Four years after one of the most theatrical, hilarious, gong-show opening nights in Fringe history, the boys are back at the Puck & Pickle pub. This time the Canadians are facing off against the Americans in the Olympic gold medal game.

Fri, Aug 18 @ 5:15pm

The Canada Show (The Complete History of Canada in One Hour)

2017 Tour Schedule

Monday, May 29 – Vancouver, BC – Vancouver Children’s Festival – 10:30am

Tuesday, May 30 – Vancouver, BC – Vancouver Children’s Festival – 12:30pm

Wednesday, May 31 – Vancouver, BC – Vancouver Children’s Festival – 10:30am

Wednesday, May 31 – Vancouver, BC – TheatreWire – 8:00pm

Thursday, June 1 – Vancouver, BC – TheatreWire – 8:00pm

Friday, June 2 – Vancouver, BC – Vancouver Children’s Festival – 12:30pm

Friday, June 2 – Vancouver, BC – TheatreWire – 8:00pm

Saturday, June 3 – Vancouver, BC – Vancouver Children’s Festival – 10:30am

Tuesday, June 6 – Saskatoon, BC – Saskatoon K=Kids Festival – 9:45am

Tuesday, June 6 – Saskatoon, BC – Saskatoon K=Kids Festival – 12:30pm

Thursday, June 29 – Coquitlam, BC – Evergreen Cultural Centre – 7:30pm

July 19-30 – Winnipeg, MB – Winnipeg Fringe Festival

August 4-12 – Calgary, AB – Calgary Fringe Festival

August 17-27 – Edmonton, AB – Edmonton Fringe Festival

Saturday, October 21 – Chilliwack, BC – Chilliwack Arts Centre – 7:30pm

Sunday, October 22 – Surrey, BC, Surrey Arts Centre – 2:00pm

Monster Theatre 2017 Touring Schedule

MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

Saturday, March 11 -2pm  Key City Theatre, Cranbrook, BC

Sunday, March 12 -2pm  Capitol Theatre, Nelson, BC

Saturday, March 25 -2pm  Massey Theatre, New Westminster, BC

Sunday, March 26 -2pm  Charles Bailey Theatre, Trail, BC

Monday, March 27 -10am  Nakusp Elementary, Nakusp, BC

Saturday, April 1 -3pm  Whistler Arts Council, Whistler, BC

Monday, April 3 -9am  Minnekhada Middle School, Port Coquitlam, BC

Tuesday, April 4 -9:30am  Rosser Elementary, Burnaby, BC

Tuesday, April 4 -1:30pm  Suncrest Elementary, Burnaby, BC

Wednesday, April 5 -9am  Dorothy Lynas Elementary, North Vancouver, BC

Wednesday, April 5 -9am  Hastings Elementary, Vancouver, BC

Friday, April 21 -1:30pm  Cayoosh & George M Murray Elementary, Lilloet, BC

Saturday, April 22 – Lilloet Music, Lilloet, BC (Til Death)

Sunday, April 30 -2pm  Vernon Performing Arts Centre, Vernon, BC

Sunday, April 30 -8pm  Vernon Performing Arts Centre, Vernon, BC (Til Death)

Wednesday, May 3 -9am  Dr F D Sinclair Elementary, Surrey, BC

Wednesday, May 3 -1:30pm  MB Sanford Elementary, Surrey, BC

       War and Peace at the Vancouver Fringe!

           Skip the Book, See the Play!

Monster Theatre presents the world premiere of War and Peace, a one-man adaptation by 16 year Fringe veteran Ryan Gladstone. Join Ryan as he takes the audience on a journey through the greatest novel ever written, War and Peace, and the 632 characters it contains, as well as the life of Tolstoy himself. War and Peace runs as part of the Vancouver Fringe Festival, September 8-18, 2016 at The Carousel Theatre. 

War and Peace is the most written about novel of all time, and yet, its full meaning escapes us… until now! Over the course of re-enacting the story, Ryan tries to pinpoint the true meaning of the book. Bouncing between concepts like Tolstoy’s theories on the nature of history (“A king is history’s slave.”), success (“All success is a mirage.”), self-improvement (“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.”), wisdom (“The only thing that we know is that we know nothing.”) and the power of love (“everything that I understand, I understand only because I love.”). In the end we realize that War and Peace’s true beauty lies in its 10 000 simple moments. Pierre sharing a potato. Andrei noticing the sky for the first time. Natasha climbing in bed with her mother to talk about a boy. Princess Marya holding her weeping father like a child.

