Jessica Munk and Erum Khan in Concord Floral.Erin Brubacher
Concord Floral
"All parents are a little stupid," says one of the 10 young characters in Jordan Tannahill's Concord Floral. "They need to make themselves that way or they'll go insane worrying about all the things they secretly know to be true." Smart kid. Smart play. Best summed up as a mix of television's Degrassi, the slasher film I Know What You Did Last Summer and the British teen drama Skins, the Dora Award-winning thriller concerns a suburban legend about an abandoned greenhouse and delivers a lesson on the matter of forsaken teenagers. Oct. 4 to 16 (previews begin Sept. 27). $39 to $79. Bluma Appel Theatre, 27 Front St. E., 416-368-3110 or canadianstage.com.
Cecilia String Quartet
The four women of the internationally acclaimed Cecilia String Quartet are known for their musical togetherness and delicate proficiency. On Sunday, the troupe will open the Mooredale Concerts season with a program of Haydn and Mendelssohn, operating no doubt sublimely in the keys of B minor and D major, respectively. Sept. 25, 3:15 p.m. $20 to $30. (also, at 1:15 p.m., a family-friendly program, $20.) Walter Hall, 80 Queen's Park Cres., 416-922-3714, ext.103 or mooredaleconcerts.com.
Star Trek
Not only was "To boldly go where no man has gone before" a heady lead-in for a sci-fi television series in the 1960s, the mandate applied to the show's groundbreaking scripts, too. In an era of racial and international tensions, the Starship Enterprise was manned by a crew of varying ethnic backgrounds and led by a manly Captain Kirk with an open mind when it came to his romantic swashbuckling. In celebration of Star Trek's 50th anniversary, marathon screenings pay special attention to Ricardo Montalban, Spock's relentless sex drive, and space hamsters that are more tribble than they're worth. Sept. 24 and 25, 2 p.m. Free. TIFF Bell Lightbox, 350 King St. W., tiff.net.
Noises Off
Sure, you could head to Broadway to check out Michael Frayn's hilarious 1982 comedy. Or you could pop down to the Distillery District, a neighbourhood newly accessible by streetcar. There the Soulpepper theatre company will present the farce-within-a-farce about an oddball company of actors who struggle with their chosen occupation. A plate of sardines is involved, as are all manner of backstage shenanigans. Thankfully, Ted Dykstra directs a cast that is more capable than the one it portrays. Sept. 29 to Oct. 22 (now in previews). $32 to $96. Young Centre, 50 Tank House Lane, 416-866-8666 or soulpepper.ca.
Word on the Street
After nearly a dozen years in Queen's Park, in 2015, the annual literary event moved to Harbourfront Centre, where readings and other writerly events will happen on Sunday. Highlights include the appearances of last year's Giller Prize winner André Alexis (whose new novel The Hidden Keys unlocks the inspiration of Robert Louis Stevenson), the witty Globe and Mail contributor John Semley (whose This Is a Book About the Kids in the Hall explains itself) and the Man Booker Prize contender Lisa Moore (whose Flannery is her first book for young readers). Sept. 25, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Free. Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay W.), thewordonthestreet.ca.
Brad Wheeler