TAPA unveils 2026 Dora Award nominees 

The Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) announced the nominees for the 46th annual Dora Awards, celebrating professional theatre, dance, and opera productions in the city. 

This year, there are 221 nominations across 44 gender-inclusive categories in seven divisions, with TAPA recognizing work from 214 eligible productions — the highest number of shows submitted since 2019.

The general theatre division is tightly contested. The Welkin, Rogers v. Rogers, Through the Eyes of God, and Le malentendu (a.k.a. The Misunderstanding) are tied for the most nominations, with five each.

The Green Line and Dance Nation lead the independent theatre division with seven nominations apiece.

And in the musical theatre division, After the Rain and Octet both earned seven nominations each.

The awards will be presented at Meridian Hall on June 29, in a ceremony hosted by Amaka Umeh, who earned nominations for performing in the ensembles of Mary, Mary, Mary, Mary at Crow’s Theatre and Narnia, produced by Soulpepper, Bad Hats, and Crow’s. 

Below is the full list of nominees in the general theatre, independent theatre, and musical theatre divisions. A complete list of nominees in the opera, dance, theatre for young audiences, and touring divisions — as well as the link to vote for this year’s Jon Kaplan Audience Choice Award —  can be found on the TAPA website.

General Theatre Division

Outstanding Production
Bremen Town (Tarragon Theatre)
Copperbelt (NAC English Theatre and Soulpepper Theatre Company)
Le malentendu (Théâtre français de Toronto)
Rogers v. Rogers (Crow’s Theatre)
Through the Eyes of God (Theatre Passe Muraille)

Outstanding New Play
Through the Eyes of God by Anusree Roy (Theatre Passe Muraille)
The Christmas Market by Kanika Ambrose (b current Performing Arts in association with Crow’s Theatre and Studio 180 Theatre)
Rogers v. Rogers by Michael Healey (Crow’s Theatre)
Copperbelt by Natasha Mumba (NAC English Theatre and Soulpepper Theatre Company)
The Neighbours by Nicolas Billon (Green Light Arts in association with Tarragon Theatre)

Outstanding Direction
Andrea Donaldson, Enormity, Girl, and the Earthquake in Her Lungs (Nightwood Theatre in association with Tarragon Theatre)
Claren Grosz and Augusto Bitter, Reina (Pencil Kit Productions in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)
Gregory Prest, Bremen Town (Tarragon Theatre)
Karine Ricard, Le malentendu (Théâtre français de Toronto)
Thomas Morgan Jones, Through the Eyes of God (Theatre Passe Muraille)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual
Amanda Cordner in How to Catch Creation (Soulpepper Theatre Company, Nightwood Theatre, and Obsidian Theatre)
bahia watson in Summer and Smoke (Crow’s Theatre and Soulpepper Theatre Company in association with BirdLand Theatre)
bahia watson in The Welkin (Soulpepper Theatre Company, The Howland Company, and Crow’s Theatre)
Béatrice René-Décarie in Le malentendu (Théâtre français de Toronto)
Gabriella Sundar Singh in Through the Eyes of God (Theatre Passe Muraille)
Michelle Monteith in Red Like Fruit (2b theatre company presented by Soulpepper Theatre Company and Luminato Festival)
Ordena Stephens-Thompson in The Neighbours (Green Light Arts in association with Tarragon Theatre)
Sophia Walker in Slave Play (Canadian Stage)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble
Bremen Town (Tarragon Theatre)
Enormity, Girl, and the Earthquake in Her Lungs (Nightwood Theatre in association with Tarragon Theatre)
Mary, Mary, Mary, Mary (Crow’s Theatre)
The Welkin (Soulpepper Theatre Company, The Howland Company, and Crow’s Theatre)
You, Always (Canadian Stage)

Outstanding Scenic/Projection Design
Mischief with scenic and projection design by Andy Moro (Tarragon Theatre, Native Earth Performing Arts, and Neptune Theatre)
Rogers v. Rogers with scenic design by Joshua Quinlan and projection design by Nathan Bruce (Crow’s Theatre)
The Welkin with scenic design by Julie Fox (Soulpepper Theatre Company, The Howland Company, and Crow’s Theatre)
Queen Maeve with scenic design by Ken MacDonald (Tarragon Theatre)
Romeo & Juliet with scenic design by Sim Suzer (Canadian Stage)

Outstanding Costume Design
Rainbow on Mars with costume design by Anahita Dehbonehie (Outside the March with The National Ballet of Canada and Peripheral Theatre) 
Le malentendu with costume design by Melanie McNeill (Théâtre français de Toronto)
The Welkin with costume design by Michelle Tracey (Soulpepper Theatre Company, The Howland Company, and Crow’s Theatre)
Bremen Town with costume design design by Nancy Anne Perrin (Tarragon Theatre)
Copperbelt with costume design by Rachel Forbes (NAC English Theatre and Soulpepper Theatre Company) 

