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WINE IN THE WILDERNESS WRITTEN BY ALICE CHILDRESS

Virgilia Griffith, Mazin Elsadig. Photo: Dahlia Katz

The Baillie Theatre season is underwritten by

The William and Nona Heaslip Foundation Government Support

Canadian Stage shares our work on four stages spread across our great city. The St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts and the Berkeley Street Theatre Complex bookend the vibrant St. Lawrence Market neighbourhood and run along what was once the shore of Lake Ontario. Our beautiful High Park Amphitheatre is nestled within the grassy hills and forests of our city’s most beloved park. And the Winter Garden Theatre is located in the heart of Toronto’s bustling downtown core. Canadian Stage is grateful to be able to tell our stories on this bountiful land that we all share. This sacred land has held story for thousands of years: stories that live in the fabric of who we are as a nation. Canadian Stage would like to acknowledge and thank the original caretakers and knowledge keepers of this territory: the Anishinaabe Nations (including the Mississaugas of the Credit), the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, and the Wendat and Métis Nations. We give thanks to the Nations recorded and unrecorded, acknowledged and unacknowledged, who also share the responsibility for this territory. We honour the Dish With One Spoon Treaty and our responsibility to peaceably share and care for the resources that surround us. We are honoured to be in this meeting place called Tkaronto that many First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people from across Turtle Island call home.

A Canadian Stage Production

Wine in the Wilderness Cast Virgilia Griffith Tommy

Andrew Moodie Oldtimer

Mazin Elsadig Bill

Jamar Adams-Thompson Sonny-Man

L.A. Sweeney Cynthia

Creative Alice Childress Playwright

Daniel Bennett Lighting Design

Peter N. Bailey Dialect Coach

Jordan Laffrenier Director

Olivia Wheeler* Sound Design

Wei Qing Tan Stage Manager

Scott Penner* Set and Costume Design

Anisa Tejpar Intimacy Director

Ciaran Brenneman Assistant Stage Manager

Jane Gooderham Dialect Coach Running Crew Gil Ruston Karen Elizabeth Head Technician

Jane Graydon Head of IA822 Running Crew

Sarah Masri Wig Attendant

Production Jessie Potter Berkeley Technical Director Marcela Prado Orozco Assistant Technical Director

Mary Spyrakis Head of Props

Geoff Hughes Cutter

Chynah Philadelphia Props Assistant

Erica Theriault Stitcher

Janet Pym Head of Wardrobe

Sharon Ryman Production Wig Supervisor

Canadian Stage is a member of the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres and engages professional Artists who are members of Canadian Actors’ Equity Association under the terms of the jointly negotiated Canadian Theatre Agreement. Stage Employees of the Berkeley Street Theatre are represented by Local 58 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Wardrobe Employees are represented by Local 822 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. *Indicated designers on this production are represented by the Associated Designers of Canada, IATSE Local SC659

This performance runs 85 minutes with no intermission

We believe that when people participate in their community, good things can happen. TD is proud to support Canadian Stage. As part of our goal to help people feel a sense of belonging in their communities, TD supports arts and culture events, initiatives, and organizations across North America that amplify diverse voices. Learn more at td.com/artsandculture

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Director’s Note Jordan Laffrenier

When I first read Wine in the Wilderness by Alice Childress, what struck me most was how real the characters were. None of them were entirely good, and none of them were entirely bad either. They had dreams deferred, unrealized ambitions, or they were just trying to find love in a high-priced world. They felt familiar. They had all the complications of a good friend, a bad uncle, a first love, or anyone that you actually spend time with. I learned later, when Childress was writing Wine, she was writing about people she knew. These were people in her community: people she could point to, people she had conversations with, and, perhaps even, people she may have acted alongside. Her love for these people is clear in the play, but that love never becomes reverence. She idealizes no one. She portrays relationships as they actually are, the ways we hurt one another; sometimes even doing the greatest harm with the best intentions. Childress spent her career refusing to compromise that honesty. In 1957, her play Trouble in Mind was headed for Broadway when producers asked her to alter the ending and make the play more palatable to white audiences. She refused. Had the production gone forward, Childress would have become the first Black woman playwright on Broadway, two years before Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. She chose the play instead. Childress wrote Wine in the Wilderness only a few years after living through the 1964 Harlem Riots, which forms the backdrop of this play. Across the country, the Civil Rights Movement was forcing America to confront itself. Black teenagers in New York had watched the Birmingham Campaign, the March on Washington, and

