Marty McFly, the Lion King and more: here are some characters to plan a Toronto theatre weekend around.
Toronto has the third-largest English-speaking theatre district in the world, and Mirvish Productions plays a huge role in the local scene.
Attending a Mirvish show is a local rite of passage, and there are productions for every taste. Here are electrifying shows—on now or coming up—that are worth planning your next visit around.
Come From Away
Now through April 6, 2025
After its triumphant return to the Royal Alexandra Theatre, Come From Away officially closes this spring. With an all-Canadian cast and crew, the Tony Award-winning musical follows the remarkably true story of 7,000 passengers stranded in Gander, Newfoundland, the week following 9/11.
A decade in the making, you can learn more about Come From Away’s journey from conception to international hit here.
The Lion King
Now through August 30, 2025
The “circle of life” keeps turning for The Lion King! This Broadway sensation is settling in just fine at its new home at the Princess of Wales Theatre. In fact, the show’s run has just been extended!
The critically acclaimed soundtrack by Elton John and Tim Rice is stunningly materialized with evocative stagecraft and electrifying performances that bring to life the saga of Scar, Mufasa, Nala, Simba and other iconic characters.
Director, costume designer and mask co-designer Julie Taymor—the first woman to win a Tony Award for Best Director of a Musical—remains actively involved in the original and new productions of the show.
Just For One Day
January 26 to March 16, 2025
It’s July 13, 1985, and rock n’ roll is about to change the world…
Forty years later, generations of music lovers have the chance to relive the legacy of Live Aid. The new musical Just For One Day tells the story behind the star-studded two-venue benefit concert that became one of the most influential events in music history and popular culture.
Banding together the most iconic musical artists at the time—including Queen, Madonna, David Bowie, Bob Dylan and Diana Ross (this list barely scratches the surface)—Live Aid ultimately raised $127 million for famine relief in Ethiopia. With an audience of 1.5 billion, the international music event was also one of the largest satellite link-ups and television broadcasts of all time.
Written by John O’Farrell (Mrs. Doubtfire, Something Rotten!) and directed by Luke Sheppard (& Juliet, Starlight Express), its 2024 world premiere at the historic Old Vic (London) became the theatre’s fastest-selling musical of all time.
Become a part of history at the North American premiere of Just For One Day, only at the CAA Ed Mirvish Theatre. Ten per cent of tickets sales will be donated directly to The Band Aid Charitable Trust, a continuation of Live Aid’s fundraising efforts.
Fifteen Dogs
January 28 to February 16, 2025
Two gods walk into a bar. Fifteen dogs gain human consciousness and language. That’s the premise of this quick-witted stage adaption of André Alexis’ Giller Prize-winning novel, translated and directed by Marie Farsi, which certainly puts the dog in dogma.
The powerhouse cast is a delight to watch as they transform between the eclectic dog pack coming to terms with their mortality and the curious deities watching from the sidelines.
An exciting addition to the Off-Mirvish season, this sold-out Crow’s Theatre and Segal Centre for Performing Arts co-production of Fifteen Dogs returns for the first time since its sold-out premiere in 2023. Catch it at the CAA Theatre.
Life After
April 16 to May 4, 2025
Illustrious self-help guru Frank Carter seems to have the answer to everything… though not for everyone.
Frank’s sunny disposition is no match for his daughter’s teenage skepticism. But after his untimely death on her 16th birthday, Alice is left to find her own way to the other side of grief and loss.
Life After is the six-time Dora Mavor Moore award-winning musical created by the acclaimed Britta Johnson.
This heartfelt story has a rich history of development within the Toronto theatre scene–from a Paprika Festival workshop to a Toronto Fringe show to a Canadian Stage and Musical Stage Company co-production.
After its success in the United States, Life After returns to its hometown at the CAA Ed Mirvish Theatre this spring.
Beetlejuice
June 3 to July 19, 2025
Based on the classic Tim Burton film, Beetlejuice follows a young Lydia Deetz in the wake of her mother’s death, as she joins forces with the deceased couple haunting her new (their former) home to get revenge on her neglectful father.
But when push comes to shove, the eccentric teen is forced to partner with the deviously unpredictable poltergeist: Beetlejuice.
Warning: this tongue-in-cheek stage adaptation is as kooky as it is spooky! With an extravagant set that does justice to the iconography of the original film, the music is equally bewitching.
Songs like “Say My Name” and “Girl Scout” have even gone viral on TikTok, introducing a whole new generation to the 1988 classic long before the 2024 sequel was even announced.
Run to the CAA Ed Mirvish Theatre for a show that is simply out of this netherworld.
Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812
July 15 to August 24, 2025
One of the highlights of last year’s Toronto theatre season, Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 had a sold-out run at Streetcar Crowsnest for a record-breaking 16 weeks!
Based on a scandalous 70-page segment of Leo Tolstoy’s War & Peace, the smash hit musical merges Russian folk and classical music with indie rock and electronic dance music.
Award-winning creator Dave Malloy’s modernization breathes new life into the nineteenth-century classic and musical theatre as a form.
This Crow’s Theatre and Musical Stage Company co-production comes to the Royal Alexandra Theatre as part of Mirvish’s main season this summer.
Back to the Future: The Musical
July 23 to August 31, 2025
A blast from the past, the iconic 1985 blockbuster Back to the Future returns to the present with an electrifying stage adaptation.
Winner of the 2022 Olivier Award for Best New Musical, Back to the Future: The Musical features original music by multi-Grammy® winners Alan Silvestri (Avengers: Endgame) and Glen Ballard (Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror”) as well as hit songs from the film’s soundtrack (“The Power of Love,” “Johnny B. Goode,” “Earth Angel,” and “Back in Time.”)
Accidentally time-travelling to the year his parents met, Marty McFly must ensure his teenage parents fall in love to ensure his future existence and return to the present.
Whether you’re an 80s kid or a theatre kid (or both!), Back to the Future is an intergenerational story “about how the young can shape older generations’ futures, after all, not just the other way around.”
If the nostalgia of this pop cultural touchstone doesn’t grab you, the gravity-defying Delorean certainly will! Only at the CAA Ed Mirvish Theatre.
