Patrick Ziza’s Dandyism promises to celebrate Black culture and style.Supplied
The Luminato Festival – known for programming immersive experiences, large-scale installations and edgy works of live performance across downtown Toronto – is back again this summer, with new leadership at its reins.
This year’s festival is the first to be programmed by artistic director Olivia Ansell, whose previous experience includes roles at the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Festival.
Luminato, like many Toronto festivals, suffered from pandemic-era lockdowns and subsequent years of tepid attendance. Recent summers have been marred by scandals, financial troubles and underpowered programming – but Ansell’s inaugural season, complemented by recent turnover in the festival’s producing staff, looks to course-correct Luminato as the festival enters a new era.
Here’s what I’m looking forward to at Luminato 2025.
Tim Crouch’s An Oak Tree features a special guest actor who has neither read the script nor seen the show before.Supplied
An Oak Tree
Tim Crouch’s play, about a devastating car accident and a stage hypnotist, has made headlines whenever it’s been produced, most recently at the Young Vic in London last month. The play invites a special guest each night to join the production, an actor who has neither read the script nor seen the show before.
The end result, according to British critics, is a truly live experience that cannot be recreated owing to the unpredictable nature of the play. And at Luminato, there’s a starry roster of local actors set to take part – talents such as Qasim Khan, Daniel MacIvor, Karen Robinson and Jean Yoon.
Dandyism
Were you enamoured by the fashion at this year’s Met Gala? If so, you might want to check out Dandyism, a 25-minute dance show scheduled to play across the greater Toronto area (including stops in Brampton and at Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre).
Using a blend of dance styles, Patrick Ziza’s Dandyism promises to celebrate Black culture and style in a way that’s accessible to audiences across the city. Billed as a dance piece that will “stop traffic and start conversations,” I’m interested to see how this piece will deliver on the festival’s promise of unique theatrical experiences.
Hamlet
Produced by Peruvian theatre company Teatro La Plaza, this 95-minute Hamlet is nothing like the recent productions of the tragedy at High Park and the Stratford Festival: This one features eight actors with Down syndrome.
Audiences across Canada might recall The Shadow Whose Prey the Hunter Becomes, Back to Back Theatre’s touring show from Australia that featured three adults with intellectual disabilities as they grappled with mortality – and the rise of artificial intelligence. Hamlet, in its Canadian premiere, promises to keep that conversation going.
What the Day Owes to the Night
A sprawling dance piece by Compagnie Hervé KOUBI, co-presented by Luminato, TO Live and Fall for Dance North, What the Day Owes to the Night blends dance styles and aesthetics in its exploration of Algerian heritage. Martial arts and street dance combine on a canvas of 12 dancers to showcase choreographer Hervé Koubi’s hyphenated French-Algerian identity — I’m interested to see how this one comes together.