the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church. They watched young people in the South stand up for their rights while, at home in Harlem, they faced their own daily humiliations: police brutality, discrimination in employment, inadequate housing, high rents, and promises of equality that had gone unfulfilled. The uprising began after a fifteen-year-old Black boy on his way to school was shot and killed by a white police lieutenant, but the powder had been laid long before. Within that struggle, the emerging Black Arts and Black Power movements called for Black people to define themselves rather than accept definitions imposed on them. For some, that meant Black nationalism. For others, it meant building a distinctly Black aesthetic: one that celebrated Black beauty, Black history, Black language, and Black life. In 1964, Kwame Brathwaite, was using his photography to popularize the term ‘Black is Beautiful.’ These ideas took time to become popular, even amongst Black people. They were also not without critique. What happens when the idea that is supposed to liberate us becomes the new standard for us to be judged against? The visual world of this production pays homage to the work of Kwame Brathwaite, Norm Lewis, Faith Ringgold, and Kehinde Wiley: artists, working generations apart, who have created images that insist on the beauty, scale, complexity, and dignity of Black life. It has been a tremendous gift to collaborate with the cast, creative team, crew and producing team on this production. I have spent much of this process in awe of the talent, courage and rigor I was surrounded by. – Jordan Laffrenier 5

Alice Childress (1916 - 1994), American playwright and novelist, was born in Charleston, South Carolina, but many of the details of her early life, including her father’s name, are unknown. Her mother Florence and her father separated when she was young, and at the age of five she boarded a train bound for Harlem, New York. Her grandmother saw to it that she had a wide range of experiences, taking her on walking tours of different parts of the city, to art galleries and theatres and to the churches of Harlem. At Wednesday night testimonials at Salem Church in Harlem, Childress would listen to poor people tell of their troubles, a major source for her as an adult writer. Childress also credits her grandmother with teaching her the art of storytelling, encouraging her to reflect on and imaginatively extend what she experienced and observed. She attended public school in New York, where she developed a liking for drama, but her schooling came to an abrupt end when both her grandmother and mother died in the early 1930s, and it became necessary for her to find work to support herself. A founding member of the American Negro Theatre, she wrote her first play, Florence, in 1949. The script was written in one night on a dare from close friend and actor Sidney Poitier, who had told Alice that he didn’t think a great play could be written overnight. She proved him wrong, and the play was produced off-Broadway in 1950. Childress became, in 1952, the first African American woman to see her play (Gold Through the Trees) professionally produced in New York. Other plays written by Childress include Just a Little Simple (1950), Trouble in Mind (1955), Wedding Band: A Love/Hate Story in Black and White (1966) and Gullah (1984). Childress is perhaps best known today for A Hero Ain’t Nothin’ but a Sandwich, which was subsequently made into a movie in 1978. Throughout her career, she examined the true meaning of being black, and especially of being black and female. As Childress herself once said, “I concentrate on portraying have-nots in a have society.” Alice Childress died in New York in 1994. In 2021, she made her long-awaited Broadway debut when Roundabout Theatre Company produced Trouble in Mind at the American Airlines Theatre, receiving four Tony Award nominations.

Cast Virgilia Griffith – Tommy Canadian Stage: Fat Ham. Other theatre: Blues for An Alabama Sky (Shaw Festival); Profoundly (Obsidian/ Tarragon); Rosmersholm (Crow’s Theatre); Three Sisters (Obsidian/Soulpepper); Queen Goneril/ King Lear (Soulpepper). Film/TV: “Nurses” (Global/NBC); “Doc” (Global/FOX); “Murdoch Mysteries” (CBC); “Frankie Drake” (CBC). Grateful for the support of my family and friends. Special thanks to Lisa Karen Cox. Mazin Elsadig – Bill Canadian Stage: Topdog/Underdog. Other theatre: The Comeuppance (Soulpepper); A Case for the Existence of God (Coal Mine); Pipeline (Soulpepper); Pass Over (Obsidian); The Brothers Size (Soulpepper). Film/TV: “Brother”, “Four in the Morning” (CBC), “Stoked” (Teletoon). Andrew Moodie – Oldtimer Canadian Stage: A Common Man’s Guide to Loving Women. Other theatre: Lear (Ad Hoc Collective); Lessons in Forgetting (Pleiades Theatre); a profoundly affectionate, passionate devotion to someone (-noun) (Obsidian Theatre); The Killing Snow (Vertigo Theatre). Film/TV: “Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent”, “The Boys”, “Reacher”, “Murderbot”, “Star Trek: Discovery”, “IT: Welcome to Derry”, “The Handmaid’s Tale”, “We Were Liars”, “Dark Matter”, “Orphan Black”, “Dreams of the Moon”. Playwrighting Credits: Riot, The Lady Smith, A Common Man’s Guide to Loving Women, The Real McCoy, Toronto the Good. L.A. Sweeney – Cynthia Canadian Stage: Debut. Other theatre: Bug (The King Black Box & Elkabong Theatre Projects); Girls Unwanted (The King Black Box); House of Whale (Toronto Fringe Festival); Fool for Love (The Second City). Film/TV: Vivian in “Cross” (Paramount+); Dr. Harris in “Doc” (Fox); Jahnaya in “SkyMed” (Paramount+); Pam in “Taken at a Basketball Game” (Lifetime); Robyn in “Last Resort” (Dead Mariachi Films). L.A. is an international Monologue Slam champion, having won in both Toronto and New York. Jamar Adams-Thompson – Sonny-Man Canadian Stage: Debut. Other theatre: Julie (Icarus Theatre); The Adding Machine (Leroy Street Theatre); Tyson’s Song (Pleiades); The Fiancée (Chemainus Festival); Three Ordinary Men (Cahoots). Film/TV: “Black Liberators WWII”, “This Is Not a Ghost Story”, “Kubric”, “Youth Under Fire”. Jamar is currently working with The Black Memory Collective to cultivate more Afro-Canadian historical plays.

