Theatre New Brunswick announced a big milestone today as they embark on their 50th anniversary season. From September 2018 to April 2019, TNB will be presenting an exciting lineup of seven productions across the province: Any Given Moment, Come Down From Up River, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Gretel & Hansel, Sania the Destroyer, A Brief History of the Maritimes and Everywhere Else, and The Wizard of Oz.
The coming season’s productions will include new work from New Brunswick playwrights including Mona’a Malik, Ryan Griffith, Kim Parkhill and Norm Foster in addition to a partnership with Ship’s Company Theatre of Parrsboro, Nova Scotia.
“It is a rare and extraordinary thing for a theatre company in Canada to turn 50 years old,” said TNB Artistic Director Thomas Morgan Jones.
“This milestone was made possible by generations of audiences and artists, as well as a city and province that has supported the live performing arts. Theatre New Brunswick was created with a mission to provide all of the people of New Brunswick with the highest standard of professional theatre, and as the years have gone on it has deepened its commitment to the province through our Young Company and then our Theatre School. That’s 50 years of theatre and education in our beautiful province!”
Uniting theatre companies from her home province of New Brunswick and current residency of Nova Scotia, Kim Parkhill’s politically charged Any Given Moment touches on the power of fear mongering, concentrating it into the small town setting that so many Maritimers are familiar with. This co-production with Ship’s Company Theatre in Parrsboro, Nova Scotia, will be at Open Space Theatre as well as on provincial tour this September to kick off the season.
Continuing his uniquely Atlantic Canada setting, the premiere of Norm Foster’s Come Down From Up River will delight audiences this November at the Fredericton Playhouse with its humour and emotion. Set in Saint John, it tells the story of a logger that reconnects with old family members, themes of forgiveness abound. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you’ll love the latest from the mind behind Halfway There and Lunenburg.
A production of the C.S. Lewis tale The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe will be coming to the Fredericton Playhouse, Saint John’s Imperial Theatre and Moncton’s Théâtre l’Escaouette this December. This familiar and timeless classic promises costumes and sets of magical proportions and is one show you definitely don’t want to miss out on.
Premiering in March, Ryan Griffith’s A Brief History of the Maritimes and Everywhere Else was written specifically with TNB’s anniversary in mind. Griffith’s characteristically relatable characters will bring this story of New Brunswick and the unknown to life. It’s sure to be a great return from Ryan Griffith. This production will be held at Open Space Theatre as well as on provincial tour.
Coming April 2019 will be TNB’s traditionally obligatory musical finale, none other than The Wizard of Oz. With a full orchestra, commitment from TNB and the Fredericton Playhouse and a professional design team, the TNB Theatre School will present this iconic tale that is sure to wow audiences with the production value of its musical performances and visual effects. It’s bound to be one of the season’s highlights.
Also returning this year will be TNB Young Company for the 44th tour to schools across the province, including two world premiers of productions that were developed specifically for them. For elementary schools, they will be presenting Gretel & Hansel, a Thomas Morgan Jones adaptation of the Grimm fairy tale, Hansel and Gretel. And for middle and high schools they will be premiering New Brunswick author and playwright Mona’a Malik’s Sania The Destroyer, which is all about growing up Muslim in Atlantic Canada.
Subscriptions are on sale now, and are available at the Fredericton Playhouse Box office. TNB Ultimate Subscriptions are $139 ($75 for students) + HST and include Any Given Moment, Come Down From Up River, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, A Brief History of The Maritimes and Everywhere Else, The Wizard of OZ, and a special performance of both TNB Young Company Shows Gretel & Hansel and Sania The Destroyer. TNB Playhouse Subscriptions are $97 ($45 for students) + HST and include Come Down From Up River, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, and The Wizard of OZ. Individual tickets go on sale July 23rd, 2018.