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Culture Theatre

SummerWorks replaces August fest with summer of free content

The SummerWorks Performance Festival has postponed its 30th annual edition – originally scheduled for August – but in its place it’s offering a constant stream of free programming that can be enjoyed remotely from May through September.

“Since the scope of the COVID-19 health crisis came into full view, bearing witness to the steady losses felt by our performance community has been devastating,” said artistic and managing director Laura Nanni in a press release today.

“As we continue planning, our community remains at the centre of our activities. Our decisions are guided by a desire to reflect SummerWorks’ mission to expand the possibilities of performance, and to integrate our core values of care, collaboration, creative risk, curiosity, diversity and difference, in all that we do.”

Of all Toronto’s festivals, SummerWorks has always been the most adventurous in terms of exploring what’s possible using emerging technologies. Past editions have included one-on-one phone shows, guided walking tours and near-scavenger-hunt-type interactive experiences that could possibly be achieved adhering to current physical distancing guidelines.

Nanni says that, because of COVID-19, the festival recognized that it could not move forward in the usual way before programming was confirmed and announcements made.

“We were fortunate to have enough time to adjust, be responsive in this moment, and dramatically reimagine our plans,” Nanni says. “Our values are leading our goals for this summer, which are to engage and connect as many artists as we can, to ensure programming is accessible, to honour all staff and contractor agreements made prior to COVID-19, and to be responsible to the health and vibrancy of our community. It is also crucial for us to work in collaboration with as many other arts organizations as possible, because we can always accomplish more and make the most positive impact together.”

The newly reimagined season begins May 29 with Essential Play, a nation-wide virtual party presented in partnership with Canadian Stage and Club Quarantine.

Other collaborators taking part in the months-long season include the AMY Project, Outside the March, Generator, the Stratford Festival Lab, the Theatre Centre and the Toronto Fringe Festival.

Details and line-up about Essential Play will be announced in a few weeks, with programming for the later months to follow.

@glennsumi 

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