Canada's contemporary theatre reflects a diversity of regional and cultural identities. Since the late 1960s, there has been an effort to develop the voice of the 'Canadian playwright', which is reflected in the nationally focused programming of many of the country's theatres.tarragontheatre.com Within this 'Canadian voice' are a plurality of perspectives - that of the First Nations, new immigrants, French Canadians, sexual minorities, etc. - and a multitude of theatre companies have been created to specifically service and support these voices.
Early Canadian theatre
The Annapolis Basin in Nova Scotia served as the cradle for both French and English language theatre in Canada.David Gardner's thesis, "An Analytic History of the Theatre in Canada: the European Beginnings to 1760," and his article "British Garrison Theatre in Canada during the French Regime" Théâtre de Neptune, performed in 1606, was the first European theatre production in North America.
The tradition of English theatre in Canada also started at Annapolis Royal. In Fort Anne, Nova Scotia, plays were produced for Prince of Wales' birthday. George Farquhar's The Recruiting Officer was produced on Saturday, 20 January 1733 to celebrate the birthday of Frederick, Prince of Wales. When he was a Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia, Paul Mascarene translated Molière's French play The Misanthrope in to English and produced several plays in 1743 and 1744. An unknown play was also staged on 20 January 1748 for the Prince's birthday, and it was restaged on 2 February 1748.
Plays Lescarbot's Neptune Theatre 1606 Molière's Tartuffe Scandal 1693 Halifax Prologue 1776 Sullen Indian Prologue 1826 Eight Men Speak 1933 (at Toronto's Standard Theatre)
Events Theatre was banned in French Canada by the Catholic clergy in 1694, but after Canada became British in 1763, theatrical activity begun to grow, foremost among the British garrisons and within amateur theatre.
Antoine Foucher (1717-1801), of Terrebonne (father of Louis-Charles Foucher), was the owner of the first Francophone theatre in Canada. In 1774, with various British officers, he staged the first production of Molière at his home in Montreal. Other Garrison performances were private shows put on for troops, publicly performed by officers, which helped bridge theatre and war during its initial stages of development. It was welcomed by the populaces and distracted soldiers from war and routine military protocol.Wilson, Edwin, ed. Living Theatre: History of the Theatre. 5th ed. New York, NY: McGraw Hill, 2008. Print.
The first professional theatre company was Allen's Company of Comedians, which made its first performance in Montreal in 1786, and was followed by the all male French language amateur society Les Jeunes Messieurs Canadiens in Quebec City in 1789. From 1790 to 1840, amateur theatre was regularly performed at the Haymarket Theatre in Quebec City.Elaine Frances Nardocchio: Theatre and Politics in Modern Québec
Officially opened on June 24, 1893 in Montreal, the Monument National is located at the historical interface between the Francophone neighbourhoods (to the east) and the Anglophone areas (to the west), it also found itself in the heart of the Jewish and Chinese sections on the most multiethnic street in the city.
Before 1825, the Hayes House Hotel on Dalhousie Square, Montreal, had a theatre that staged German Orchestras and held Viennese dances. After it burned it down, John Molson built the Theatre Royal in 1825, presenting Shakespeare and Restoration authors. It sat 1,000 guests and was also used for circuses and concerts. Edmund Kean and Charles Dickens both performed there before it was demolished in 1844 to make way for the Bonsecours Market.
In 1913, the Ottawa Drama League was formed. An amateur society, it continues today as Ottawa Little Theatre, performing Canadian and international plays with a fully volunteer cast and staff.
In the West, the Grand Theatre was built in 1912 in Calgary by the visionary Sir James Lougheed. The Grand was the initial home of many arts organizations in Calgary; the first theatre, opera, ballet, symphony concerts, and movies were seen here. This theatre was the centre of social, cultural, and political life in Calgary until the early 1960s. The Grand Theatre has been saved from demolition in 2004 by the company Theatre Junction and its director Mark Lawes.
From 1929, Martha Allan founded the Montreal Repertory Theatre and later co-founded the Dominion Drama Festival. She loathed amateur theatre, but her energies spearheaded the Canadian Little Theatre Movement at a time when live theatre in Montreal and across Canada was being threatened by the rapid expansion of the American-influenced movie theatre. She almost single-handedly laid the groundwork for the development of the professional modern Canadian theatre scene.
