But the film isn’t just a cinematic escape back into the theatres we miss. It is a story of four neurodiverse brothers as told by Smith, and woven into the art and science of piano tuning. It’s an honest and personal exploration as one of the four brothers living with obsessive-compulsive disorder, autism, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.

“An instrument goes out of tune whether or not anyone plays it.”

Part memoir, performance art, and piano lesson, the film offers us insight to families living with mental health challenges.  Lessons in Temperament opens with Smith at the piano playing the profoundly moving Beethoven’s Sonata No 8 in C minor .  The piece itself is both tragic and beautiful — the melody has a way of bringing tears to the eyes. Smith explains the intricacies of piano tuning will offering memories of his family. But it’s not all heavy, Smith does inject a few lighter moments.

Outside the March, a Toronto-based company known to create some of the city’s most unique theatre experiences, worked with Smith to adapt his award-winning play into a film presentation. Directed by Mitchell Cushman, we are given an intimate visual both of the mind and of the theatres and spaces featured in the film —  characters in their own right. Cautiously and methodically we are viewing the Smith alone in spaces we are familiar with but in a very different light.

While Smith’s story, the audience may even find a deeper connection at this time when we’re trying to navigate our way out of nearly two years of loneliness and isolation.

And the piano tuning? Yes, relatable in life and in so many ways. It’s about finding the right distance and balance with patience. Some of the most beautiful music can emerge in unexpected ways.

Lessons in Temperament is unexpectedly moving and will more than likely stay with you afterwards. It’s a film experience worth checking into.  More in-person screenings are happening in the various theatre spaces where the filming took place. Virtual screenings are also scheduled. Full schedule available here at www.outsidethemarch.ca.

100% of Box Office ticket proceeds go directly to mental health affiliated charities including CAMH, Kerry’s Place, Stella’s Place, Homes First, EveryMind and True North Aid. Also, as the material may be sensitive, present at each screening is an active listener trained staff who will offer emotional support and additional resources for anyone who may need.

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The 2021 program begins August 1 with free public facing activity on multiple platforms all month long. Every day will offer a way of discovering and encountering artists and their work either in person or through digital formats.

nowhen (August 5 to 15), created by Alison Wong, presented in partnership with Canadian Stage in collaboration with York University, as part of Dream in High Park — a two-part auditory and nature-based experience in the park featuring current Theatre at York Students. this presentation invites guests to “let go of time, and revel in place.” The first part sends patricians on an audio-guided journey through the park environment converging  on the audience in the amphitheatre for a live performance.

With a focus on supporting investigation into future possibilities for performance, this year’s Festival foregrounds SummerWorks Lab Residencies presented in association with the Stratford Festival Lab, supporting 2-4 projects in residency each week. Through the month, public sharings of projects in residency will be scheduled. Four residency projects are presented in partnership with leading immersive theatre company Outside the March’s TD Forward March Program as The Pop-Up Experience, which will see one residency project weekly popping up in a corner storefront laboratory on Bloor West, as well as at the Wildseed Centre for Activism and Art.

Throughout the month, people who pass by will be invited to watch and listen in on the work-in-progress — even engage and impact the creative process. Many of the pop-ups will also feature a live-streamed presentation of the work. Here are a few highlights that caught our attention…

Proof of Existence ~ Philip Nozuka (August 1 to 8) is a multimedia solo performance using his original music and audio commentary to respond to algorithmically suggested YouTube videos as a way to explore the practice of sharing and engaging with online digital content.

The Pop-Up Experience: Rainbow on Mars ~ Nate Bitton and Devon Healy (August 1 to 8) is a sensory reclamation of blindness encountered through the allegory of Plato’s Cave.This is a large scale, narrative-driven, physical piece depicting the journey both into and of blindness. Rainbow on Mars dramatizes the journey from our usual grip on eyes that are blind as flawed/damaged to experiencing the beauty in blindness. This show is one for the senses; it will ignite and stimulate audience members through the sensory rich language of sounds, smells, touch. The audience is invited into blindness making use of movement, sound and narration as a way to immerse audiences in blindness as opposed to simulating it.

Connected As We Are ~ Sorrel Muggridge & Laura Nanni (August 9 to 15) are interdisciplinary artists who have been working with each other since summer 2006, often with an ocean between them—Sorrel in England, Laura in Canada. Their collaborative works deal with journeys, distance, and translation of space.Sorrel and Laura transform records of actions and experiences into installations that can be appreciated as maps, abstract forms, and narratives of the journeys. They also create artworks that connect audiences in separate locations sharing a journey at the same time. While moving through their different environments together, landscapes intertwine.

