The Unauthorized Musical Parody” Is Almost Here, and Now We Know Who’s Taking the Ice at Soulpepper – front mezz junkies, Theater News

Frontmezzjunkies reports: James Daly and Broadway’s Aaron Alcaraz lead the Canadian concert presentation of the Off-Broadway sensation at Soulpepper Theatre

By Ross

When I first wrote about Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody, I admitted I had missed the Off-Broadway phenomenon altogether. Now the production is about to arrive in Toronto, and with opening night only days away, Soulpepper Theatre Company has announced the cast bringing the musical’s Canadian concert presentation to life.

James Daly, familiar to audiences from Soulpepper’s Narnia and Off-Broadway’s Dracula – A Comedy of Terrors, will play Ilya Rozanov opposite Broadway performer Aaron Alcaraz (Mean Girls; Off-Broadway’s Trevor) as Shane Hollander. Joining them are Steffi D, Ron Pederson, and Shakura Dickson, completing the company for the limited engagement running July 9 through 12 before the production heads to Montréal’s Just For Laughs Festival.

The timing could hardly be better. Soulpepper is already buzzing as one of the central hubs of the Toronto Fringe Festival, with every performance space alive with new Canadian work and emerging artists. Into that atmosphere skates a new parody musical that has quickly grown from an Off-Broadway curiosity into one of this year’s most talked-about theatrical surprises. Written by Dylan MarcAurele and directed by Canadian producer Alan Kliffer, the show affectionately celebrates the passionate fandom surrounding Heated Rivalry, embracing musical theatre, queer pop culture, camp comedy, and hockey romance with equal enthusiasm. Artistic Director Paolo Santalucia has described it as exactly the kind of joyful, subversive Canadian work Soulpepper wants to champion. And I’m thrilled to hear it.

What continues to excite me most is that this production has always seemed driven by affection before parody. It celebrates the community that gathered around these characters as much as it celebrates the story itself. Watching this musical grow from an impossible New York ticket into an Off-Broadway success, and now into a Canadian presentation at Soulpepper, has been unexpectedly satisfying. And with a predominantly Canadian cast, it somehow feels even more appropriate. Whether I actually manage to catch this Toronto engagement remains to be seen, but I’m beyond delighted to see this wonderfully unlikely little musical continue finding new audiences on home ice. And if I miss it this second time, I’ll simply be cheering a little louder for it to return to Toronto.