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Derrick Chua 2026 Toronto Fringe Picks

  • Derrick Chua
  • Jun 19
  • 15 min read

Updated: Jun 22

Welcome to my annual Fringe Picks - a totally subjective guide based on my personal taste and experience, and knowledge of the work of the artists involved. I've gone through all 123 shows listed and described in the Fringe program and website. As usual, I’ve divided my picks into different categories which may help focus on what your preferences are. I emphasize that I have not actually seen these shows, but hope you find it helpful in planning your Fringe. And certainly let me know any others YOU are looking forward to.

 

Shows are listed in alphabetical order within the categories, and the page numbers refer to the show’s listing in the Fringe Program. Or click on show title to go to Fringe show page. Info based on what was on Fringe program and website, so if any errors / changes / updates, let me know. Thank you for supporting the Toronto Fringe.

 

Derrick Chua

 

 

FOUR AWARD WINNERS

 

Fringe Insiders are likely aware that the Toronto Fringe operates activities year-round, including annual contests and other opportunities for artists. These four shows have been awarded prizes by various selection committees, so will certainly be worth your consideration.

 

This 2026 New Play Contest winner by Rhoma Spencer, who also directs, follows a queer Trini-Canadian Carnival costume designer whose uncompromising artistic vision drives her to create a mas rooted in the buried histories of the Black diaspora.  This Caribbean production for Canadian stages is rooted in the vibrant, complex world of Carnival, exploring the powerful intersection of culture, Queer identity, and resistance. The cast includes Uche Ama, King Cosmos (Henry Gomez), KayGeni, Thomas Fournier, Keira Marie Forde, Theresa Gomes.

 

First runner-up for the Adams Prize for Musical Theatre, this original dystopian musical is by Fynn Cuthbert and Brittany Miranda. Here we meet Rowan, a Torontonian stuck in the daily grind who meets the woman of his dreams, then meets his untimely demise. But in the place between life and death, he discovers that he faces a choice: move on or return to Earth and relive his life. Directed by Saphire Demitro, it stars Justan Myers-Chapman, Taryn Wichenko and Michelle Chew.

 

Written by Diane Currie Sam & Jessica Carmona, this is the winner of both the Adams Prize for Musical Theatre and the Tom Hendry Award for Musicals, so quite a feat. Olivia O tells the story of a 14-year old undocumented immigrant who is separated from her mother at the US-Mexican border and sent to an abusive foster home, while her aunt builds a community of support and activism in an effort to find her and reunite families separated by cruel immigration policies. Large cast includes Valeria Aceves, Ceci Nicoli, Veronica Marín-Estrada, Kevin Forster, Gabriela Velasquez, Cristian Wadsworth Vargas, Samuele Galli, Fatima Sanchez, Anthony Chow, Cristina Paoletta, Ana Sofía Ferrer, Nick Ritchey.

 

No surprise that PointeTango Dance has been awarded the inaugural B Street Collaborative Award for Dance, a juried contest for dancers/choreographers with a new, previously unproduced dance/movement piece. Certainly familiar to Fringers from previous work such as Tango In The Dark and Into The Tango, PointeTango’s new production blends Argentine tango with classical ballet, interwoven with cinematic projections filmed on location in Buenos Aires, performed by 2025 Canadian Tango Champions Erin Scott-Kafadar and Alexander Richardson.

 

 

FOUR FROM FRINGE TOURING VETERANS

 

The artists featured in these four shows are all veterans of the Fringe touring circuit, and for good reason. I have seen them all in multiple shows, and can definitely confirm why audiences flock to their shows wherever they go.

 

Greek/Canadian comedian and viral sensation Anesti Danelis returns to Toronto Fringe with this Ver 2.0 update of his hit musical comedy special, following sold-out runs at Edinburgh, Melbourne and Sydney festivals. Anesti has to write a comedy special, but he doesn't know what to write about, and he doesn't really want to do the work. So he does what everybody does and outsources creativity to ChatGPT. Which doesn't really know who Anesti is and keeps asking for more data. Part experiment and part re-telling of the actual time he asked AI to write him a show, Anesti uses songs, jokes, and video to debate the merits of "AI creativity" and our reliance on algorithms constantly telling us who we should be.