Creative Jordan Laffrenier – Director Canadian Stage: Slave Play (Director), Topdog/Underdog (Production dramaturg), The Inheritance (Associate Director), The Lehman Trilogy (AD), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (AD). Other theatre: American Buffalo (Coal Mine - forthcoming); Julie (Icarus Theatre); Attempts on Her Life (TMU); American Son, Sound of Soul, Marvelous Wonder (Drayton); The Last Maple (Tafelmusik); Levi (Judson NYC). Dramaturgy: Sex Dalmatian (Dora Award - Production), Amelie on Broadway, Dixon Road (Dora Award - New Musical). Scott Penner – Set and Costume Design Canadian Stage: Debut. Other theatre: Job (Broadway); Spare Parts (Off-Broadway); Cybeline, Death of a Salesman (Stratford); The Surrogate (Crows); v’s a Good Life if you Don’t Weaken (Aquarius); Body Politic (Buddies); Indecent (RMTC). Film/TV: Assistant Costume Designer, “Station Eleven” (HBO MAX); “Five Days at Memorial” (Apple TV). Scott is a member of IATSE local ADC659. Daniel Bennett – Lighting Design Canadian Stage: Lighting Designer: Slave Play. Other theatre: Lighting Designer: Cabaret, Seeds of Self (Grand Theatre); Lighting & Sound Designer: Juno’s Reward, Beethoven Lives Upstairs (Grand Theatre). Daniel is currently the Director of Production at Canadian Stage. Olivia Wheeler – Sound Design Canadian Stage: Twelfth Night, Playing Shylock, Romeo & Juliet. Other theatre: Jeeves and Wooster in Perfect Nonsense (Shaw); Forgiveness, Cymbeline (Stratford); WITCH, The Comeuppance, Alligator Pie, De Profundis: Oscar Wilde in Jail (Soulpepper); The Fixing Girl (YPT). Film/TV: “Wine Boys” (Bell Fibe). Olivia is also a puppet designer and playwright. Anisa Tejpar – Intimacy Director Canadian Stage: Slave Play. Other theatre: A Streetcar Named Desire, Emma Bovary, Anna Karenina (The National Ballet of Canada); Dear Evan Hansen, Sexy Laundry (Drayton Entertainment); Earworm (Crow’s Theatre). Film/TV: “Star Trek: Starfleet Academy”, “Star Trek: Section 31” (Paramount+); “Modern Whore” (Clique Pictures); “Darkest Miriam” (Game Theory Films); “The Terminal List: Dark Wolf” (Prime); “Orphan Black: Echoes” (AMC). Anisa teaches at Toronto Metropolitan University’s dance program and is Associate Producer at Côté Danse.

