February 6, 2015

playGround 2015 opens February 10th

York University’s 23rd Annual playGround Festival is well on its way to being one of the most exciting yet! The festival is spread out over four days (Tuesday, February 10th – Friday, February 13th), and is comprised of many short plays that are divided into two different series.

You may be wondering, “What could all of these little shows be about?” or “How can you tell an entire story in less than 15 minutes?” Well we’re here to help. Since the playground festival is all about short plays, we decided to give you some short summaries. Here are sentence long descriptions of what you can expect from each wonderful show.


SERIES A [TUES, FEB 10 @ 7:30 | WED, FEB 11 @ 7:30 | FRI, FEB 13 @ 1:00]

Lady Pitter Patters and the Eternal Search for Anything

Inspired by childhood diary entries written by company members, this piece looks at how much we have, or have not, changed since we were young.

Like a Bicycle

A piece in the style of Theatre of the Absurd that is inspired by post-9/11 terror and the anxiety that history will repeat itself.

SRY

A dance piece that explores and challenges gender stereotypes and society’s expectations of how a male or female should act.

Kitchen Light

A look at how memory can be warped and become reality, and how that affects the lives of three roommates.

Picture Identity

Picture Identity explores immigration, meanings of home, and passport/visa photo dimensions.

Picture Identity-ed

Picture Identity-ed is a humourous look at the process of putting together a show for playGround while exploring and analyzing the rehearsal process of Picture Identity.


SERIES B [WED, FEB 11 @ 1:00 | THURS, FEB 12 @ 7:30 | FRI, FEB 13 @ 7:30]

Poetry Wars

Two men battle each other using avant-garde poetry from throughout history.

THE PERSECUTION AND ASSASSINATION OF LOVE, AS PERFORMED BY THE INMATES OF ITS HYPOCRITICAL CONFUSION, UNDER THE DIRECTION OF A COMPLETE MANIAC WITH NO HEART AND A FEMALE DRAMATURG

An exploration of what it means to be in love or in a relationship in the 21st century. How do Tinder, online dating, and our busy lives change the value of love?

 Happiness

A man and woman keep each other at arm’s length to maintain the purity and mystery that their relationship once had, but remain stuck in a vicious cycle preventing them from being happy.

Maman Va Asal

Written partly in Farsi, this piece looks at the relationship of a mother and daughter who have just moved from Iran to Canada, and adjusting to this new country while still honouring their roots.

The Stage Manager’s Guide to Dating Assholes

A piece that attempts to give the often-overlooked stage manager a voice on stage, and that focuses particularly on how women in positions of power in the theatre can be taken advantage of.

Shit Show

A one-woman comedy using direct address and audience participation to open up dialogue about pooping- something that is natural and common to each and every living person, but which we are ashamed of and try to sweep under the cover.


These plays are all written, acted, designed, directed, and produced by York students. It is a true reflection of the theatre we make here at York University. With opportunities to see both matinee and evening shows, we highly recommend that you see both Series A and Series B.

The show will be playing in the Joseph G. Green Theatre in the CFT across from the Starbucks. Tickets are on sale now for $7! Please visit http://finearts.yorku.ca/perform/boxoffice to get yours now.