Outstanding Lighting Design
The Welkin with lighting design by Bonnie Beecher (Soulpepper Theatre Company, The Howland Company, and Crow’s Theatre)
The Surrogate with lighting design by Chris Malkowski (Here For Now Theatre Company in association with Crow’s Theatre, House + Body, and b current Performing Arts)
Mary, Mary, Mary, Mary with lighting design by Christian Horoszczak (Crow’s Theatre)
Rogers v. Rogers with lighting design by Imogen Wilson (Crow’s Theatre)
Rainbow on Mars with lighting design by Melissa Joakim (Outside the March with The National Ballet of Canada and Peripheral Theatre)

Outstanding Sound Design/Composition
The Surrogate with sound design by Maddie Bautista (Here For Now Theatre Company in association with Crow’s Theatre, House + Body, and b current Performing Arts)
Le malentendu with sound design by Mehdi Rostami (Théâtre français de Toronto)
The Comeuppance with sound design by Olivia Wheeler (Soulpepper Theatre Company)
Through the Eyes of God with sound design by Romeo Candido (Theatre Passe Muraille)
Rogers v. Rogers with sound design by Thomas Ryder Payne (Crow’s Theatre)

Independent Theatre Division

Outstanding Production
Bug (The King Black Box in partnership with Elkabong Theatre Projects)
Dance Nation (Coal Mine Theatre and Outside the March in association with Rock Bottom Movement)
Eureka Day (Coal Mine Theatre)
The Division (Project: Humanity and Pyretic Productions in association with Crow’s Theatre)
The Green Line (In Arms Theatre Company and MENA Collective in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Factory Theatre)

Outstanding New Play
The Division by Andrew Kushnir (Project: Humanity and Pyretic Productions in association with Crow’s Theatre)
Romeo Pimp by Jesse McQueen (The King Black Box in partnership with One East Productions)
Public Consumption by Lauren Gillis and Alaine Hutton (Lester Trips [Theatre] presented by Factory Theatre)
The Green Line by Makram Ayache (In Arms Theatre Company and MENA Collective in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Factory Theatre)
take rimbaud by Susanna Fournier (The Howland Company in partnership with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)

Outstanding Direction
Andrew Kushnir, The Division (Project: Humanity and Pyretic Productions in association with Crow’s Theatre)
Diana Bentley and Alyssa Martin, Dance Nation (Coal Mine Theatre and Outside the March in association with Rock Bottom Movement)
Makram Ayache, The Green Line (In Arms Theatre Company and MENA Collective in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Factory Theatre)
Sophie Ann Rooney, Romeo Pimp (The King Black Box in partnership with One East Productions)
ted witzel, take rimbaud (The Howland Company in partnership with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual
Daniel Maslany in The Division (Project: Humanity and Pyretic Productions in association with Crow’s Theatre)
Evan Buliung in Fulfillment Centre (Coal Mine Theatre)
Kevin Bundy in Eureka Day (Coal Mine Theatre)
Kristen Thomson in Fulfillment Centre (Coal Mine Theatre)
L.A. Sweeney in Bug (The King Black Box in partnership with Elkabong Theatre Projects)
Nicholas Eddie in Bug (The King Black Box in partnership with Elkabong Theatre Projects)
Nolan Moberly in Tales of an Urban Indian (Talk Is Free Theatre)
Oshen Aoun in The Green Line (In Arms Theatre Company and MENA Collective in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Factory Theatre)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble
Dance Nation (Coal Mine Theatre and Outside the March in association with Rock Bottom Movement)
Night at the Grand Guignol (Eldritch Theatre)
Romeo Pimp (The King Black Box in partnership with One East Productions)
take rimbaud (The Howland Company in partnership with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)
The Division (Project: Humanity and Pyretic Productions in association with Crow’s Theatre)

Outstanding Scenic/Projection Design
The Green Line with scenic design by Anahita Dehbonehie (In Arms Theatre Company and MENA Collective in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Factory Theatre)
Fulfillment Centre with scenic design by Nick Blais (Coal Mine Theatre)
Dance Nation with scenic design by Nick Blais (Coal Mine Theatre and Outside the March in association with Rock Bottom Movement)
Eureka Day with scenic design by Steve Lucas and Beckie Morris (Coal Mine Theatre)
take rimbaud with scenic design by Ting-Huan Christine Urquhart and projection design by Nicole Eun-Ju Bell (The Howland Company in partnership with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)

Outstanding Costume Design
Dance Nation with costume design by Kathleen Black (Coal Mine Theatre and Outside the March in association with Rock Bottom Movement)
Night at the Grand Guignol with costume design by Melanie McNeil (Eldritch Theatre)
The Herald with costume design by ORXSTRA [a.k.a. Tala Kamea + Alexander McLeod] (An It Could Still Happen production in partnership with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)
The Division with costume design by Sim Suzer and Niloufar Ziaee (Project: Humanity and Pyretic Productions in association with Crow’s Theatre)