Theatre of the 1940s Plays Eros at Breakfast 1949 by Robertson Davies
Theatre companies and groups Ottawa Stage Society 1948 (Ottawa) Hudson Players Club 1948 (Hudson, Quebec) founded by the collective group of HPC New Play Society 1946—1971 (Toronto) founded by Dora Mavor Moore and Mavor Moore Canadian Repertory Theatre 1949 (Ottawa)
Theatre of the 1950s
Plays Teach Me How To Cry 1955 Patricia Joudry
Theatre companies and groups Théâtre du Nouveau Monde 1951 (Montreal), founded by Jean Gascon Crest Theatre 1953 (Toronto) founded by Donald Davis Stratford Shakespeare Festival 1953 (Stratford), founded by Tom Patterson Manitoba Theatre Centre 1958 (Winnipeg), founded by John Hirsch Toronto Workshop Productions 1958 (Toronto), founded by George Luscombe
Theatre of the 1960s
Plays Ecstasy of Rita Joe 1967 George Ryga Fortune and Men's Eyes 1967 John Herbert Les Belles-Sœurs 1968 Michel Tremblay
Theatre companies and groups National Theatre School of Canada 1960 (Montreal) Shaw Festival 1962 (Niagara on the Lake) Neptune Theatre (Halifax) 1963 Vancouver Playhouse 1963 (Vancouver) Arts Club Theatre Company 1964 (Vancouver) The Citadel Theatre 1965 (Edmonton) Globe Theatre 1966 (Regina) Young People's Theatre 1966 (Toronto, theatre for young audiences) Theatre New Brunswick 1968 (Fredericton) Theatre Passe-Muraille 1968 (Toronto) Centaur Theatre 1969 (Montreal) National Arts Centre 1969 (Ottawa)
Theatre of the 1970s
Plays How Now Black Man, 1971, Lorris Elliot Creeps, 1971, David Freeman Leaving Home 1972 David French The Farm Show 1972 Paul Thompson and Theatre Passe Muraille Hosanna 1973 Michel Tremblay 1837: Farmer's Revolt 1974 Rick Salutin The Donnellys Trilogy 1974-1975 James Reaney Zastrozzi, The Master of Discipline 1977 George F. Walker Waiting for the Parade 1977 John Murrell Billy Bishop Goes to War 1978 John Gray Balconville 1979 David Fenario Blitzkrieg by Bryan Wade, Tarragon Theatre, 1974
Theatre companies and groups
Factory Theatre 1970 (Toronto), founded by Ken Gass Tarragon Theatre 1971 (Toronto), founded by Bill Glassco Toronto Free Theatre 1971 (Toronto), founded by Tom Hendry, Martin Kinch, John Palmer 25th Street Theatre 1972 (Saskatoon) Black Theatre Workshop 1972, founded by Dr. Clarence S. Bayne Manitoba Theatre Workshop, later Prairie Theatre Exchange 1972 (Winnipeg) The Second City 1973 (Toronto) Persephone Theatre 1974 (Saskatoon), founded by Janet Wright, Susan Wright, Brian Richmond Green Thumb Theatre 1975 (Vancouver, theatre for young audiences), founded by Dennis Foon Carbone 14 1975 (Montreal) Great Canadian Theatre Company 1975 (Ottawa) Theatre Network 1976 (Edmonton) VideoCabaret 1976 (Toronto), founded by Michael Hollingsworth and Deanne Taylor Northern Light Theatre 1977 Scott Swan (Edmonton) Catalyst Theatre 1977 (Edmonton) Necessary Angel 1978 (Toronto), founded by Richard Rose Buddies in Bad Times 1979 (Toronto, queer), founded by Sky Gilbert Nightwood Theatre 1979 (Toronto, feminist), founded by Cynthia Grant, Kim Renders, Mary Vingoe and Maureen White Workshop West Theatre 1979 Gerry Potter Artistic Director (Edmonton) Roseneath Theatre 1979 (Toronto, theatre for young audiences), founded by David S Craig and Robert Morgan
Events With Canada's centennial in 1967 came a growing awareness of the need to cultivate a national cultural identity. Thus, the 1970s were marked by the establishment of multiple theatre institutions dedicated to the development and presentation of Canadian playwrights, such as Factory Theatre, Tarragon Theatre, and the Great Canadian Theatre Company. Theatre Passe Muraille, under Paul Thompson's directorship in the 1970s, gained a national reputation for its distinctive style of collective creation with plays such as The Farm Show, 1837: The Farmer's Revolt and I Love You, Baby Blue.
