get ready for laughs, gasps, and mishaps — come aboard and help Steve and Kate crack the case before they’re the next suspects!
Kyle sits down with Robert Cole over Zoom to discuss the forthcoming Strathmore Theatre Players production of The Addams Family Musical at the Hope Church running March 21st through April 5th with a special subtitled production on March 29th. Robert Cole directs and Kyle discusses the labour of direction along with the particular difficulties of putting up a large scale musical in a small town in the middle of the winter.
Tickets: https://thevaultonline.ca/collections/strathmore-theatre-players-guild
About the Show: THE ADDAMS FAMILY, a comical feast that embraces the wackiness in every family. Featuring an original story complete with every father’s nightmare: Wednesday Addams, the ultimate princess of darkness, has grown up and fallen in love with a sweet, smart young man from a respectable family– a man her parents have never met. And if that wasn’t upsetting enough, Wednesday confides in her father and begs him not to tell her mother. Now, Gomez Addams must do something he’s never done before– keep a secret from his beloved wife, Morticia. Everything will change for the whole family on that fateful night when they host a dinner for Wednesday’s “normal” boyfriend and his parents. Join the extended Family to watch and laugh as Chaos reigns supreme!
Kyle sits down with Tannis Gross and Myra Gross to discuss Small Time Theatre's production of Fiddler on the Roof, Jr. opening March 13, 2025 and running through March 15th at the Glenmore Christian Academy in Calgary. Myra stars at Golde and Tannis is the director.
Tickets:
About the Show: The special adaptation of the nine-time Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, Fiddler on the Roof Jr. follows Tevye the milkman as he tries to protect his five daughters and his way of life from a changing world. The play deals with the universal theme of tradition in ways that reach across barriers of race, class, nationality and religion. This production is sure to delight audiences with its poignant music and its endearing characters.
Kyle sits down with Marian Hamilton, Artistic Director of Painted Fish and Musical Director of The Wizard of Oz to discuss their production which ran at the Cite des Rocheuses Theatre in Calgary from February 13th through February 23rd.
Link to Painted Fish: https://www.paintedfish.ca/
About the Show:
Join us for an enchanting journey down the yellow brick road! Painted Fish Performing Arts is thrilled to announce our upcoming production of The Wizard of Oz!