My goodness! Here we are with the final Waiting in the Wings of the year! I have no clue how 2023 has gone by so quickly, but I figure it must be because I’m doing what I love, which I’m only able to do thanks to you, my readers. There are plenty of awesome things that I’ll be able to see this month, and check out Beyond the Box for the productions I won’t be able to make it to this month.

SWEETER – Cahoots Theatre

With its sole production of the 23/24 season, Cahoots Theatre makes an inspired foray into TYA and all-ages fare with the world premiere of Sweeter, by Alicia Richardson. Produced in association with Roseneath Theatre, Sweeter was initially penned in Cahoots’ Hot House playwrights’ unit in 2016. The play takes us to the American south in 1887, where we meet an African-American girl named Sweet Pea and her widowed father Ralph. Newly emancipated after years of enslavement, Ralph longs to fulfill the dream of a free future and a new life for himself and his daughter. When he finds promising work on a small farm, however, all is not as it seems. Meanwhile, his daughter makes a best friend that nobody expected, and the landowner has plans of his own.

December 2 – 17

Aki Studio Theatre – 585 Dundas St. E

Sweeter | A Production by Cahoots Theatre

Chris, Mrs. – A New Holiday Musical – Boldly Productions

Ring in the holiday season with the Chris family, where the everyday collides with the enchanted. Full of mischief and mistletoe, twisted ankles and tangled heartstrings, Chris, Mrs. is a heart-warming story that will make you laugh and is bound to be your new holiday musical tradition!

December 5 – 31

The Wintergarden Theatre – 189 Yonge St.

Chris, Mrs. – A New Holiday Musical | On Sale Now (chrismrs.com)

Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of The Temptations – Mirvish Productions

Nominated for 12 Tony® Awards and the winner of the 2019 Tony Award for Best Choreography, it’s a thrilling story of brotherhood, family, loyalty, and betrayal during a decade of civil unrest in America. Set to the beat of the group’s treasured hits, including “My Girl,” “Just My Imagination,” “Get Ready,” and “Papa Was a Rolling Stone,” Ain’t Too Proud tells the unforgettable story of the legendary quintet that Billboard Magazine named the greatest R&B group of all time.

December 7-17

CAA Ed Mirvish Theatre – 244 Victoria St.

Mirvish.com: Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of The Temptations

Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 – Crow’s Theatre and The Musical Stage Company

Crow’s Theatre and The Musical Stage Company present the long-awaited Canadian premiere of the Broadway phenomenon NATASHA, PIERRE & THE GREAT COMET OF 1812 by Dave Malloy.

This 12-time Tony-nominated musical delivers a radically contemporary and moving take on Tolstoy’s War and Peace with its audacious storytelling and groundbreaking score that mixes indie rock, pop, folk, electronic dance, and classic Broadway music.

Winner of two Tony Awards, three Lucille Lortel Awards, the Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best New Musical, a Special Obie Citation, and the Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater, NATASHA, PIERRE & THE GREAT COMET OF 1812 is “the most innovative and the best new musical to open on Broadway since Hamilton” (The New York Times). 

December 5 – January 21

Streetcar Crow’s Nest Guloien Theatre – 345 Carlaw Avenue

Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 – Crow’s Theatre (crowstheatre.com)

Hypothetical Baby – Presented by The Howland Company

An unintended pregnancy, followed by an unhelpful doctor’s appointment, leads to a Christmas Eve abortion and one woman’s reckoning with the practical and existential considerations in deciding to become a parent… or not. Hypothetical Baby is a time-travelling exploration that grapples with the personal and societal factors that shape our reproductive lives and the intricate relationship between choice, change, and loss. From the creator of the award-winning Aborsh podcast, Rachel Cairns mixes data and drama in this autobiographical work to publicly talk about abortion the way we do privately — with neurotic vulnerability, unflinching honesty, and frank irreverence.

December 8 – 17

Tarragon Extraspace – 30 Bridgman Avenue

Hypothetical Baby – Tarragon Theatre

It’s A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play – Young People’s Theatre

The true spirit of the season comes to life in this beloved classic, adapted as a 1940’s radio broadcast before a live audience — you and the kids! Enjoy all the fun of live sound effects, retro jingles — and holiday time together.

Transport yourself to 1945 Bedford Falls, as an ensemble cast of five retells the story as a vintage radio broadcast. Watch as each actor doubles as a foley artist (someone who creates amazing sound effects), producing a playful acoustic backdrop!

It’s a snowy Christmas Eve and George is struggling with an unfulfilled life of big dreams and even bigger disappointments. A lovable guardian angel by the name of Clarence appears and takes George under his wing, revealing what life might have looked like without him in it. In the true spirit of the holidays, George is reminded how precious life is, and the value of family, community and love.

November 20 – December 30

Ada Slight Stage – 585 Dundas St. E

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE | Young People’s Theatre (youngpeoplestheatre.org)

The Hands of Hypatia – Dandelion Theatre with Outside the March and The Ontario Arts Council

Planet Earth is gone, exploded two hundred years ago by the cosmic giant Hypatia. Now, humanity’s sole survivor, Adamah Borealis, wanders the starways with her cyborg companion Shem in search of new life and old memories. When a mysterious benefactor enlists her services, Adamah must scour the universe for a clean energy source. Her search leads her through the vast cosmos, back to the very hands that sent her out two hundred years ago. Along the way, she discovers the most ancient secrets of the universe, and just how significant one life can be.