 

Jon Blair is well known to Fringers from many solo and sketch comedy shows. He returns this year with a show that has already been a sold-out hit at the Edmonton Fringe. Set in a post-apocalyptic settlement where comedy is a questionable but beloved survival skill, the show combines sketch, music, and theatrical storytelling. Equal parts absurd and thoughtful, it’s a playful examination of what comedy is for when everything else has fallen apart, that Jon hopes will have you saying "Alright, I guess he still serves a function in this community!"

 

If you are a Fringe Insider, here’s my tip for you on this one. Just book your tickets NOW. I saw this show at Montreal Fringe where it won the Outstanding English Production award, before embarking on a sell-out Fringe tour including Edmonton and Victoria. It’s sweet, funny, just an absolute delight. No surprise considering its pedigree, starring two multiple award-winning Fringe legends Alex Dallas (Horseface, Sensible Footwear) and Jimmy Hogg (The Potato King, and current show which you should also catch at this Fringe, MASHED), directed by James Gangl (Sex, Religion & Other Hang-Ups) who knows a thing or two about Fringe tours himself..

 

Fringers will certainly be familiar with long-time international tour staple Australian-born Jon Bennett (Fire in the Meth Lab, Pretending Things Are A Cock, My Dad’s Deaths (A Comedy)), who is back in Toronto Fringe for the first time since 2019. Since then he has been forced back to his roots in rural Australia and his conservative, religious family for over 18 months before finally finding a way back to the United States. Where he is arrested upon arrival at the airport. Can’t wait to hear all about it! Assuming he makes it across the border into Canada.

 

 

FOUR NEW MUSICALS

 

While I am once again organizing the Alliance for Canadian Musicals which has eight musicals playing at Theatre Passe Muraille alone, the Fringe as a whole is rich with musicals - over 20 this year! Here are four new original musicals that particularly caught my eye, though I certainly plan to see every musical at Fringe myself, and hope you join me for as many as you can.

 

Camp (p. 63)

Mixtape Projects and Bravo Academy are two companies that have storied histories with musicals at Toronto Fringe, and this year they are joining forces to present Camp with music & lyrics by Ben Kopp, book and direction by Margot Greve, the same duo behind last year’s smash hit Iris (says goodbye), and previously Killing Time: A Game Show Musical. Cast entirely with teens (John Beer Principe, Kayla Morgan, Alicia Goncalves, Jordan Gurbin, Arabella Ho, Cameron Kuwayti, Elliot Metcalf, Fern Wallenberg), Camp explores friendship through the eyes of Nova and August, best friends since their first year at Camp Clover, until something comes between them as 17-year olds returning to camp, so what happens when they grow apart.

 

First Kiss (p.63)

I have to admit that I know First Kiss writer & composer Nathalie Younglai primarily from her work in film & tv, as writer / producer on shows like Coroner and Spencer Sisters, writer on Kids TV shows like Magic School Bus Rides Again and 16 Hudson, and founder of BIPOC TV & Film. So it’s a thrill to see her stretch her theatre chops to this coming-of-age 80s musical about a socially awkward teen yearning for her first kiss before she turns 16 in the suburbs, but life is not a John Hughes rom-com for an Asian girl like her! Starring Canadian Screen Award winner Josette Jorge, directed by Damon Bradley Jang (director of last year’s Fringe hit Who Drinks Mocktails on the Beach?), the musicians include Joe Bowden, Lisa Tobias & Rachelle Younglai.

 

This new experimental musical is a dream collaboration between two of Canada’s most exciting creative talents, composer Kevin Wong (known to Fringe audiences for musicals Polly Peel and Drama 101, among other work including In Real Life and Soft Magical Tofu Boys) and choreographer Alysa Pires (whose upcoming work includes world premieres for New York City Ballet and Royal Winnipeg Ballet), with Rielle Braid adding dramatugy and co-directing. Here a wacky ensemble (Delia Clark-Bautista, Nathaniel Cadougan, EJ Candelaria, Sarah Evasiw, Claire Haig-Halsall, Violet Legarde, Marissa Monk, Bryan Nothling, Chris Otchere, Helena Shields-Ballantyne) sings and dances through emotionally-linked vignettes inspired by Ghibli cooking scenes, lo-fi study mixes, warm baths, and the quest for existential meaning. A love letter to the ways our modern human experience is at once heartening, confounding, counterintuitive, and everything to us. Can’t wait for this one.