In 1971 a group of Canadian playwrights issued the Gaspé Manifesto as a call for at least one-half of the programing at publicly subsidized theatres to be Canadian content. The numerical goal was not achieved, but the following years saw an increase in Canadian content stage productions.Ryan Edwardson, Canadian Content: Culture and the Quest for Nationhood (University of Toronto Press, 2008), . Excerpts available at Google Books.Louise Ladouceur, Dramatic Licence: Translating Theatre from One Official Language to the Other in Canada (University of Alberta, 2012), . Excerpts available at Google Books.
Theatre of the 1980s and 1990s
Plays The Cavan Blazers 1992 Robert Winslow Tamara 1981 John Krizanc Albertine en cinq temps 1984 Michel Tremblay Doc 1984 Sharon Pollock Drag Queens on Trial 1985 Sky Gilbert Occupation of Heather Rose 1986 Wendy Lill Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Anne-Marie MacDonald Polygraph 1988 Robert Lepage Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing 1989 Thomson Highway Unidentified Human Remains and the True Nature of Love 1989 Brad Fraser Lion in the Streets 1990 Judith Thompson Harlem Duet 1997 Djanet Sears The Drawer Boy 1999 Michael Healey
Theatre companies and groups
Cirque du Soleil (Quebec) (early 1980s) The Augusta Company (Toronto, 1980) Windsor Feminist Theatre (Windsor, 1980) Native Earth Performing Arts (Toronto, 1982) Half the Sky Feminist Theatre (Hamilton, 1982) DNA Theatre (Toronto, 1982) Crow's Theatre (Toronto, 1982) One Yellow Rabbit (Calgary, 1982) Theatre Junction (1991) 4th Line Theatre (Millbrook, Ontario, 1992) De-ba-jeh-mu-jig Theatre 1984 (Manitoulin Island) Cahoots Theatre 1986 (Toronto) da da kamera 1986 (Toronto) Puente Theatre 1988 (Victoria) Radix Theatre 1988 (Vancouver) Primus Theatre 1988 (Winnipeg) Repercussion Theatre (Montreal, 1988) Théâtre Ex Machina 1990 (Quebec City) Rumble Productions 1990 (Vancouver) Theatre Projects Manitoba 1990 (Winnipeg) founded by Harry Rintoul Mammalian Diving Reflex 1993 (Toronto) Die in Debt Theatre 1993 (Toronto) STO Union 1992 (Wakefield) Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland 1995 (St. John's) Soulpepper Theatre Company 1997 (Toronto) The Electric Company Theatre 1996 (Vancouver) Nightswimming 1995 (Toronto) Sarasvati Productions 1998 (Toronto, later relocated to Winnipeg) Imago Theatre 1987 (Montreal) Common Boots Theatre 1984 (Toronto)
Events The 1980s and 1990s saw a flourish of experimental theatre companies cropping up across Canada, many of whom were exploring site-specific and immersive staging techniques, such as Toronto's DNA Theatre and Vancouver's Radix Theatre.
Theatre of the 2000s
Plays Elizabeth Rex 2000 Timothy Findley I, Claudia 2001 Kristen Thomson Incendies 2003 Wajdi Mouawad Half Life 2005 John Mighton Cul-de-Sac 2005 Daniel MacIvor blood.claat 2006 d'bi Young The December Man 2007 Colleen Murphy Palace of the End 2008 Judith Thompson Pyaasa 2008 Anusree Roy Where The Blood Mixes 2009 Kevin Loring East of Berlin 2009 Hannah Moscovitch
Theatre companies and groups
Bluemouth Inc. 1998 (Toronto) Project Porte Parole 1998 (Montreal) 2b theatre company 1999 (Halifax)