Ottawa’s Great Canadian Theatre Company is finishing off its 2024–25 season with a production of Rachel Mutombo’s Vierge. Co-produced by Montreal’s Black Theatre Workshop and directed by Dian Marie Bridge, the drama will run from March 18 to 30 at the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre.
In a Quebec church basement, during what’s meant to be Bible study, four Congolese-Canadian teenage girls grapple with gossip, drinking, faith, hormones, family expectations, and questions of authority.
Recently shortlisted for the Quebec Writers’ Federation prize for playwriting, Vierge is about the complications of having a foot in two realms: the girls are Christian, but growing up in a secular world — a balancing act that ends up producing complex but humorous situations.
Vierge stars Espoir Segbeaya, Joy Mwandemange, Seeara Lindsay, and Symantha Stewart. The design team is made up of Zoe Roux (set and lighting), Georges Elena Stoodley (sound), and Michael Fanfan (costumes).
“I am excited to highlight a talented young writer such as Rachel,” wrote Bridge in a press release. “Vierge explores Black life beyond trauma… This work confronts memory, internalized blame, and predatory behaviour, capturing a too-soon coming of age with depth and authenticity.”
“I wrote this play to celebrate and honour the resilience, the courage, and the hilarity of African women,” added Mutombo. “In the face of adversity, we rise, we find joy, we dance, we laugh.”
Vierge runs at the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre from March 18 to 30. Tickets are available here.
WRITTEN BY
Liam Donovan
Liam is Intermission’s senior editor. His writing has appeared in publications like Maisonneuve, This, and NEXT. He loves the original Super Mario game very much.
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