Jane Gooderham – Dialect Coach Canadian Stage: My Name is Lucy Barton, The Lehman Trilogy, Maanomaa My Brother, London Road, The Syringa Tree, Rock ’n’ Roll, Fall On Your Knees. Other theatre: 22 seasons at Stratford Festival; & Juliet, Harry Potter & the Cursed Child, Lord of the Rings, War Horse, Matilda (RSC/RNT/Mirvish); Infinite Life (Coalmine); Shaw Festival; Oroonoko, Chair (TFANA, NY). Film/TV: “Good Sam” (CBS); “Gwen Shamblin” (Lifetime); “Cross”, “Reacher” (Amazon); “Republic of Doyle” (CBC). Teaching: Head of Voice, NTS; Birmingham Conservatory. Training: Central School (MA Voice), Guildhall School (Acting). Peter N. Bailey – Dialect Coach Canadian Stage: Actor - Romeo and Juliet, Sweat, Fairview; Dialect Coach - Fat Ham, Moonlight Schooner, Clyde’s. Other theatre: A World Without Shadows, The Wilberforce Hotel, Jumbo, The Real McCoy (The Blyth Festival); Other Side of the Game (Cahoots Theatre Co. and Obsidian Theatre); To Kill a Mockingbird, An Ideal Husband (Stratford Festival). Peter is also an award-winning playwright, with his first play Tyson’s Song which won a Dora Mavor Moore Award for Best New Play in the Independent Theatre Division. Wei Qing Tan – Stage Manager Canadian Stage: A Doll’s House, My Name is Lucy Barton. Other theatre: Liars at a Funeral (Capitol Theatre); Behind the Moon (Belfry Theatre); Everything Has Disappeared (Mammalian Diving Reflex/Rosendal Teater); Between a Wok and a Hot Pot (Cahoots Theatre). Wei Qing is a graduate of the National Theatre School’s Production Design and Technical Arts Program. Ciaran Brenneman – Assistant Stage Manager Canadian Stage: Apprentice Stage Manager: Fall on Your Knees (Toronto Run); Cowboy Tempest Cabaret and After The Rain Workshops (Canadian Festival of New Musicals). Other theatre: Assistant Stage Manager: &Juliet, Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812, Come from Away (Mirvish Productions); Stage Manager: the herald (icsh/Buddies), The Pool, ALIENS, Kioku No Ma (TDT). Love and gratitude to Emma, always.

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Conor Copeland Ticketing and Audience Services Manager

Brayden Crawford Technical Director

Brendan Healy Artistic Director Monica Esteves Executive Director Daniel Bennett Director of Production and Facilities Mickey Palha Vice President, Development Melysa Rogen Director of Marketing and Communications Beth Toombs Director of Finance and Administration Artistic Lynanne Sparrow Producer Jordan Laffrenier Associate Artistic Director Laurie Merredew Assistant Producer Development Chris Faulkner Senior Manager, Government Relations and Foundations Lewis Rogan Senior Manager, Major Gifts & Planning Faizah Syeda Development Officer

Sunitha Rai Manager, Payroll Administration and HR Support Kari Seppen Intermediate Accountant Brian Parsons Senior Manager, IT Services Ruth-Anne Yiu Executive Assistant and Board Liaison Marketing and Communications Shannon Tigert Senior Marketing Manager, Loyalty & Growth Madison Zinger Senior Marketing Manager, New Audiences Derek Ma Graphic and Digital Manager Vaishnavi Panwar Marketing Coordinator

Faisal Butt Assistant Ticketing Manager Adam A Noah Carniello Peter Genoway Elyssia Giancola Zack Grosh Mima Higashi Alex Jackson Naomi Kaplan Mackenzie Kerr Oprah Lemorin Seamus Murphy Giovanna Rossi Veronica Schmeiser Sienna Singh Miriam Sossin Mya Wong Audience Services Staff

Jessie Potter Berkeley Technical Director Meg Woods Production & Site Manager Matthew Hadley Building Operations Manager Marcela Prado Assistant Technical Director Ian Kowalski Production Coordinator Mary Spyrakis Head of Properties Janet Pym Head of Wardrobe Chynah Philadelphia Properties Assistant Gil Ruston Head Technician Karen Elizabeth Head Technician Ben Junor House Technician

Michael Crumpton Senior Sales Specialist

Thank you to our volunteers We thank our volunteers for their hard work and dedication to Canadian Stage!

Great performances live here.

Fall On Your Knees (2023). Photo by Dahlia Katz

Set Design: Camellia Koo. Costume Design: Judith Bowden, Joyce Padua

At BMO, we take pride in our local communities, and the artists that contribute to the cultural diversity and creative richness of our cities. We are proud to be Canadian Stage’s 2026/2027 Season Sponsor and Access Partner.

A joyful comedy that flips the script on Shakespeare's most infamous heroines

Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) Written by and starring Ann-Marie MacDonald

BOOK BOOK TICKETS! TICKETS! November 6 – 22, 2026 | Bluma Appel Theatre Production Underwriter:

Supported by the EmpowHer Fund

Catherine Graham & Katy Graham Debost

The Bluma Appel Theatre season is underwritten by:

John & Nancy Embry

Janet L’Heureux Jessica B. Hill, Ann-Marie MacDonald, Caroline Toal. Photo: Elana Emer