Let’s be honest with each other: how are you doing? Are you behind on your emails? Are you worried? Afraid? Lost?
You are not alone. And all are invited to Pearle Harbour's Chautauqua, where connection is the cure for what ails ya. Gather under the milky folds of our beautiful Tent. Be sheltered from the inharmony of these tough times. Catch your breath. Speak your Truth. Feeeeel the People Power, you betcha!
Chautauqua is a multi-award-winning, immersive extravaganza: part cabaret, part tragicomedy, part tent revival. There's music, sing-a-longs, puppet shows, and even an exorcism! The world may be falling apart, but Pearle will show you that there's more that unites us than divides us.
AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD, SummerWorks
AWARD for OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE, My Entertainment World
OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN, Dora Mavor Moore Award nomination
OUTSTANDING PLAY, OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION, OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE,
OUTSTANDING DIRECTION, OUTSTANDING DESIGN, NOW Magazine Best of Fest* * *
A+++++++, My Entertainment World:
"This is everything I want to see, everything I want hear, everything I want to be."NNNN, Critic’s Pick, NOW Magazine:
"Who knew that a show performed by a drag queen in a recreation of an old-time tent revival could
act as a balm for souls anxiously living in an age of economic, ecological and political uncertainty?
And while many shows employ audience interaction and participation, this is one of the few
I've seen where the practice encourages a sense of community healing and togetherness."3 stars (of 4), Toronto Star:
“Her followers were putty in her hand.”My Gay Toronto:
“A divine creation… drag as exultant down and dirty clowning. Pearle flirts, quips, and interacts with
the audience in a way that is extraordinarily intimate… I was unprepared for the intensity of her comic vision.”Life With More Cowbell:
“Engaging, entertaining, enlightening… It’s just the thing we need right now.”Mooney On Theatre:
"Genius... with stage presence like that — I would believe pretty much anything this woman told me."ARTS VOX:
"While Harbour is always in commanding control of the proceedings, the heart of the performance is in her impeccably
effortless interaction with the audience (as a whole and with individual members)... Miller is masterful to watch."Torontoist:
“It’s ready to be rolled up and transported anywhere Miller and co. are willing to take it.”
NOW Magazine:
”Miller’s brave performance always remains intensely in the moment… It is riveting to watch Pearle interacting up close.”
SummerWorks Performance Festival — Toronto, ON (2017)
Intrepid Theatre’s OUTstages — Victoria, BC (2018)
Pi Theatre’s Provocateur Series at The Cultch, inaugural national presentation — Vancouver, BC (2018)
Theatre Passe Muraille, 50th season opener — Toronto, ON (2018)
33rd High Performance Rodeo — Calgary, AB (2019)
2020 dates postponed due to COVID-19:
Green Light Arts — Kitchener, ON (2020)
Stratford Shakespeare Festival — Stratford, ON (2020)
Pearle Harbour's Chautauqua was first developed at The RISER Project 2017, a collaborative producing model with Why Not Theatre, with support from Theatre Passe Muraille, the Toronto Arts Council, and the Ontario Arts Council.
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written by Justin Miller
director Byron Laviolette
producer Rebecca Ballarin
dramaturgy Sandra Balcovske
live accompaniment & composition Steven Conway
sound design & composition Deanna H. Choi
lighting design Jareth Li
production design Joseph Pagnan
Tent Haley Reap
puppets Jesse Byiers
stage & production manager Giuseppe Condello
ASM Mirabella Sundar-Singh