 

Bruce Dow is probably best known as a brilliant musical theatre performer who starred for 12 seasons at Stratford, on five Broadway shows, at Mirvish, Charlottetown, National Arts Centre, etc, and in Man With The Golden Heart at Toronto Fringe. Now he returns as the creator and director of this piece, inspired by the words of Oscar Wilde. An intimate music-theatre meditation on love, sacrifice, and the cost of giving, this new work reframes fairy stories as moral encounters, inviting audiences to reflect on truth, beauty, and what we are willing to give of ourselves. With choreography by Jeff Dimitriou, music direction by Ethan Rotenberg, starring Kendra Dyck, Priya Khatri, Ronan Hayes, Braeden Soltys, Erinn Bekkers.

 

 

FOUR PLAYS

 

These are four plays that intrigued me, mainly because I have had some familiarity with the playwright’s previous work. One has had previous productions with lots of acclaim, while the other three are (to the best of my knowledge) going to be seen by a public audience for the very first time.

 

Gratitude (p.43)

Torontonians may most recently remember writer Oren Safdie from his play Beyond Ken Dryden at Soulpepper just last year but his theatrical work spans almost 30 years, playing off-Broadway, London and many cities including his hometown of Montreal, where this play is set. 15-year-old Dariya is a student at an elite Montreal private school who becomes infatuated with Drew, the class heartthrob, and is torn between her traditional upbringing and a growing desire for freedom and self-discovery. Safdie co-directs with Fatima Lopez, and a cast of Quin Welch, Isaac Silvers, Maya Ousachi and Hudson Orfe. Gratitude has received critical acclaim from previous productions in Montreal and New York, so looking forward to this Toronto premiere.

 

Buckle up and get ready to join performers Tamara Almeida (also the writer) and Colin Doyle for Imagined Love, directed by half of Toronto Fringe’s favourite clown duo, the multi-talented Amy Lee. As we begin, Ana is freshly heartbroken and avoiding everyone, including herself, but develops an unexpected companion for connection with her AI chatbot. An ex-situationship, shaky mental health and technology collide, forcing Ana to finally wake up. With dramaturgy by Haley McGee, I’m looking forward to hearing Almeida’s voice as an emerging playwright.

 

Nostos (p.47)

Fringe-goers will be well familiar with Nowadays Theatre and playwright / director Mohammad Yaghoubi from previous works Winter of 88, Dance of Torn Papers and Earworm. In this dark comedy, two talking dogs and an android observe the fragile relationship of two Iranian-Canadian women running a dog-sitting business in Toronto as they respond differently to a nationwide uprising in Iran. An exploration of longing, identity and solidarity, it stars Aida Keykhaii, Mahsa Ershadifar, Parya Heravi, Tina Bararian and Tara Rafieipour.

 

who? hú 狐 (p.62)

This is written by Antong Xu, whose work I’ve seen through Tarragon’s Emerging Playwrights and fu-Gen Potluck Festival, as well as UnMute previously at Fringe. Definitely interesting to me that who? is a bilingual play from this emerging writer. Set in the aftermath of a shattered world, in a cave on the edge of survival, two immigrants struggle to protect the fragile life they have built together. When a mysterious fox that may be more than a fox arrives, the boundaries between human and animal, trust and hunger, myth and violence begin to dissolve. It’s directed by Daisy Mengru Jia and stars Jing Cui, Muhammad Akbar Lashari, RX Wang and Antong Xu.

 

 

FOUR SHOWS THAT MAY FEEL LIKE YOU’VE SEEN THEM BEFORE, BUT NOT

 

These four shows are evolutions of work that has come before, but with entirely new productions that I think will be well worth seeing.

 

After an entirely sold-out run at last year’s Fringe, Galen’s Grocer returns… as a musical! Playwright Ian Yamamato and director Dave Barclay return, along with cast members Thomas Sharpe, Lance Oribello, Gunjan and Nitin Anand, joined in this musical version by composer James Atin and new performer Allison Mah. Galen Easton remains the most hated man in Canada, still needs to improve his image by trying to make a tv sitcom about how hard it is to run a grocery store, but this year, with songs! After all, who can resist the power of a good melody.

 

Little One (p.27)

Director Alice Lundy made a tremendous impression on Fringe audiences last year with her production of The Adding Machine, staged in the historic Burroughs Building. This year she returns to the same Queen St. W Puppy Sphere location with a new production of Hannah Moscovitch’s play set in a Toronto condo building. The two adopted siblings are played by two terrific performers, Wayne Burns & Izzi Nagel, the play is by one of Canada’s best writers, and with the room’s limited capacity, this one is sure to sell out as quickly as last year.

