Tue Oct 8 | SEASON OPENER | Named by The Globe and Mail as a Canadian Cultural Icon in 2022, Cliff Cardinal is a polarizing writer and performer known for his black humour and compassionate poeticism. His AS YOU LIKE IT, A RADICAL RETELLING, commissioned by Toronto’s Crow’s Theatre, has been performed across Canada and in New York, was shortlisted for the Ontario Trillium Book Award, and was the recipient of the prestigious Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama.
The title of William Shakespeare’s AS YOU LIKE IT holds a double meaning that teasingly suggests this is a play to please all tastes. Is it possible? With his subversive updating of the Bard’s classic, cultural provocateur Cardinal seeks to find out. The show exults in bawdy humour, difficult subject matter, and raw emotion.
It first debuted in Toronto September 2021 — as theatres started to re-open after the pandemic hiatus — with great mystery, little detail, and many questions. How was an acerbic, mischievous Indigenous playwright going to take on this classic of Western theatre, one of Shakespeare’s most accessible and whimsical plays?
The twist was an innovative re-interpretation of the story into an examination of the relationship between the Indigenous and settler communities and the state of the reconciliation process. A land acknowledgement, if you like it.
Called “a liberating night at the theatre; brutally funny and honest” by The Globe & Mail and a “thrilling tour de force performance” by CTV — ArtSpring is very pleased to present this powerful production.
Thank you to The Reinette Foundation and Debbi and Mark Toole for sponsoring this performance.