In the irreverent, hilarious and immaculately researched Monster Theatre style, Gladstone sucks the audience in via the promise of the ridiculous and herculean task of portraying the entirety of the 1444 page tome using nothing more than a single actor, some funny voices and handful of sound effects. Over the course of the play however he slowly unravels the deeper meanings, the profound epiphanies, the relevancies to today and finding all the parallels to the tragic and triumphant echos in Tolstoy’s own life. Monster Theatre’s version of War and Peace straddles the line between comedy and tragedy, farce and sermon, low brow stand-up and history lesson. 

“Ryan Gladstone soars as a solo performer. His comfort level with the material and the spotlight allows moments of spontaneity, giving each show a lot of life.”-Laura Glowacki, CBC Manitoba

 Ryan lives and works in Vancouver and holds an MFA in Directing from UBC.  This is his sixth solo play, in addition to No Tweed Too Tight, Every Story Ever Told, The Seven Lives of Louis Riel, Napoleon’s Secret Diary (also inspired by War and Peace) and Confessions of a Class Clown (Monster Theatre). Recent Directing credits: Hunter Gatherers (Staircase Theatre), Ubu Roi (UBC) and Hell of a Girl (rEvolver Festival). Recent Writing/Directing credits include Til Death: The Six Wives of Henry VIII, Who Killed Gertrude Crump?, Assassinating Thomson, Houdini’s Last Escape (Monster Theatre).

“Writer/performer Ryan Gladstone is super-skilled.”- Jo Ledingham, Vancouver Courier

Monster Theatre was founded by Ryan Gladstone in 2000 and has since created over 30 original productions, touring our award-winning works locally, regionally and nationally. The company started on the Canadian Fringe circuit, and quickly became known as one of Canada’s top Fringe companies. The focus eventually shifted towards creation & development, using the Fringe circuit to prepare the shows for main-stage productions at theatre companies & larger festivals across Canada, including Project X (Kelowna), Manitoba Theatre for Young People (Winnipeg) and Theatre SKAM (Victoria).

Vancouver Fringe Festival, September 8-18, 2016 | Dates & Times: Saturday September 10 7:45pm, Sunday September 11 5:45pm, Tuesday September 13 8:00pm, Thursday September 15 10:45pm, Friday September 16 6:00pm, Saturday September 17 7:45pm, Sunday September 18 2:00pm| Box Office: http://www.vancouverfringe.com/ticket-info/   Venue: Carousel Theatre, 1411 Cartwright St., Vancouver BC |

Til Death at the Vancouver Fringe!

     The Six Wives of Henry VIII

            Six Queens.  Six Love stories.  Six Deaths.  One Actress! 

Monster Theatre returns with the smash hit Til Death: The Six Wives of Henry VIII– a fast-paced, one woman, hilarious romp with the six wives of King Henry VIII. All in the space of 70 minutes, Fringe powerhouse Tara Travis will introduce us to: the Betrayed Wife, the Scheming Wife, the Peacemaker, the Ugly German, the Tarty One, and the One in Love with Someone Else. Til Death returns as part of the Vancouver Fringe Festival, September 8-18, 2016 as part of a brand new BYOV- the Rio Theatre.

It all starts in the afterlife, in a bizarre waiting room of sorts. One by one, the wives of Henry VIII arrive, much to the shock and dismay of each previous wife. What culminates is the heated frenzy of an ex-wives club where these women swap stories, toss Anne Boleyn’s head around, pick on the ugly German one, and, most importantly, fight for the right to be acknowledged as Henry’s true bride and eternal partner. But when Henry arrives…everything changes.

“Travis’s energetic charm and flashes of emotional depth impress.” –Colin Thomas, Georgia Straight 

Tara Travis is an actor-writer-puppeteer and Artistic Producer of Monster Theatre with whom she has co-created and performed Who Killed Gertrude Crump?, Til Death: The Six Wives of Henry VIII, Houdini’s Last Escape, Lavinia: A Modern Fairy Tale of Gigantic Proportions, The Shakespeare Show, 12 original adaptations of Classics of Literature with Mini Masterpieces, and The Little Prince. Other select stage credits include Rip! A Winkle In Time (Axis Theatre),Leading Ladies (The Gateway Theatre), and Werewolves (Pi Theatre). She is also co-founder and Artistic Director of Sticky Fingers Productions, with whom she has co-created and performed in Herewithal: A Paranormal Comedy(developed as Searching for Dick), Down the Drain (a puppet traumedy), Swamp Lake: a stormy puppet ballet and Fluffy 10th Street: Confessions of a Dirty puppet to name a few. She has animated Snuggle the softener bear, and was a Puppet Supervisor, auxiliary puppeteer and screenwriter on the PBS show Mustard Pancakes. She was recently a key puppeteer in the short film “BedBugs: A Musical Love Story” which is currently taking the Film Fest circuit by storm! Her most recent creation with Sticky Fingers was the recipient of the PTC New Play Prize: The Unfortunate Ruth, which premiered to an incredible response at the 2014 Vancouver Fringe.