The Pop-Up Experience: The Children of the Bear ~ Todd Houseman (August 9 to 15) is the story of a young family growing up in a low income neighbourhood in central Alberta. The confined walls of the family’s living room quickly give way to a world of Knights andWizards—just like the video games into which the family regularly escape—creating an expansive free- ranging immersive parable. Audiences are invited to explore simultaneous storylines, making choices and discoveries as they unravel the kingdom’s complicated colonial history and lore. Throughout The Pop-Up Experience: The Children of the Bear Todd will be working in collaboration with co-conspirator and site-specific theatre veteran Louise Casemore, director Mitchell Cushman, Stratford Festival fight choreographer Anita Nittoly and a team of designers. Join them during this Lab Residency as they explore the aesthetic fantasy world that the larger project will exist within, and the mechanics behind the operation of the branching narrative.

LEGacy Circus ~ Vanessa Furlong and Erin Ball live in different provinces and have not been in the same space together since the end of 2019. They are used to creating in the same space, touching each other, moving together on the same aerial apparatus. Join them during their Lab Residency week as they explore their curiosities around technology and distance, to discover: can they find a way to create together while being apart?

Field of View ~ Freya Björg Olafson (August 16 to 22) addresses the impact of consumer technologies associated with XR. YouTube monologues provide the infrastructure for this work, recounting experiences with VR in live gameplay, open worlds, and 360 pornography; others explore consciousness through describing psychedelic drug trips, and outlining the how-to’s of lucid dreaming, out of body experiences and astral projection. These intentionally divergent monologues address technology, psychedelics, and metaphysical explorations as methods to expand the perception of reality, time, and space.

Softeness is a Blessing ~ Dainty Smith and Ravyn Wngz (August 16 to 22) is an exploration of softness as it pertains to lack femininity. It is an exploration of Black femme grief, rage and faith and hope, and about allowing for Black women to be fragile and soft in a world that demands of them and expects strength, sexuality and stoicism.

The Pop-Up Experience: Portal by Me Time (August 16 to 22) an immersive systems update for your human software. Using patented R.A.V.E. technology, tune your frequency to infinite love in just 11 minutes of solo embodied exploration. This is the latest innovation of The R.A.V.E. Institute, founded by techno-futurist Me Time in partnership with Outside the March to cultivate human potential and social change through ritual dance experiences. Join them in this opportunity to experience a customized, ritualized solo dance experience. Join the movement at www.theraveinstitute.com. Limited space availability.

burn, burned ~ Syrus Marcus Ware and Rodney Diverlus is a sensory and psychic exploration of the precise moment when the revolution is over. With systems and structures smouldered around them, activists and organizers pick up the pieces of their communities and of themselves and begin to figure out how to work and live together, anew. An aspect of burn, burned for SummerWorks Lab Residency, will be made visible – akin to smoke from a distant fire – closer to the event.

The Pop-Up Experience: A New Black Poet ~ Jordan Laffrenier is a love letter from the living to the dead. It centers Elijah, whose true interest lies in poetry and the way language can define the universe. Through a series of monologues and songs, Elijah takes us through a life dedicated to craft and the important lessons he learned from his heroes.

A virtual screening of a triptych of new dance films (August 28) choreographed by Toronto Dance Theatre’s Winchester Prize-winning emerging artists Charlotte Cain, Michael Rayson, and Kurumi Yoshimoto featuring students from the Toronto Dance Theatre.

• Silent Fragments Underneath Silent Impurities ~ Michael Rayson was developed through digging deeper into numerous curiosities about psychological connections and solitude, all while asking larger questions. The work explores past experiences of shame, emotional suppression, and societal perceptions, while seeking to offer an opening for internal discussion and a potential shift of perception.
• En ~ Kurumi Yoshimoto explores the intersection of two lives, two cultures, and two languages, connecting by chance to share time and energy. En is a further development of Awai(間). This film is inspired by the human experience, and the ways that fate and destiny connect us. En is a poetic exploration of the ways we can connect across barriers of distance, culture and language.
• Where” is im from ~ Charlotte Cain explores spontaneity and impulse through movement. Recorded in separate segments at public locations, this film reimagines distance and connection with playful solitude.

