LGBTQIA+ Theatre

In the penultimate installment of the series, Emma Frankland details her experience staging a trans takeover of the canon with a cohort of trans, Two-Spirit, and non-binary artists. The article includes a set of recommendations for creating trans-affirming theatre spaces created by Emma and her collaborators.

AJ Schwartz responds to Will Wilhelm’s recent HowlRound piece about trans inclusivity in theatre casting, arguing that, while that’s important, theatre companies have to go a lot further.

Will Wilhelm argues that trans* actors are particularly skilled at performing gender and questions why it is so rare to see them perform on large stages.

Aley O’Mara reflects on Daniel Winder’s Hamlet and speaks to the lead—trans actor Jenet Le Lacheur—about the titular character in this production being nonbinary and transfeminine.

John Meredith and M Sloth Levine, of StageSource’s Gender Explosion Initiative, discuss ways theatremakers can dismantle stigmas against trans people and continue creating an inclusive theatre scene.

Playwright and performer Rhiannon Collett examines the queer theatre landscape in Toronto.

Arman Heljic uses the play Roma Armee to discuss how European Roma are rejecting their colonial legacy and reclaiming their narrative.

Enid Brain looks at how queer theatremakers can reclaim familiar genres and forms—like musicals and kitchen sink dramas—to create a mainstream queer theatrical culture.

Linnea Valdivia discusses the weight of reviews in theatre, the failure in arts journalism to approach queer stories with respect and empathy, how a critic should react if they misgender an artist, and more.