We asked 15 theatre companies across Ontario to recommend the best shows to see this summer. Their picks are worth a road trip by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

The companies and festivals offer an incredible variety of theatre, including Hitchcock, historical dramas, even a tropical dinner theatre murder mystery.

Are antidepressants a boon or a curse? The question is grippingly explored in ‘The Effect’ by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Aviva Armour-Ostroff’s performance is a slowly rising storm in Coal Mine production of this Lucy Prebble play set in a drug trial.

Can ‘Spamalot’s’ Lady of the Lake be pregnant? Yes, if it’s Jennifer Rider-Shaw and the Stratford Festival by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Theatre actors Jennifer Rider-Shaw and Robert Markus are expecting their first child in October. Here’s how they made the timing work alongside the Stratford Festival.

‘Hadestown’ heads to some dark and moody places by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Anaïs Mitchell’s celebrated tuner blends together ancient myths, musical influences from roots to show tunes, and bravura stagecraft into a celebration of the capacity of love to pierce b…

Sébastien Heins’ mother, Shella, got him into theatre. In “No Save Points,” he tells her story with a performance that’s part video game. by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Stratford 2023: ‘A Wrinkle In Time, a loving, heartwarming production for the whole family by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

The stage adaptation of Madeleine L’Engle’s much-loved play provides nostalgia for the grown-ups and connects with younger audiences

Stratford 2023: Brad Fraser’s adaptation of ‘Richard II’ is as expert as it is provocative by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Unabashedly physical performance draws parallels to the AIDS crisis but also to issue of representation and power

Women get more to say in Much Ado About Nothing by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Director Chris Abraham casts new light on a Shakespeare comedy by reading it through a contemporary lens, Karen Fricker writes.

‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’ on-stage family keep it fresh after a year-long run by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Stars Trevor White, Trish Lindstrom and Luke Kimball talk about on creating a stage family in the Toronto production of the smash play

Sex, travel and disability: during Pride, two new plays, ‘Access Me’ and ‘Perceptual Archaeology’ centre disabled actors’ experiences by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

‘As a disabled person, often our lives are painted as tragic, and I don’t feel that way’

‘My mother burst into tears’: Inside ‘Casey and Diana,’ the most moving Canadian play of the year by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Writer Nick Green and director Andrew Kushnir on bringing the acclaimed Stratford Festival production to life.

Luminato Festival’s ‘Aalaapi’ offers a literal window into life in the North by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Performed in English, French, and Inuktitut, this production follows the lives of Inuit women living in the North.

Amaka Umeh proves she’s one of the best actors of her generation in ‘Sizwe Banzi is dead’ at Soulpepper Theatre by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

A jaw-dropping performance by Umeh in the roles of Styles and Buntu reflects the play’s focus on split identities

Impassioned reimagining of pop-rock play energizes summer theatre stage by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Iconic 90s play led by a new generation of performers could lure younger demographic to Stratford this summer

‘Incredibly moving’: Stratford play ‘Casey and Diana’ captures Princess Diana’s iconic visit to Toronto’s Casey house by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Writer Nick Green’s play deeply honours the experiences of gay men at the end of their lives and the people who care for them

Yes, Canadian TV star Paul Gross has the chops to play King Lear by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Gross and director Kimberley Rampersad have the guts and vision to let this Stratford Festival Lear be genuinely unlikeable at the start.

Eric Idle sings with the cast in surprise Stratford ‘Spamalot’ appearance by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

The original Monty Python troupe member reflects on collaboration, laughter and being a ghost

Kate Hennig is a commanding Momma Rose in the Shaw Festival’s ‘Gypsy’ by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

The musical based on the life of Gypsy Rose Lee is musically resplendent and boasts two superb performances from Hennig and Julie Lumsden.

Enchanting ‘Prince Caspian’ at Shaw Festival likely to stir fond memories of the Narnia books by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Damien Atkins’ retelling puts the focus on the four Pevensie children and the delightful creatures who join them in their quest.

‘New’ a fresh take on on-stage portrayals of new immigrants deserves to get the on-screen series treatment by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Pamela Mala Sinha latest play has so many such fascinating episodes and layers it feels as if it’s bursting out of its 2.5-hour long run

What’s in a page? To print theatre programs or deliver them digitally, that is the question by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

For some stage fans, downloading a program via QR code is a poor substitute for a record you can hold in your hand.

‘Kooza’ is Cirque du Soleil distilled to its essence with signature risks and humour by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

The acts, as expected, are world-class and nicely varied. And the clowns are even funny, not always a guarantee.

‘The best kind of staging’: ‘Mesmerizing’ production of Anton Chekhov’s play ‘The Seagull’ at Toronto’s Soulpepper Theatre by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Director Daniel Brooks creates an updated production in which the actors talk like real people and that includes the audience in a fully realized, emotionally engulfing world.

‘Sort Of’ star Amanda Cordner is ‘incandescent’ in ‘Body So Fluorescent’ at Buddies In Bad Times theatre: ‘The show deserves full houses by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Lightning transformations between characters and the emerging revelation of the relationship between them is the central theatrical conceit

Young African and Asian women reclaim their sexuality in ‘Vierge’ and ‘Love You Wrong Time’ by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

One looks at the cost of not talking to girls about sex. The other pokes fun at the sexualization and fetishization of Asian women.

A Grimm Night is a wonderful, disorienting, ethereal evening of immersive dance theatre by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Transcen|Dance Project has done excellent work in delivering a luxurious evening’s entertainment, a local alternative to New York’s “Sleep No More.”

Giving myths a makeover on the big stage: Adam and Eve/Hawa and Ovid’s ‘Metamorphosis’ told in fresh ways at Crow’s and Tarragon theatres by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Makram Ayache’s new play “The Hooves Belonged to the Deer” and “Metamorphoses 2023,” based on Ovid’s epic poem, produced by Theatre Smith-Gilmour.

Play ‘Anahita’s Republic’ gives a sharp-edged view of the struggle for women’s rights in Iran by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

Title character Anahita offers an insider perspective into gender, power and freedom in contemporary Iran. I walked away without easy answers.

How Cliff Cardinal’s annoyance with land acknowledgments became a provocative piece of theatre by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

His “sly, funny, charming” solo show about the practice is now playing as “The Land Acknowledgement, or As You Like It” — minus the Shakespeare bait and switch.

A troubled woman, a janitor on his nightly rounds — two immersive theatre productions explore isolation by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

In “The Yellow Wallpaper” spectators hear and see images of a woman whose mental health is deteriorating. In “Le Concierge” they follow a silent high school janitor.

Tawiah M’Carthy’s career takes another leap as he directs Pulitzer-winning play ‘Fairview’ by Karen Fricker - Theatre Critic

M’Carthy has gone from one- or two-person shows to the Stratford Festival to a Canadian stage doubleheader — and he’s ready for much more.