So much more is happening at this year’s SummerWorks Festival! For a complete line up and schedule visit summerworks.ca

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Instead of an analog frequency dial, the stream of sound comes through the website and hosted by Watson. What you’ll experience are sounds and stories from across Turtle Island. This is an incredible opportunity to listen in on a constellation of stories during these times created to remind us that we are not alone.

Throughout the day, you’ll hear 25 diverse artists with unique voices. When the national call out for submissions beamed to the universe, they were elated to have received 110 entries. They knew they only had room initially for 20. “it was very difficult to decide – i had to say no to people i know and love! it was so hard!” explained Watson. The advisory council, comprised of Bahia Watson, Lucy Coren, Yolanda Bonnell, Jasmine Chen, Marie Farsi, Brad Hodder, Mitchell Cushman and Griffin McInnes, met over Zoom and discussed each and every submission. “we worked to shape a day of listening with a lot of variety in terms of form and content, and voices from as many regions of turtle island as possible,” said Watson. “they were all so wonderful and honestly, i was so humbled and appreciative that people took the time to engage with us, with this idea and experiment. it really is a kind of recognition when people respond to a call like that (i’m tearing up!).”

This is not your traditional storytelling format. A hint of what to expect… “you might hear a little choose your own adventure, you might laugh about friendships falling apart and then be warmed by a story that follows when they really stay together. you might go on a morning stroll with someone who is partially deaf and then learn about the history of south africa through grandma’s cooking,” says Watson.

If you’re wondering if there’s any content geared to children and families, Watson tells us there’s a very sweet story by Brendon Allen created and told with his children, August and Clover, about a secret society of solitary socks.

A full program will be available on the official site programsound.fm and you’ll want to tune in on the day as it won’t be available anywhere else. “in the turn, ephemeral spirit of both radio and theatre, you have to be there to catch it, before it disappears.”

“we’re really interested in the possibilities of radio and story to manifest connection and community,” says Watson. It’s just the beginning and this is a pilot broadcast. They’re very much interested in growing this idea together so feel free to reach out to them after you’ve had a listen!

programsound.fm airs on Sunday, July 25, 2021 from 12:00 pm to 12:00 am EST.  For more information visit their site here.

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Stupidhead! is a show about learning that no matter who you are, you’re not alone. The musical charts the real-life “growing pains” of Outside the March Founding Member Katherine Cullen, from award-winning immersive productions like Vitals, Mr. Burns and TomorrowLove. In creating Stupidhead!, she collaborated with her real-life best friend of ten years, award-winning composer Britta Johnson (Dr. Silver, Life After), one of Canada’s leading musical theatre talents, whose work most recently garnered acclaim at San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre.

Falling in love with the theatre world was pretty cliché Cullen tells us. “I was 8 and my mum took me to see Phantom of the Opera. I loved every second of going to the theatre including the over-priced candy in small bags,” said Cullen. But it was during high school where things started to solidify for her and inspired her to pursue a career in performance arts professionally.

In this production, we flash back to her childhood. Cullen was interested in sharing her personal experience navigating the school system with learning differences and hope that some of it resonates with people. “Whether you have dyslexia or not, I’ve really just wanted this show to make people feel less alone and hopefully make them laugh.”

The title was inspired by all the different insults that little kids typically use. because the show centres around Cullen’s childhood she wanted to invoke that feeling in the title. “Also, feeling like I was ‘stupid’ was fairly persistent during that time and I wanted to take that feeling and invert it…sort of re-claim it for myself,” she tells us.

Within the performance there are songs presented and not meant to be perfect in polished does that present different pressures? Cullen mentioned in some ways there is less pressure. “I don’t feel like I have to measure up to any kind of real standard when it comes to being able to sing,” said Cullen. “I make it pretty clear in the show right off the bat that this is not going to be a normal musical and that I have no actual training or real musical ability. There is some pressure though because I do want people to enjoy themselves and I never want my lack of musical training to get in the way of the experience. I just want it to be integrated into the show in a way that is charming and not painful to listen to. I have taken some singing lessons to mitigate this!!”

This show is also about how we stay connected during these social distancing times — even the production has been adapted for audiences to enjoy safely in their own space.

What can we expect?  Cullen says she’s really excited that they get to do a live version of this show. “It’s going to feel really emotional being able to perform for people again after all this time. I think the show will feel a bit magical and intimate. We will be adapting to all kinds of different spaces and we have a travelling set (designed by Anahita Dehbonehie and Jennifer Lennon) that will help transform each backyard space and front porch we visit. I mostly hope that people laugh a lot and feel some emotions. Over-all I hope audiences will feel they’ve been transported into the zany world of the show and have a really fun time.”

