The Firehall Reveals Programming For 2023-24 Season

Following a successful 40th anniversary season, The Firehall has announced the programming for its 2023-2024 season.

“One of the greatest joys of choosing work for a season is imagining audiences sitting in the theatre waiting expectantly for the lights to go down and for the fun to begin,” says Artistic Producer, Donna Spencer. “This season, as we bring a mix of all Canadian musicals, dramas and contemporary dance to the Firehall stage, I am excited for when the lights go up and the artists and audiences join together in sharing a one-of-a-kind experience. There is nothing like those connections made during a live performance and the benefits felt when we leave the theatre.”

The Firehall kicks off its 41st season October 13-22, 2023 (opening night on October 17 at 7:30pm) with the world premiere of Pedro Chamale’s Peace Country. Produced by rice & beans theatre and set in the Peace River area of British Columbia, Peace Country examines the stark realities of northern living through the lens of the climate crisis and its effect on towns dependent on the carbon economy for their survival. Follow five friends as they examine intercultural relationships while trying to provide for their families amidst the concern for the effects of climate change.

Etuaptmumk/Two-Eyed Seeing: Ways of Being and Seeing, taking place November 2-5, 2023 (opening night on November 2 at 7:30pm), is a cultural gathering about human-made environmental destruction that invites Knowledge Holders to share stories; environmental activists and academics to be the witnesses; and the community to hold us all together as we walk towards what climate justice and action means to us, through remembering and imagining the stories that we will tell future generations. Brought to the community by Rosemary Georgeson and Lara Aysal, produced by The Only Animal supported by Firehall Arts Center and Vancouver Moving Theatre, and dedicated to X̱aad Kíl Woodrow (Woody) Morrison, Jr.

Ann Mortifee’s Reflections on Crooked Walking will be produced by the Firehall Arts Centre and presented December 2-24, 2023 (opening night on December 6 at 7:30pm). This JUNO Award-nominated family musical tells the tale of four people who find themselves the only ones left awake surrounded by sleeping townspeople. Their journey in search of a cure for the mysterious sleeping sickness leads them down a surprising path of deeper self-awareness.

The Firehall rings in 2024 with Tara Cheyenne Performance’s Pants from January 17 to 20 (opening night on January 17 at 7:30pm). Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg reimagines gender through the movement of the middle-aged body in her solo dance-theatre performance. Pants takes a deep dive into the shallow end of binary conceptions of gender through its alarming comedy and personal storytelling.

Audiences can celebrate the life and work of the late Leonard Cohen from February 3 to March 3, 2024 (opening night on February 7 at 7:30pm) with the return of Chelsea Hotel: The Songs of Leonard Cohen. Written by Tracey Power and Steve Charles, and produced by the Firehall Arts Centre, this audience favourite follows a writer with a tumultuous love life haunted by the memories of the past. He checks into New York’s infamous titular hotel, desperate to find the words and inspiration for his next song. Told through song and old relationships, the production is an inventive fusion of music, dance, and drama embodied as a poetic musical journey of the creative mind, set in a hotel room.

Dive into the pain of solitude with Shay Kuebler’s MOI – Momentum of Isolation March 13-16, 2024 (opening night on March 13 at 7:30pm). Produced by Radical System Art, MOI bases its themes around loneliness and isolation to reveal how social bonds and connections are essential to our humanity. The performance explores the objective and subjective experiences through the individual, the group, and modern society – a society with shifting values and an ever-advancing digital way of life.

Produced by the Firehall Arts Centre, Keith Barker’s This is How We Got Here runs April 13-28, 2024 (opening night on April 17 at 7:30pm). Both heartbreaking and heartwarming, This is How We Got Here follows a close-knit family still dealing with the lingering trauma of an unexpected loss. A mother, father, aunt, and uncle must learn how to move forward after their shared grief as they re-learn how to interact with one another through humour, forgiveness, and love.

Experience Fujiwara Dance’s Eunoia May 8-11, 2024 (opening night on May 8 at 7:30pm). A mesmerizing stage adaptation of Christian Bok’s bestselling book of conceptual poetry, Eunoia is a multi-sensory media experience. Combining artistic expressions and elements of dance, video, music and costuming, this performance employs constraints similar to those found in the book it’s based on through inventive movement and ground-breaking performances.

The Firehall closes its 41st season with Paddle Song May 24-June 2, 2024 (opening night on May 25 at 7:30pm). Written by Dinah Christie and Tom Hill, and produced by the Firehall Arts Centre, Paddle Song reflects the proud legacy of trailblazing Mohawk poet Pauline Johnson in an energetic and humorous one-woman musical. Follow the enigmatic heroine of a performer who embraced her heritage as the daughter of a respected Six Nations Mohawk Chief and an English mother in the late 1800s.

Early Bird passes (4-show Pass, 4-Ticket Flex Pass, and 6-Show Super Pass) and single tickets are on sale now and available online at www.firehallartscentre.ca or by phone at 604.689.0926. Passes range in price from $105 to $199 and single tickets range in price from $25 to $45. Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon performances are pay-what-you-can (PWYC).

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