LUNCHBOX THEATRE
Who doesn’t love a bite-sized play? Lunchbox’s season kicks off with Beyond the Sea (Oct. 14 to Nov. 2, 2025), a romantic comedy described by Lunchbox’s artistic director, Bronwyn Steinberg, as “a meet-cute for lost souls.”
Carrying on the success of last year’s Remembrance Day programming, the second show of the season is Ridge (Nov. 5 to 16, 2025), which blends stories from the frontlines of Vimy Ridge with the musical stylings of Canadian folk duo The Fugitives.
How Patty and Joanne Won High Gold at the Grand Christmas Cup Winter Dance Competition (Nov. 25 to Dec. 21, 2025) rings in the festive season with lots of laughs and tap-dancing.
With the new year comes Ribstone (Jan. 21 to 25, 2026), written and performed by Christopher Hunt, and co-presented with One Yellow Rabbit’s High Performance Rodeo. With his banjo in hand, Hunt tells the tale of his family history with old-timey, folksy charm.
The final show of the season is Thank You for Your Order (March 17 to April 14, 2026), which places a “large corporation that will remain nameless” at the centre of a satirical show about modern consumer culture.
ONE YELLOW RABBIT
Speaking of One Yellow Rabbit, the High Performance Rodeo returns for its 40th year in January, running from January 12 to February 2, 2026. While the full lineup of bold and cutting-edge live art isn’t announced until November, OYR has a few early announcements to whet your appetite.
Early in the fest, catch Dream Machine (Jan. 14 to Jan. 24, 2026), a psychedelic foray into the lives of the ’50s Beat generation. As the characters rebel against societal norms, so too does the lighting, sound design, and storytelling of the play. This High Performance Rodeo also features two collaborations with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, starting with It Takes Two: A Symphonic Collaboration (Jan. 23 to 24, 2026). The Calgary Phil teams up with the Calgary Youth Orchestra in an eclectic mix of compositions that leave you vibrating as you leave the theatre.
Next up is Vivek Shraya: One Night Only (Jan. 30, 2026), where Canadian synth-pop artist Shraya gets the operatic treatment with the backing of the orchestra.
THE SHAKESPEARE COMPANY
Get ready for romance with The Shakespeare Company, because they’re producing two very different versions of Romeo and Juliet. The season begins with a traditional take on Romeo and Juliet (Oct. 17 to Nov. 1, 2025), produced in collaboration with Calgary Young People’s Theatre. In this show, you’ll see a rare performance where the actors are actually close in age to the characters!
The following show, Shakespeare’s R&J (Feb. 19 to 28, 2026), couldn’t be more different. This play, created with Sage Theatre, follows four college-age boys who sneak out of their dorms to read and act out the play, and discover how they conform (or don’t conform) to the world they live in.
“I’m really excited about looking at plays from two different angles,” said Shakespeare Company artistic director Richard Beaune. “By looking at a play from two different lenses, we are implying that there is an infinite number of lenses to look at a play through. We imply a whole different world of interpretations.”
The Shakespeare Company takes a break from the Bard for its final show, Tartuffe (May 21 to June 6), a comedy by Molière. This show is a Prime Stock Theatre production.
THEATRE CALGARY
A “Season of Delights” is taking over Theatre Calgary this year. After selling out many shows last year, the season kicks off with the return of Made in Italy (Aug. 26 to Sept. 21, 2025). It’s the first time Theatre Calgary has remounted a show exactly the same, so if you missed this rip-roaring one-man comedy last time, now’s your chance.
The next show is the Hitchcock classic thriller Dial M for Murder (Sept. 30 to Oct. 26). “It’s just filled with intrigue,” said artistic director Stafford Arima. “It’s sexy and it’s mysterious.”
Naturally, A Christmas Carol (Nov. 28 to Dec. 31, 2025) returns for the holiday season. It’s a beloved annual tradition that gives Calgarians the chance to “experience the magic and heartfelt story of good old Scrooge.”
A Tale of the Gifted Prince (Feb. 14 to March 15, 2026) is a musical, crowd-pleasing journey of self-discovery for the whole family.
Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House (April 7 to May 3, 2026) takes to the stage with a new adaptation by Amy Herzog. Arima describes the new adaptation as “clean and contemporary,” all while staying true to the original text.
If you missed it when it hit the Jubilee last year, you’ll want to see Come From Away (May 26 to June 21, 2026) performed in the much more intimate Max Bell Theatre. With a new cast and original choreography, this is a unique experience even for those who know and love the musical.
VERTIGO THEATRE
Vertigo’s season kicks off with the spooky, heartwarming show The Brothers’ Paranormal (Sept. 17 to Oct. 26, 2025). This play follows a pair of ghost-hunting Thai brothers who discover more than they bargained for on a ghost-hunting expedition.
Following on the success of last year’s Agatha Christie mystery Murder on the Links, Vertigo is bringing another Steven Dietz adaptation to the stage with Peril in the Alps (Nov. to Dec. 14, 2025), which aims to be even more intense and mysterious.
After its premiere at Northern Light Theatre in Edmonton last year, Monstress (Jan. 17 to Feb 15, 2026) is coming to Calgary. This twist on the classic Frankenstein story asks the same troubling question: Who is the real monster here?
Next is a traditional whodunnit with A Killing Snow (March 14 to April 12, 2026). Set in a snowed-in cabin in Toronto, this show blends the familiar mystery genre with a modern Canadian sensibility.
Vertigo closes out its season with the North American premiere of The Verdict (May 9 to June 7, 2026). It’s a courtroom drama, the first of its kind for Vertigo. “In a world where we may feel like there isn’t a lot of justice,” said Vertigo’s artistic director, Jack Grinhaus. “In this play, our audiences are going to get the justice they want.”
