The new National Centre for New Musicals (NCNM) at Theatre Aquarius in Hamilton is presenting its inaugural Summit this January 25 to 27. The event promises three days filled with showcases of exciting new musicals in development, panel discussions, “provocations with leading voices in the sector,” and opportunities to meet and mingle with creators, directors, music directors, dramaturgs, producers, and fellow lovers of this art form.
Ever since its launch in the spring of 2023, I have wanted to know more about the NCNM, its inspiration and its goals. This summit presented the ideal opportunity for a chat with Theatre Aquarius Artistic Director Mary Francis Moore to find out more about what was behind the almost unheralded creation of the new program.
Moore began her tenure as AD of Theatre Aquarius in 2021, at the tail end of the pandemic, bringing with her the new musical Maggie (Johnny Reid & Matt Murray) that she had been developing at Sheridan College as part of the Canadian Music Theatre Project (CMTP). As well she brought with her a career-long involvement with creating new work (most famously Bittergirl, both the play and musical created with Annabel Fitzsimmons and Alison Lawrence). The result? A large number of submissions of new musicals to Aquarius are “unsolicited, out of the blue.” As she told me, “it was really showing me that people were looking for a path.”
After many discussions with colleagues and theatres around the country as well as internationally, including acclaimed producer Michael Rubinoff, who had founded the CMTP, the NCNM came into being as a small-to-start-with but very ambitious program to not only fill a need, but do so in a new way.
National from the start: First and foremost, it would be fully national from the get-go. Every application would be reviewed by “a jury of interdisciplinary artists from every province and territory, making sure there would be a variety of representation and identities as well as a mix of composers, book writers, directors, dramaturgs, music directors, etc.”
In the first year alone there were 260 applications. The final 25 were then reviewed by an advisory committee co-chaired by Moore, Michael Rubinoff and well-known music director and musical dramaturg Lily Ling. That first year they chose five shows – four in the “development” stream, and one in the “incubation” stream.
The four chosen in the development stream were judged to be ready for some serious development work; the fifth was chosen because it was at an earlier stage – in need of support in developing the original idea into a viable musical form amenable to serious development work.
Crucial to the NCNM vision, Moore told me, was that they did not want to be limited by looking for shows that could or would be produced at Theatre Aquarius (although that would be a long term possibility) but were rather “looking for a way to work together with other companies also doing development work but not duplicating what others are already doing so well, like the Musical Stage Company.”
The answer was to focus on the artists and their projects without preconceived production expectations; to focus on the “idea” inspiring each project. “What we wanted to do,” Moore told me “was to meet the project where it was, to say ‘this is where your project is at now, what do you need?’” In other words, not every show would get a standard two week workshop with a showcase at the end but something more specific, unique to the project and its needs.
For example “one show might need help to develop the vocal score and piano book; another had had a lot of workshops but the book still felt as though it needed work and so they worked with a dramaturge; yet another had a complete score and even a cast album but [they] were really curious about where the show lived theatrically, so they did exploration with movement and a director/choreographer to find the physical language of the piece.”
Also, from the start, the development process has been hybrid: part in person, part online, enabling the program to be truly national, with some creative teams and advisors resident during the process in different parts of the country. And just as crucial: all applications are submitted anonymously, and the creators are not revealed until after the final selection. Only the NCNM producer (now Ashley Ireland) knows the identity of the applicants until projects are chosen.
This January Summit is the culmination of the NCNM’s first two years of developmental work and will feature showcases of (excerpts from) six wildly contrasting new musicals. The list of creators includes some well-known names such as Steven Gallagher and Anton Lipovetsky, who will be presenting The Danish Guest, about Hans Christian Anderson’s 1857 visit to Charles Dickens and the profound impact this had on both their bodies of work. Others have teams where one name is well known and the other less so: Scott Christian and Saleema Nawaz’s period piece, The Blue Castle, a new musical version of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s romance set in 1900 Muskoka; the Indigenous-themed 7 Fires (Landon Doak of Bad Hats and the current hit Narnia, is the composer with Dillan Chiblow creating the book); and another 19th century “true” story set in Toronto, Clown Riot (actor Tyrone Savage is one of the creators).
In contrast, there are two shows created by artist teams entirely new to me: the contemporary The Pryce Academy (book, music and lyrics by Mazin Elsadig and Philip McKee, with additional music by Juan Ayala & Jennifer Ayala Moore) and Out (book by Kalos Chu, music by Ian Chan and lyrics by JuHye Mun).
As Moore said to me, “They are all so different, and so good!” For me, the contrast between the works and the chance to see six different creative teams at work is reason to go and see them all.
For the full program of the summit, as well as cost and other details, please see https://theatreaquarius.org/2026-summit.
The return of After the Rain
After a brilliant premiere at Toronto’s Tarragon Theatre this past summer, the new Canadian musical After the Rain, created by Rose Napoli (book) and Suzy Wilde (music and lyrics) has been through some further workshopping of their already excellent material and will appear in the Azrieli Studio at Ottawa’s National Arts Centre, from February 25 to March 7. Based loosely on real life events, After the Rain, commissioned and produced by the Musical Stage Company and Tarragon Theatre, and directed by Marie Farsi, won rave reviews and sold out houses for its immersive and compelling story of Suzie, a young musician trying to navigate between the demands of performing with the family rock band and figuring out what her own path should be. Alternately moving and very funny, and often both at once, this is a show not to be missed. Apparently, there will be some casting changes to be announced soon for the NAC run, but Annika Tupper, who soared as Suzie and Andrew Penner, who gave a powerful performance as her father and leader of the band, are both returning.
Kimberly Akimbo: Excitement has been brewing since early in the fall about seeing legendary Canadian musical theatre star Louise Pitre (Piaf/Dietrich, Mamma Mia, Les Misérables, Great Comet) take on the role of Kimberly in a new Canadian production of the Broadway hit Kimberly Akimbo. A co-production between the Segal Centre in Montreal, where it is already receiving rave reviews and Mirvish Productions, KA will come to the CAA Theatre as part of the Off-Mirvish season, January 15-February 8. With a Tony Award-winning book by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole) and a Tony Award-winning score by Jeanine Tesori (Fun Home; Caroline, or Change; Shrek, The Musical), KA tells the story of a teenage girl afflicted with a rapid ageing syndrome as she navigates family dysfunction, first love, and potential felony charges but stays adamantly optimistic. Directed by Robert McQueen with choreography by Canadian Allison Plamondon, with an all-Canadian cast including Tess Benger (Titanique) as Kimberly’s mother.
Company: Sondheim is always on the cutting edge, even with his older works, and with the pro-shot of his Merrily We Roll Along currently in movie theatres. Barrie’s award-winning Talk is Free Theatre (TIFT) is bringing a new production of the Sondheim classic Company to the Theatre Centre, from January 15 to February 1.
Jennifer Parr is a Toronto-based director, dramaturg, fight director and acting coach, brought up from a young age on a rich mix of musicals, Shakespeare and new Canadian plays.