 

I vividly remember watching the world premiere of this award-winning play by Cree-Salteaux performer and playwright Darla Contois at the 2017 SummerWorks Festival, a few years after she had graduated from the Centre for Indigenous Theatre (CIT). Now Contois’ powerful solo drama about a Cree teenager trying to fit in a new school returns with a new performer, Jaeli Bruno from Onion Lake Cree Nation, SK, as she graduates from CIT. Directed then and now by Ed Roy.

 

Cheating a bit sneaking this one into this category, because you will clearly have never seen this show before since it will be improvised on the spot. But it may feel familiar because it’s created by Ruth Goodwin & Liz Johnston who were behind the similarly improvised Best of Fringe hit Entrances and Exits, with many talented comedic performers that Fringers would certainly know from various shows at Fringe, Second City, Comedy Bar, etc: Conor Bradbury, Ruth Goodwin, Brandon Hackett, Liz Johnston, Paloma Nuñez, Sharjil Rasool and Christian Smith, as well as director Carly Heffernan.

 

 

FOUR COMEDIES

 

When you just want to laugh and not necessarily think too much, these four comedies will likely provide some hilarious entertainment.

 

Perennial favourites 2-Man No-Show return to Toronto Fringe with their latest absurdity titled Balls Out. Tag-team duo Isaac Kessler and Ken Hall have made a huge impression on Toronto Fringe for years, both individually and as a duo, and they are joined here by musical maniac Gordon Neill. I have no idea what this show is about… frankly, I rarely do when these two get together, even after seeing the show, but if you’re looking for undefinable bizarre comedy that is often laugh-out-loud funny, this would be a good bet.

 

Following last year’s success with Very Shady Arab Ladies, award-winning musician artists Maryem Tollar and Roula Said reunite with HRH Anand Rajaram in this piece filled with “Hag Energy”, the visionary power of older women of colour. When 78-year-old Auntie Ooka miraculously becomes pregnant and speaks only in divine gibberish, the duo is catapulted from a Toronto shawarma shop to the River Jordan trying to survive a world one mad, in this slapstick comedy fused with traditional Arabic melodies. And it’s a true family affair, with Tollar, Said and Rajaram joined on stage by Joska Tollar, Ernie Tollar, Yvette Tollar and Omneya Tollar.

 

Ooga Chaka (p.47)

The Fringe program says this is the 100% historically accurate story of two prehistoric cave painters discovering how to take their stories off cave walls, ending up becoming the world’s first theatre makers, so it must be true! Ethan Zuchkan makes his playwriting debut, smartly surrounding himself with some very talented emerging theatre artists including co-directors 郝邦宇 Steven Hao and Allison MacKenzie, cast Ben Yoganathan, Rachel Cucheron, Kole Durnford, Nick Eddie, Margot Greve, Ben Kopp and Ruaridh MacDonald. Not sure what any of this has to do with the phrase “Ooga Chaka” that I only associate with Hooked On A Feeling, but I look forward to that particular discovery when I see the show.

 

Every night is Opening Night at Mirv-“ish”, where Fringers will have a chance to see seven new musicals here alone, with each being improvised on the spot based on an audience suggestion. Created by Janelle McGuinness, Janek Gonsalkorale, Rachel Sellan, Austin Anonsen, Kara Harun, Meredith Mullen, Mark Brown, Kendall Savage and Victoria Kucher, the music director is James Atin, and directing & coaching is the incomparable Ashley Botting (Ashley With a “Y”, Pick of the Fringe!, Harold Experience), so should be a hoot for comedy & musical fans alike.

 

 

FOUR STORYTELLING SHOWS

 

Two of these are musical and two are more comedic, but all four feature performers that I’ve seen and whose work I’ve admired, who I believe are all exploring and presenting some version of themselves in these shows that should be worth your time.

 

Dads (p.72)

I’m sure we all have our stories about our fathers, so I’m curious about this piece which uses audience interaction, stand-up comedy, games and storytelling, to explore the sometimes complicated, sometimes hilarious, and always impactful relationships we have with the men who made us. Each show also features a different guest comedian sharing a set about their own father, including Jacob Balshin, Ornab Momin, Jon Bennett and Courtney Gilmour. But I’m most interested in this because of the creators, sister-and-brother duo Taylor Trowbridge who writes and performs, and Dylan Trowbridge who directs.