“Travis puts on a dazzling display of comedy acting.” –Stephen Hunt, Calgary Herald

Monster Theatre was founded by Ryan Gladstone in 2000 and has since created over 30 original productions, touring our award-winning works locally, regionally and nationally. The company started on the Canadian Fringe circuit, and quickly became known as one of Canada’s top Fringe companies. The focus eventually shifted towards creation & development, using the Fringe circuit to prepare the shows for main-stage productions at theatre companies & larger festivals across Canada, including Project X (Kelowna), Manitoba Theatre for Young People (Winnipeg) and Theatre SKAM (Victoria).

Til Death, Written & Directed by Ryan Gladstone, presented by Monster Theatre |Venue: The Rio Theatre, 1660 E Broadway, Vancouver, BC| Box Office: http://www.vancouverfringe.com/ticket-info/ Run: Vancouver Fringe Festival, September 8-18, 2016 | Dates & Times: Thursday, September 8 6:45pm, Friday, September 9 5:45pm, Monday, September 12 10:15pm, Wednesday, September 14 7:00pm, Thursday, September 15 10:45pm, Saturday, September 17 5:00pm.

Monster Theatre is about to hit its Fringe circuit, so be prepared Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver! This year, we bring back a favourite hit, Til Death: The Six Wives of Henry VIII with Tara Travis and a BRAND NEW one man adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s famous novel War and Peace, written by and starring Ryan Gladstone. If you’re in one of these cities, why not check us out and come say hi?

The details:

TIL DEATH: THE SIX WIVES OF HENRY VIII

Written by Ryan Gladstone

Starring Tara Travis

Monster Theatre returns with the smash hit Til Death: The Six Wives of Henry VIII– a fast-paced, one woman, hilarious romp with the 6 wives of King Henry VIII. All in the space of an hour, Fringe powerhouse Tara Travis will introduce us to: the Betrayed Wife, the Scheming Wife, the Peacemaker, the Ugly German, the Tarty One, and the One in Love with Someone Else.

WINNIPEG FRINGE

Venue: #17 PTE – Colin Jackson Studio, Unit Y300-393 Portage Ave., Winnipeg 

Box Office: http://www.winnipegfringe.com/

Run: Winnipeg Fringe Festival, July 13-24, 2016 | Dates & Times: July 13 9:45pm & 11:00pm, July 14 7:15pm & 8:30pm, July 15 7:45pm & 9:00pm, July 16 3:30pm & 4:45pm, July 17 9:15pm & 10:30pm, July 18 7:15pm & 8:30pm, July 19 5:30pm & 6:45pm, July 20 5:15pm &6:30pm, July 21 9:30pm & 10:45pm, July 22 8:00pm & 9:15pm, July 23 5:15pm & 6:30pm, July 24 1:15pm 2:30pm

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonsterTheatre

CALGARY FRINGE 

Venue: Lantern Church Sanctuary, 1401 10^th Ave SE, Calgary, AB 

Box Office: http://calgaryfringe.carbonpop.com/tickets/events/522-til-death-the-six-wives-of-henry-viii

Run: Calgary Fringe Festival, July 29-August 6, 2016 | Dates & Times: Friday July 29 9:30pm, Saturday July 30 12:30pm, Sunday, July 31 6:30pm, Monday, August 1 3:30pm, Wednesday August 3 6:30pm, Friday, August 5^th 9:30pm

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonsterTheatre

EDMONTON FRINGE

 Venue # 40 La Cite Francophone – Suzanne Thibaudeau Auditorium, 8627 Rue Marie-Anne Gaboury, Edmonton, AB

Box Office: https://tickets.fringetheatre.ca/index.php

Run: Edmonton Fringe Festival, August 11-21, 2016 | Dates & Times: Friday, August 12 1:45pm, Saturday, August 13 3:30pm, Sunday, August 14 10:30pm, Monday, August 15 7:00pm, Tuesday, August 16 8:45pm, Wednesday, August 17 5:15pm, August 18 1:45pm, Friday, August 19 5:15pm, Saturday, August 20 7:00pm.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonsterTheatre

VANCOUVER FRINGE

 Venue The Rio Theatre, 1660 East Broadway, Vancouver, BC

Box Office: TBD

Run: TBD

Facebook: TBD

WAR AND PEACE

Written by and Starring Ryan Gladstone

Monster Theatre presents the world premiere of War and Peace, a one-man adaptation by 16 year Winnipeg Fringe veteran Ryan Gladstone. Join Ryan as he takes the audience on a journey through Leo Tolstoy’s famous novel, War and Peace, and the 632 characters it contains, as well as the life of Tolstoy himself.

