Paul Gross, Cabaret, and Ann-Marie MacDonald headline Canadian Stage’s 2026-27 season, Theater News

Canadian Stage has announced its 2026-27 season, a large-scale lineup spanning new Canadian plays, contemporary classics, family programming, and the musical Cabaret.

The season features nine productions across four Toronto venues: the Bluma Appel Theatre, the Berkeley Street Theatre, the Winter Garden Theatre — home to Canadian Stage’s annual holiday pantomime — and the High Park Amphitheatre, where Dream in High Park returns for its 43rd year.

“This season places extraordinary Canadian artists front and centre — the storytellers shaping our cultural experiences,” wrote artistic director Brendan Healy in a press release sent out this morning. “We’re welcoming iconic artists back to our stages while championing bold new work that speaks directly to the current moment.”

Casting highlights include Sara Farb and Allan Louis in Cabaret, Paul Gross returning to Canadian Stage in Creditors, and playwrights Keith Barker and Kate Hennig performing in their own works.

The full lineup of productions is listed below.

Twelfth Night

Written by Shakespeare
Directed by Gregory Prest
July 12 to September 6, 2006 at the High Park Amphitheatre

The long-running Dream in High Park series returns with a Shakespearean romantic comedy in which a shipwreck leads to mistaken identity, a love triangle, and comic confusion.

Wine in the Wilderness (Canadian premiere)

Written by Alice Childress
Directed by Jordan Laffrenier
September 19 to October 4, 2026 at the Marilyn & Charles Baillie Theatre

Written in 1969, Alice Childress’ rarely produced drama is set in Harlem as civil unrest unfolds outside a downtown apartment — where a group of artists confront questions of identity, representation, and perception.

Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet)

Written by and starring Ann-Marie MacDonald
Directed by Alisa Palmer
Directed by Nina Lee Aquino
November 6 to 22, 2026 at the Bluma Appel Theatre

Twenty-five years after she last performed the role, Ann-Marie MacDonald returns to her iconic comedy as it approaches its 40th anniversary. Drawn into the worlds of Othello and Romeo and Juliet, a reclusive academic encounters Shakespeare’s heroines anew.

Rogers v. Rogers

A Crow’s Theatre production, presented with Canadian Stage
Adapted by Michael Healey
Directed by Chris Abraham
November 8 to December 6, 2026 at the Marilyn & Charles Baillie Theatre

Returning after its recent run at Crow’s, this stage adaptation of Alexandra Posadzki’s book dramatizes the corporate and familial battle for control of Rogers’ telecom empire.

Cinderella (world premiere)

Written by Matt Murray
Directed by Mary Francis Moore
December 5, 2026 to January 3, 2027 at the Winter Garden Theatre

Canadian Stage presents its annual holiday pantomime with a contemporary take on the classic fairy tale, combining music, satire, and audience interaction.

Sex in the ’80s (world premiere)

Written by and starring Kate Hennig
Directed by Tanja Jacobs
January 16 to February 7, 2027 at the Marilyn & Charles Baillie Theatre

Set in a Toronto office tower, this new comedy follows two architects reconnecting decades after a shared past, as their professional encounter gives way to a negotiation of memory, ambition, and generational change.

Cabaret

Written by John Kander and Fred Ebb
Directed and choreographed by Kimberley Rampersad
February 13 to 28, 2027 at the Bluma Appel Theatre

Cabaret follows performers at Berlin’s Kit Kat Club as political and social tensions escalate around them. The production stars Sara Farb as Sally Bowles and Allan Louis as the Emcee.

Raised by Women

Written by and starring Keith Barker
Directed by Yvette Nolan
March 27 to April 11, 2027 at the Berkeley Street Theatre

This solo performance draws on Barker’s upbringing in Northern Ontario, blending storytelling and stand-up to examine family, memory, and the legacy of an absent father.

Creditors (Canadian premiere)

Written by August Strindberg
Adapted by Jen Silverman
Directed by Brendan Healy
April 9 to May 2, 2027 at the Bluma Appel Theatre

In this adaptation of Strindberg’s Creditors, a married couple’s relationship is unsettled by the arrival of a stranger. The production marks Healy’s latest instalment in his ongoing trilogy exploring the complexities of marriage.

For more information about subscriptions for the 2026–27 season, visit Canadian Stage’s website.

Canadian Stage is an Intermission partner. Learn more about Intermission’s partnership model here.

WRITTEN BY

Liam Donovan

Liam is Intermission’s senior editor. He lives in Toronto.

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