It has been difficult for a lot of people to stay connected with friends and family during this time. How has she managed? Even though she has Zoom/Facetime burnout like many of us, she mentioned she’s found a good old phone call can be really helpful. “I had these lofty ideas of getting into letter-writing at the beginning of the pandemic but I never wrote a single one so clearly that was just a romantic notion I had no intention on actually following through on. I really truly love being in nature and I have found this to be the single most effective way of helping me feel grounded and connected.”

Like many of us Cullen misses all the small dinner parties with friends and of course the theatre! Now that the city is well-underway to getting as many people fully vaccinated she’s looking forward to seeing her friends in doors and “not constantly having to meet up in parks and wonder where we will go to the bathroom. Live art coming back, and just generally feeling less anxious about being in the world.”

Live digital radio performances run from July 7 to 16, 2021 – limited capacity for each live broadcast (Tickets are $15 per person).

“We’re modelling this version on your favourite radio variety shows from the times of yore,” explains Cullen. “It’ll be like we’re performing in your living rooms… but we won’t be, because we respect your health and wellbeing and also we would get fined by the Ontario Government.”

“At Your Place” performances (yes, they can come to your backyard, porch and any other private outdoor space within the GTA) are now booking from July 20 to August 1, 2021.

“Yeah, when was the last time you got to have strangers in your home?” says co-creator Britta Johnson. “The best part is that you’ll kind of get to feel like you are hanging out with Katherine – she shares intimate stories, she sings, and we share lots of laughs.”

The live and in-person performances run 55 minutes and can be set up onsite in under half an hour. A fun way to gather your friends and family in a meaningful and creative way! The private performance is $400 and all funds will go to the artists working on the show.

More details can be found at www.outsidethemarch.ca.

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We Were, We Are, We Will Be: by Daniele Bartolini & Luke Reece. (August 18 to 23) A multi-artist anthology is the centrepiece of the program. Unfolding this week, with both digital and analogue projects that take you from your living room to hidden parts of the city for safe encounters with others. Artists working across disciplines reflect upon our past, present and the possible futures we can shape together to create urgent, immediate responses to life in a pandemic and what performance can look like in this time of crisis. Each audience member is encouraged to choose how they experience the work based on interest and comfort level. Each project is designed to be experienced on its own or as a part of a larger anthology. Some of the artists involved include d.bi young anitafrika doing a dub poem online, Indigenous composer Melody McKiver is composing an audio scape for a walk through Tommy Thompson Park, dancer/choreographer Esie Mensah is doing a site-specific dance people for 10 socially distanced folks at a time, and 13-year-old wunderkind Eponine Lee is doing a site-specific piece that brings the community together through games. Families with kiddies check out Eponine’s “We Will Be: Rising as a Community” on August 23. Check the official site for specific details of all opportunities within this program including guidelines for in-person experiences.

Health & Safety Notes: by Mark Reinhardt (August) is putting up duct tape graffiti installations around West Queen West and Parkdale for the SW presentation of his project Health & Safety Notes – messages installed in colourful duct tape on exterior walls, collaborated on with community organizations and artists, that speak to the current moment. The installations will continue throughout the month of August. Where to look? Theatre Centre, TMAC, Workman Arts, and Band Gallery – and expect to see about 15+ more installed. They can also be located on Google maps.

Metamorphosis: A Viral Trilogy: written by Giller-winner Andre Alexis (available August 24)  is a three-part audio drama in partnership w TO Live and Canadian Stage. The piece imagines a fictitious pandemic through the eyes of three women of varying ages.

Undertow: The Artist Mentoring Youth (AMY) Project 2020 (August 26 to 29) a collection of short films created by the participants based on their personal experiences of navigating life at multiple intersections. In collaboration with the AMY Film program and in response to COVID-19 restrictions the creators explore themes of self-growth, healing, and navigation. The AMY Project helps transform the arts landscape by providing accessible, affirming performing arts training & creation programs for women and non-binary youth from equity-seeking communities.

End of Summer Mix: Various artists. (available August 29) This curated collection of video, music, and other visuals is everything you’ll need to mark the end of this most unusual summer. Artists are being commissioned by SummerWorks to offer up a collection of activities, playlists, recipes, and crafts to be experienced on your own time.

For a complete list of installations, activations, performances and online programming visit the SummerWorks website.

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