Factory Theatre Presents A Daniel MacIvor Double Bill, November 16- December 17

Factory Theatre presents a powerful once in a lifetime double-bill from acclaimed, award-winning playwright Daniel MacIvor. Monster, directed by Soheil Parsa and featuring Karl Ang, will run from November 16-December 10, 2023 in the Studio Theatre; and Here Lies Henry, directed by Tawiah M'Carthy and featuring Damien Atkins, will run from November 23-December 17, 2023 in the Mainspace Theatre.

 

“Seeing Daniel MacIvor's many works over the years has had an indelible impact on me as an artist – his writing is fierce, rigorously intelligent, painfully funny – an absolute dream canvas for any performer. It is an honour to stage them both in my first programmed season as Artistic Director. These works leave nothing for us as artists to hide behind – it is an act of pure connectivity between storyteller and audience – and that connection is all the more potent now, as we contend with what it means to be together again. These plays keep us guessing in a masterful rollercoaster ride of emotions.” - Quotes Mel Hague, Artistic Director, Factory Theatre. 

 

Daniel MacIvor's chilling one-person show returns featuring powerhouse performer Karl Ang. Finalist for the Governor General's Award for Drama, Monster peels back the psychological layers of 16 different characters to reveal the dark heart of individual experience. With a masterful blend of suspense, humor, and raw emotion, Monster invites us to confront fears and embrace the complexities that make us human. 

 

Damien Atkins steps into the iconic role of Henry in Daniel MacIvor's seminal one-person show Here Lies Henry about a man alone in a room with a mission to tell us something we didn't already know. Henry is nervous, a self-proclaimed liar, and compelled by some unknown force to tell his life story. MacIvor's spellbinding head-scratcher of a one-man play twists and turns, flips and sidesteps through Henry's struggle to grasp the meaning of life, love, beauty, death, truth and lies. 

 

Daniel MacIvor (Playwright) has written numerous award-winning plays including See Bob Run, A Beautiful View, Marion Bridge and Bingo! From 1987 to 2007 with producer Sherrie Johnson he ran the successful international touring company da da kamera. There, with long-time collaborator Daniel Brooks, he created the solo plays House, Here Lies Henry, Monster, Cul-de-sac and This is What Happens Next. Recently Daniel wrote the libretto for Rufus Wainwright's Hadrian presented by the Canadian Opera Company, and currently he and producer Marcie Januska run reWork Productions, a touring and development company responsible for the solo plays Who Killed Spalding Gray? and Let's Run Away, and the upcoming documentary feature Everything Is Real Nothing Is True. 

 

Soheil Parsa (Director, Monster) is an Iranian Canadian theatre artist based in Toronto. He is the co-founder and former artistic director of Modern Times Stage Company and has directed over forty productions for the company since its inception in 1989. Soheil's work has been shown in Canada as well as internationally, and has been recognized with numerous awards and nominations. 
 

Karl Ang (Performer, Monster) is currently an actor in Toronto. Recent theatre credits include Baskerville (Thousand Islands Playhouse), Pride and Prejudice (Citadel), Cockroach (Tarragon), Lear (Groundling Theatre), Middletown, Saint Joan (Shaw Festival), Cam Baby (Theatre Mischief), King Lear, A Midsummer Night's Dream (Stratford Festival), The Tempest (Canadian Stage), Madness of the Square (Cahoots/Factory), Twelfth Night, Romeo and Juliet (Driftwood), Banana Boys (fu-GEN), Much Ado About Nothing (Dreamnorth), Dying To Be Sick (Pleiades/NAC).

 

Tawiah M'Carthy (Director, Here Lies Henry) is a Ghanaian born, Toronto based theatre practitioner, notable as a director, playwright and performer. Recent directing credits include Fairview (Canadian Stage / Obsidian Theatre), Death and the King's Horseman (Stratford Festival) and Rihannaboi95 (Young People's Theatre). Recent laywright/Creator credits include Maanomaa, My Brother (Blue Bird Theatre Collective), Black Boys (Saga Collectif), Obaaberima (Buddies in Bad Times Theatre) and Yɛn Ara Asaase Ni (21 Black Futures, Obsidian Theatre). Performing credits include Sizwe in Sizwe Banzi Is Dead (Soulpepper Theatre). 


Damien Atkins (Performer, Here Lies Henry) has performed on most of the major stages across the country. Recent acting credits include: The Sound of Music (Arts Club), Caroline, or Change (Obsidian/Musical Stage); Blithe Spirit, The Shadow of a Doubt, The Ladykillers, Getting Married, Henry V and Sherlock Holmes in The Hound of the Baskervilles and Sherlock Holmes and the Raven's Curse (Shaw Festival). He received a Jessie Award and the Toronto Theatre Critics' Award for Best Actor for Angels in America. He has also received ten Dora Mavor Moore Award nominations (including five in one year, in 2014) for acting and writing, winning four. 

 

Range from $20 – $80.Audiences are invited to select the ticket price option that works best for them to experience theatre at Factory. To purchase tickets, please visit https://www.factorytheatre.ca/. DOUBLE-BILL TICKETS to both productions available on December 3 and 10, 2023 at 2pm.

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