 

I admit the description of “a one-woman musical story about resilience, strength, and becoming, from the dreams of a little girl to the present and beyond.” may feel a bit vague, but I’ve enjoyed Lily Librach’s work before (including in Rosamund: A New Musical at Fringe), and she has two other artists on the project whose work is always terrific: music director Michael Mulrooney and director / choreographer / dramaturg Sarah O’Brecht, so looking forward to seeing how this goes.

 

Lifeguard (p.73)

While I’ve known Kathryn Haggis as a performer, comedienne and storyteller for many years, I actually had no idea she was also an NCCP certified swimming coach, aquatics instructor and lifeguard! Which makes so much sense hearing about this solo piece directed by Tracey Erin Smith, with dramaturgy by Judith Thompson. We’re told to “think Graywatch, not Baywatch”, as she offers a poignant reflection on the importance of water in her and our everyday lives. A story for anyone that has stood watch over others while quietly trying to keep their head above water, and a reminder that while AI can process a lot of data, only a real person can pull you to safety.

 

Will Parry is a proudly Queer emerging actor-singer-content creator who works in theatre as both a performer and educator. Here he is hosting a musical theatre vinyl slumber party (no pyjamas required, but clothing kindly encouraged) promising to be a cozy cabaret-ified gossip sesh is all about thrifted LPs, the power of song, emotional healing... and Ethel Merman. Featuring songs from favourite musicals including Into the Woods, Sweet Charity and more, it’s directed by Dean Deffett, music directed by Ben Kersey and dramaturged by Ryan G. Hinds.

 

 

FOUR TO TAKE A CHANCE ON

 

Couldn’t resist one final category with four shows that just jumped out as being unique in some way or other. A significant aspect of the Sprit of the Fringe after all is to just take a chance on something that you don’t know anyone in and may have no idea about what to really expect.

 

“Crucified Woman” is the name of a statue that you can still visit today at University of Toronto’s Emmanuel College as a reminder of the violence women face throughout the world. Crucified Woman the play is happening at College Street United Church, and is written and directed by its minister Reverend Jeffrey Dale, telling the story of renowned author Margaret Laurence seeing the statue, professing her belief in God, then as a result experiencing threats to ban her books across the country. I’m certainly intrigued.

 

Cusp (p.39)

I quite enjoyed seeing the work of the graduating students of George Brown Theatre School this past year, so excited to see that a group of them were chosen for Fringe and have collectively created this piece inspired by Uncle Vanya, bringing in director Tanya Rintoul to take the helm. What happens when you have your whole life ahead of you and anything is possible? Philip Diamond, Jaiden French, Kimia Kalantari, Jack Emerson Mosney, Kaleb Piper, Dale Rideout, Katya Podlesnaia and Chrisevina Tsoura play a group of twenty-somethings spending the summer at a cottage where boredom is calcifying, romantic tensions are mounting, family dynamics are sharpening, and no one really knows what the f*ck they are going to do next.

 

He-r’tz (p.55)

I chose this one because it’s described as an original interdisciplinary physical theatre production about displacement, memory and survival. As its centre is "Jo", not a single person, but the embodiment of a generation in diaspora shaped by political upheaval and the search for sanctuary. Through stylized movement, high-tension soundscapes, and immersive storytelling, He-r'tz places the audience inside that journey. I’m honestly not at all sure what to expect after all that, but it’s created by Suki Cheung, choreographed by Carmen Leardi and the cast includes Lilly Battista, Alia Etienne, Irene Leung, Jessica Li, Wai Liu and Zahshanné Malik.

 

This definitely sounds like one of the most elaborate shows at Fringe, described as immersive time travel adventure with a mission to infiltrate and manipulate a 1926 New Year’s Eve speakeasy, retrieving ten historical artifacts - or stay trapped in a time loop. Audiences are encouraged to “Dress to impress, secure a cocktail, make new friends, and team up for this thrilling escapade!”. Performed at Society Clubhouse, with cast Angela Stevenson, Anjali Rai, Cassidy Sadler, Jing Cui, Karen Scora, Madelaine Rose, Shana Rose and Julie Cohn who also directs, there is a 30-min cocktail reception prior to the 60-min caper / main event.

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