Ergo Pink Fest 2019

Ergo Pink Fest is a 4-day theatre festival in Toronto (March 28-31, 2019), conceived and hosted by Ergo Arts Theatre (EAT) that gives voice to female and non-binary identified playwrights, providing them a unique platform to develop and showcase their work.  The festival, being held at the Small World Music Centre at Artscape Youngplace, 180 Shaw Street, brings together award-winning playwrights and dramaturges Beverley Cooper, Marcia Johnson, Anita La Selva, Paula Wing and Elyne Quan to nurture the development of eight new plays.

The plays take us around the world - China, Poland, Italy and America – and talk of the experience of female, non-binary identifying and transgender characters.

 “The original idea behind the festival came when we read the 2015 Equity in Theatre study by the Playwrights Guild of Canada,” says EAT Artistic Director, Anna Pappas.  “It said that the greatest disparity in gender equity happens in the playwright category. So that seemed to be the place to start, providing a space for these playwrights to create that work and tell those stories. The experience last year was so powerful and made such a positive impact, that a second year was inevitable. To know that 8 new plays will be brought into the Canadian theatre scene as a result of this work is very exciting."

The 8 plays chosen for the festival have been written by talented female and non-binary identifying Canadian playwrights. Their experience ranges from new playwrights debuting their first piece of writing, to veterans of the theatre, TV, and film.  Ergo Pink Fest has tailored the development process for each playwright to suit the kind of support they need to take their play to the next level.

The staged readings showcase some of these works in progress.

Please help to make this a scent- and fragrance-reduced event for those members of our team and the public who live with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS). Visit our website: https://www.ergoartstheatre.com/multiple-chemical-sensitivity to find out more. 

At Ergo Arts Theatre, we want to ensure that all members of our community are able to access the performances in the 2019 Ergo Pink Fest. For this reason, if you are experiencing financial barriers in accessing the festival this year, and would like a ticket to a performance, please email admin@ergoartstheatre.com and include the name of the show that you would like to see. We are giving our paying patrons an opportunity to purchase “Pay It Forward” tickets that will be used for this purpose.  This program operates on a first come first served basis.