Outstanding Lighting Design
Public Consumption with lighting design by André du Toit (Lester Trips [Theatre] presented by Factory Theatre)
Romeo Pimp with lighting design by Grisha Pasternak (The King Black Box in partnership with One East Productions)
The Green Line with lighting design by Jareth Li and Kit Norman (In Arms Theatre Company and MENA Collective in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Factory Theatre)
Concord Floral with lighting design by Mathilda Kane (Pucker’s)
Dance Nation with lighting design by Nick Blais (Coal Mine Theatre and Outside the March in association with Rock Bottom Movement)

Outstanding Sound Design/Composition
take rimbaud with sound design and composition by Dasha Plett (The Howland Company in partnership with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre)
The Green Line with sound design and composition by Heidi Chan and Chris Pereira (In Arms Theatre Company and MENA Collective in association with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and Factory Theatre)
Dance Nation with sound design and composition by Miquelon Rodriguez (Coal Mine Theatre and Outside the March in association with Rock Bottom Movement)
The Sankofa Trilogy: word! sound! powah! with sound design and composition by Stephon Smith (Watah Theatre presented by The Theatre Centre)

Musical Theatre Division

Outstanding Production
After the Rain (Tarragon Theatre and The Musical Stage Company)
Bright Star (Garner Theatre Productions presented by Mirvish Productions)
Narnia (Soulpepper Theatre Company, Bad Hats Theatre, and Crow’s Theatre)
Octet (Crow’s Theatre, Soulpepper Theatre Company, and The Musical Stage Company)
The Drowsy Chaperone (Shifting Ground Collective)

Outstanding New Musical/New Opera
Narnia by Fiona Sauder, Landon Doak, Matt Pilipiak, Jonathan Corkal-Astorga, and Victor Pokinko (Soulpepper Theatre Company, Bad Hats Theatre, and Crow’s Theatre)
Cyclops: A Satyr Play by Griffin Hewitt, with additional music by Juliette Jones (Talk Is Free Theatre and Panic Theatre)
After the Rain by Rose Napoli and Suzy Wilde (Tarragon Theatre and The Musical Stage Company)

Outstanding Performance by an Individual
Andrew Penner in After the Rain (Tarragon Theatre and The Musical Stage Company)
Annika Tupper in After the Rain (Tarragon Theatre and The Musical Stage Company)
Damien Atkins in Robin Hood (Canadian Stage in association with the Elgin & Winter Garden Theatres)
Deborah Hay in After the Rain (Tarragon Theatre and The Musical Stage Company)
Ellen Denny in Shrek the Musical (Young People’s Theatre)
Joema Frith in Shrek the Musical (Young People’s Theatre)
Kaylee Harwood in Bright Star (Garner Theatre Productions presented by Mirvish Productions)
Martin Julien in The Drowsy Chaperone (Shifting Ground Collective)

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble
After the Rain (Tarragon Theatre and The Musical Stage Company)
Bright Star (Garner Theatre Productions presented by Mirvish Productions)
Narnia (Soulpepper Theatre Company, Bad Hats Theatre, and Crow’s Theatre)
Octet (Crow’s Theatre, Soulpepper Theatre Company, and The Musical Stage Company)
tick, tick… BOOM! (Bowtie Productions)

Outstanding Creative Direction
Octet with direction by Chris Abraham, choreography by Cameron Carver, and musical direction by Ryan deSouza (YCrow’s Theatre, Soulpepper Theatre Company, and The Musical Stage Company)
Narnia with direction by Fiona Sauder, associate direction by Matt Pilipiak and Cynthia Jimenez-Hicks, co-choreography by Fiona Sauder and Rohan Dhupar, and musical direction by Jonathan Corkal-Astorga (Soulpepper Theatre Company, Bad Hats Theatre, and Crow’s Theatre)
Bright Star with direction by Jacob Wolstencroft, choreography by Lisa Goebel, and musical direction by Donna Garner (Garner Theatre Productions presented by Mirvish Productions)
The Drowsy Chaperone with direction by Joshua רועי Kilimnik, assistant direction and dramaturgy by Mila Frumovitz, choreography by Shannon Murtagh, and musical direction by Jo O’Leary-Ponzo (Shifting Ground Collective)
After the Rain with direction by Marie Farsi and musical direction by Rachel O’Brien (Tarragon Theatre and The Musical Stage Company)

WRITTEN BY

Krystal Abrigo

Krystal is Intermission’s Publishing and Editorial Coordinator. A Scarborough-based writer of Philippine and Egyptian descent who enjoys reading bell hooks, Audre Lorde, and James Baldwin. At any given moment, you can probably find her at a concert, or on a long walk somewhere in Toronto (or elsewhere).

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