Category Archives: Previews

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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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Suddenly, amazingly, it’s starting: Edmonton’s summer festival season

Posted on May 26, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca Edmonton’s magic box, the season of summer (and summer-ish) festivals, opens this very week on stages here. And that’s just the start (think Pandora). Common Ground Arts’ RISER New Works Festival, designed to support, profile, and … Continue reading →

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A new Canadian rom-com is the season finale at L’UniThéâtre (and other theatre too this weekend)

Posted on May 22, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca The grand finale of L’UniThéâtre’s all-Canadian season is a premiere: a new rom-com by an Edmonton theatre artist, set in a small Franco-Albertan village. Sophie Gareau-Brennan’s bouanderie/boulangerie — doesn’t laundry/bakery sound so much better in French? … Continue reading →

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A weekend to be in the theatre! So many choices, so little time. A 12thnight survey

Posted on May 8, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca Put down your rakes, and your clickers, people. There’s a veritable explosion of theatre happening on Edmonton stages this weekend. A surfeit of possibilities: so many choices, so little time. At Shadow, it’s a comedy of … Continue reading →

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