Monthly Archives: June 2026

Once more unto the park! Much Ado About Nothing celebrates the homecoming of the Freewill Shakespeare Festival, a review

Posted on June 21, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca A sweet, long-awaited reunion is happening in Hawrelak Park. And you should be there to feel the vibrations. It’s been a hard, uphill road back, but the Freewill Shakespeare Festival, a ‘merry wanderer’ (as a sprite … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Once more unto the park! Much Ado About Nothing celebrates the homecoming of the Freewill Shakespeare Festival, a review

The season in Edmonton theatre: the 2025-2026 Sterling nominations, led by Cyrano de Bergerac

Posted on June 20, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca An exuberant, verse- and action- filled new adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac, proved the jurors’ top choice as nominations for the 37th annual Sterling Awards were announced this week. Named for theatre pioneer Elizabeth Sterling Haynes, … Continue reading →

Posted in News/Views | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on The season in Edmonton theatre: the 2025-2026 Sterling nominations, led by Cyrano de Bergerac

New season new boss at Shadow Theatre: meet artistic director Lana Michelle Hughes

Posted on June 16, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca New season. New boss. At Shadow Theatre, Lana Michelle Hughes, the company’s multi-talented new artistic director (only their second in a 33-year history), has announced an all-Canadian quartet of productions. Hughes’ debut lineup has a striking … Continue reading →

Posted in News/Views, Previews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on New season new boss at Shadow Theatre: meet artistic director Lana Michelle Hughes

Much ado about … something big! Freewill Shakespeare Festival is (finally) back in Hawrelak Park, with two shows

Posted on June 11, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca They’re back! Finally. In the park where they belong…. When Benedick and Beatrice, the witty sparring partners of Much Ado About Nothing, take their “merry war” to the Heritage Amphitheatre in newly re-opened Hawrelak Park Wednesday, … Continue reading →

Posted in Previews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Much ado about … something big! Freewill Shakespeare Festival is (finally) back in Hawrelak Park, with two shows

A Michelin star performance by Andrew MacDonald-Smith in Fully Committed, at Teatro Live!, a review

Posted on June 7, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca A phone starts ringing before our unemployed actor hero even arrives at his day job for a shift in the underworld — at the reservation desk hidden in the nether regions of the hottest, hippest Manhattan … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on A Michelin star performance by Andrew MacDonald-Smith in Fully Committed, at Teatro Live!, a review

An ‘industrial puppet symphony’ by the transgender/gender-diverse community: Fantasies in Trash: in eleven movements, at Nextfest. A preview

Posted on June 5, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca “It’s not a play it’s a puppet show!” declares Emilia Fox Hillyer, the artist who instigated and “assembled” Fantasies in Trash: in eleven movements. The collectively written “industrial puppet symphony” that opens Saturday at Nextfest is … Continue reading →

Posted in Features, Previews | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on An ‘industrial puppet symphony’ by the transgender/gender-diverse community: Fantasies in Trash: in eleven movements, at Nextfest. A preview

Where the human and animal worlds meet: The Bin, at Nextfest. Meet playwright Lexi House

Posted on June 4, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca “I’ve never written a play before,” says Lexi House. It’s a declaration of artistic intent that weaves itself through the fabric of Nextfest like a golden thread. Innovative (by very definition), Edmonton’s multi-disciplinary festival of emerging … Continue reading →

Posted in Features, Previews | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Where the human and animal worlds meet: The Bin, at Nextfest. Meet playwright Lexi House

A June week on E-town stages: two festivals, a multi-character solo show, a drag queen extravaganza, a Pride party …

Posted on June 3, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca A June week in Edmonton theatre: for starters, two festivals, a virtuoso solo show in which one extremely agile actor plays 40 (!) characters, an evening with local drag royalty, a big Pride block party. •The … Continue reading →

Posted in News/Views, Previews | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on A June week on E-town stages: two festivals, a multi-character solo show, a drag queen extravaganza, a Pride party …

Thinking big: the Citadel’s Collider Festival is back with new plays for Size Large stages

Posted on June 2, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca Think big or go … wait. There’s a mantra not often heard in Canadian theatre, where “size matters,” another multi-purpose catchphrase, almost always really means “think smaller.” Thinking big is the agenda of Collider, the festival … Continue reading →

Posted in News/Views, Previews | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Thinking big: the Citadel’s Collider Festival is back with new plays for Size Large stages

All grown up at 31, and forever young: Nextfest, the festival of emerging artists, is back this week

Posted on June 1, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca All grown up, and forever young. That’s Nextfest, the 11-day multi-disciplinary festival of emerging artists that’s been asking “what’s next?” ever since it got dreamed up at Theatre Network in 1996. It’s back Thursday at the … Continue reading →

Posted in News/Views, Previews | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on All grown up at 31, and forever young: Nextfest, the festival of emerging artists, is back this week