TORONTO — SummerWorks Performance Festival returns this August for its 35th anniversary with an ambitious lineup of performances that interrogate the concept of time. Running from August 7 to 17, this milestone edition invites audiences into intimate, bold, and genre-defying experiences staged in theatres, parks, transit hubs, galleries, and unexpected corners across Toronto.
Under the theme “Back to the Future | Forward to the Past,” Artistic Director Michael Caldwell curates a program of more than 35 multidisciplinary works that navigate memory, ritual, identity, resistance, and the politics of time. Anchored in the words of Dr. Elder Duke Redbird, the 2025 festival aims to pause, listen, and imagine — reflecting on what has been while charting paths ahead.
“This milestone Festival is filled with contemporary performance works that examine memory, identity, ritual, and resistance through a temporal lens,” said Caldwell. “The artists are reflecting on their histories and lived experiences while boldly pushing towards an imagined future.”
Headline Performances: Theatre, Dance & Live Art
Among this year’s highlights are:
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The Sankofa Trilogy by d’bi.young anitafrika – a reimagination of three plays that trace lineage, identity, and legacy.
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Cake by Wayne Burns – a gripping solo examining masculinity and beauty.
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Graveyards and Gardens by Vanessa Goodman and Caroline Shaw – an immersive dance/music concert blending choreography and Grammy-winning soundscapes.
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Le Concierge by Daniele Bartolini and Vincent Leblanc-Beaudoin – a mysterious site-specific performance set inside a Toronto secondary school.
Experiential Interventions and Public Space Performances
SummerWorks 2025 continues its tradition of disrupting public and private space through artistic interventions. This year’s standout installations and performances include:
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Phalanx: Revival – a reimagining of DNA Theatre’s 1998 production, re-staged in a city park.
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Within Touch by SlowPitchSound/Chel Paterson – a meditative sonic and ecological performance.
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Xilopango by Irma Villafuerte – a powerful dance-theatre work exploring environmental and political instability.
Spotlight on International Works
With long-term strategies for sustainable global exchange, the 2025 Festival showcases powerful international works, including:
From Taiwan:
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Leftover Market by Su PinWen – exploring gender norms with Mandarin pop music and narrative.
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FreeSteps – NiNi by Su Wei Chia – an urban, site-specific dance intervention.
From South Korea:
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The Ghosts Chat: What is a Festival? by Baram Company – an experimental play exploring invisible political ghosts.
Community, Access & Emerging Voices
Community engagement remains central to SummerWorks’ mandate. Key initiatives this year include:
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Fat Fables by The AMY Project – a fat-positive, queer-led storytelling collaboration with youth.
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The Black Pledge – a gathering for Black performance artists celebrating a year of national spotlighting.
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Bringing Us Together by Arts Assembly – a tactile, movement-based project co-created with blind and low-vision participants.
Festival Info
📅 When: August 7–17, 2025
📍 Where: Venues and public spaces across Toronto
🎟 Tickets: On sale July 15 via summerworks.ca
About SummerWorks
Founded in 1991, SummerWorks is one of Canada’s most influential festivals for new and experimental performance. Now entering its fourth decade, the Festival remains a vital launchpad for bold creators and a catalyst for cross-sector collaboration.
This year’s edition is made possible with support from federal, provincial, and municipal funders, alongside dozens of venue, presenting, and international partners.
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