The moving play, Hana’s Suitcase, opens Young People’s Theatre’s 50th anniversary season
Young People's Theatre and Opera Atelier celebrate with a strong roster of new performances.
Two of Toronto's premier performing arts companies are celebrating significant anniversaries this year and to mark the occasion they're treating audiences to some not-to-be-missed performances.
When producer and children's theatre pioneer Susan Rubes founded the Young People's Theatre in 1966, she was guided by one overarching principle: "Only the best is good enough for children." Fifty years later, her belief continues to inform the company's world-class, engaging productions. "The mission of our professional theatre is to make a positive and lasting contribution to children's emotional, social and intellectual development," explains Allen MacInnis, YPT's artistic director. "We have the opportunity to connect children to the absolute joys of being alive … or introducing more serious issues, like the Holocaust in the play Hana's Suitcase, which is opening the 50th season."
The YPT, which is Toronto's oldest professional theatre, marks this milestone year with nine productions, including two world premieres, several musicals, reimagined classics and a theatrical exchange with sister organization, the Seattle Children's Theatre. "Part of the aim of the 50th anniversary season is to make sure more people know how much we do and the impact and reach the YPT has through its drama school, its educational programs and its community involvement," says Mr. MacInnis.
| "Part of the aim of the 50th anniversary season is to make sure more people know how much we do and the impact and reach the YPT has through its drama school, its educational programs and its community involvement." |
| -Allen MacInnis, artistic director, Young People’s Theatre. |
Opera Atelier also celebrates a landmark season, marking the 30th anniversary for the acclaimed baroque opera company. Co-artistic directors Marshall Pynkoski and Jeannette Lajeunesse Zingg founded the organization in 1983 and began presenting full productions in 1985. Since then, Opera Atelier has grown to become the busiest touring opera company in North America.
To what does the company owe three decades of success in North America and abroad? "Opera Atelier productions offer a unique melding of all performing arts disciplines," explains Mr. Pynkoski. "Singing, acting, dancing and orchestral music are all treated as equally important, which results in a uniquely rich theatre experience."
| Dancer Tyler Gledhill (left) appears in Opera Atelier’s production of Armiden. Baobab, a play set in West Africa (right), runs Oct. 13-25. Bruce Zinger |
The company will be honouring its 30th year with a new Canadian production of Mozart's Lucio Silla and a revival of Jean-Baptiste Lully's Armide. "Lucio Silla and Armide are two of Opera Atelier's most important productions. We want to offer our Toronto audiences the opportunity to experience these remarkable pieces," says Mr. Pynkoski.
Then, there's the icing on the cake. To mark its anniversary, Opera Atelier is making its productions more accessible by offering for the first time $15 tickets for young opera fans ages 15-30. "It's one of the most affordable ticket prices of a major performing arts organization in Canada," notes Mr. Pynkoski.
| Hana’s Suitcase opens the YPT’s 50th season, running from Oct. 5 to 30. Purchase tickets online at tickets.youngpeoplestheatre.ca/TheatreManager/1/login or phone 416.862.2222. |
| Performances for Armide (Oct. 22-31) and Lucio Silla (Apr. 7-16, 2016) run at the Elgin Theatre. Tickets are available at ticketmaster.ca or by calling 1.855.985.5000. |
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