WINNIPEG FRINGE

Venue:#13 Bandwidth Theatre, 585 Ellice Ave, Winnipeg

Box Office: http://www.winnipegfringe.com/

Run: Winnipeg Fringe Festival, July 13-24, 2016 | Dates & Times: Thursday, July 14 2:00 PM, Friday, July 15 5:30pm, Saturday, July 16 2:00pm, Sunday, July 17 9:15pm, Monday, July 18 7:30pm, Tuesday, July 19 5:45pm, Wednesday, July 20 3:45pm, Thursday, July 21 2:00pm, Friday, July 22 9:15pm, Saturday, July 23 7:30pm|  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonsterTheatre

EDMONTON FRINGE

Venue # 40 La Cite Francophone – Suzanne Thibaudeau Auditorium, Edmonton 8627 Rue Marie-Anne Gaboury, Edmonton, AB

Box Office: https://tickets.fringetheatre.ca/index.php

Run: Edmonton Fringe Festival, August 11-21, 2016 | Dates & Times: Friday, August 12 3:30 PM, Saturday, August 13 5:15pm, Sunday, August 14 12:00pm, Monday, August 15 3:30pm, Tuesday, August 16 7:00pm, Thursday, August 18 10:30pm, Friday, August 19 8:45pm, Saturday, August 20 5:15pm, Sunday, August 21 5:45pm

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MonsterTheatre

VANCOUVER FRINGE

 Venue The Rio Theatre, 1660 East Broadway, Vancouver, BC

Box Office: TBD

Run: TBD

Facebook: TBD

No Tweed Too Tight & Til Death Coming to the Evergreen Cultural Centre!

February 25-27, 2016

Two blockbuster fringe hits in one side-splitting evening of thrills!

                                                                                                                   Til Death

Six Queens.  Six Love stories.  Six Deaths.  One Actress!

It all starts in the afterlife, in a bizarre waiting room of sorts. One by one, the wives of Henry VIII arrive, much to the shock and dismay of each previous wife. What culminates is a heated frenzy of an ex-wives club where these women swap stories, toss Anne Boleyn’s head around, pick on the ugly German one, and, most importantly, fight for the right to be acknowledged as Henry’s true bride and eternal partner.

But when Henry arrives…everything changes.

No Tweed Too Tight: Another Grant Canyon Mystery

More belligerent than an orangutan at a monkey shaving contest. More uncaring than a potato salad at a funeral.  As inexplicable as a… you wouldn’t understand.

The year is 1976. Grant Canyon is a perpetually inebriated insurance investigator.  Every scene starts with him coming to consciousness on an airplane with no pilots (or getting buried alive, or on a Russian sub), and every scene ends with him either getting knocked out or drinking himself into oblivion. In his few coherent moments he leaves a wake of dead bodies, satisfied ladies, and empty bottles as he staggers toward a shocking and fiery conclusion.

February 25-27 – 8:00pm

Check out a short clip right now!

Get your tickets here!

Evergreen Cultural Centre

1205 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam

Fast! Thrilling! Hilariously Offensive! 

Must be Grant Canyon

…at the Chilliwack Cultural Centre February 19 & 20, 2016

Tweed..? Check. Questionable facial hair..? Check. Inexplicable drunken blackouts and Kung Fu moves..? Check and check! It’s No Tweed Too Tight, brought to Chilliwack by the incredible Monster Theatre, whose dynamic explosion onto the Canadian fringe scene is embodied by the similarly explosive Grant Canyon, the alcoholic, one-liner dropping 70s investigator out to break hearts and split sides. From Des Moines, to Brazil, to outer space, Canyon is a well-oiled mystery-solving machine intent on finding out just what exactly going on… right after he’s figured out what the hell happened last night. You’ll be in stitches as the ridiculous exploits of Grant Canyon unravel before your eyes, with the daredevil detective armed with nothing but a trusty tweed suit and a bit of luck. It’s fast, it’s thrilling – it’s No Tweed Too Tight!

Adult material and situations – may not be appropriate for all audiences. The Shakespeare Show: Or, How an illiterate Son of a Glover Became the Greatest Playwright in the World

                    Friday, February 19 – 7:30pm

Saturday, February 20 – 7:30pm

by Ryan Gladstone
starring Ryan Gladstone and Tara Travis
directed by Karen Hamm
original score by Drew Jurecka

Check out a short clip right now!

Oh! And get your tickets here!

Chilliwack Cultural Centre
9201 Corbould Street
Chilliwack, BC V2P 4A6