BROKEN SOIL THEATRE
PAST PRODUCTIONS
JAMIE'S GONE
Cast
Matthew Blackshaw, Alisa Blanchard, Robert K. Brown, Devin France, Jesse Horvath, Danny Johnston, Nick Kozij, Kayla Mazepa, Concetta Roche, Kit Simmons, Hannah Wayne
Written and Directed by Michael Kras
Stage Managed by Ndola Hutton and Megan Kras
Technical Design by Keynan McFedries
Original Score by John Salib
Synopsis
When the small, isolated town of Vernon is struck by the disappearance of a young boy, the town takes advantage of the situation to help feed their own wants and desires… only to completely fall apart instead. Where’s Jamie? Will he ever be found? And what else has disappeared with him? A story about community, loss, faith, deceit, narcissism, and the struggle for power and redemption told through physical movement, biting dialogue, and a haunting original score.
Production
Jamie's Gone was produced at the 2013 Hamilton Fringe Festival in the Citadel Theatre, where it enjoyed a seven performance run from July 18th-27th and took the festival by storm. This collaborative ensemble piece featuring an entirely young cast of emerging theatre creators earned unanimous critical praise and was the highest grossing show of the entire festival.
Awards
Best of Venue (Hamilton Fringe Festival 2013, The Citadel Theatre venue)
Best of Hamilton Fringe (Hamilton Fringe Festival 2013)
Reviews
"Kras has an emerging mastery of staging and plotting that is gratifying to observe. He just knows; he just knows what he wants us to hear and see and unapologetically takes away our suspicions of his young-ness and with a delicious kind of trust-me, I-can-do-this, he succeeds."
"You will see some of the best of our young Hamilton actors."
"So much electrifying movement and arresting choreography courses through this production! ...a Fringe must-see."
-Tom Mackan (VIEW Magazine)
"Michael Kras is a young, talented Hamilton playwright with a fine ear for dialogue and a neatly developed understanding of how atmospheric staging can help illuminate a play's text."
"Jamie's Gone, his play about a small boy who disappears one day from a small town where nothing much happens, works on several levels."
"Kras's play uses familiar ideas and recognizable clichés to tell a good story. The cleverness is in the way Kras makes us feel and care about what happens to these people."
"A good ensemble cast explores the play's nooks and crannies, and Kras offers some lovely moments of stage imagery in his direction."
-Gary Smith (The Hamilton Spectator)
"An affecting work of art."
-Steven Spriensma (Hamilton Fringe Critic)
PLACES
Cast
Evan Mulrooney, Michael Pearson, Rachel Estok
Written and Directed by Michael Kras
Stage Manager - James McCoy
Creative Director - Megan Kras
Dramaturgy - Jamie Hovis and Stephen Near
Choreography - Alyssa Nedich
Composer/Pianist - Stephen Ingram
Synopsis
Jason drinks it all away. Rebecca is terrified of being seen. And Alex, crippled by tragedy, just can't finish his play. These are three university students on a costly journey to self-discovery at a time where it matters more than anything. Fighting through identity, family, tragedy, addiction, and self-worth, they struggle against all odds to find themselves and the answer to the question “Why doesn’t anybody care?” Places integrates fiery text, movement, dance, and a lively original score in a hilarious, intense, and moving drama about finding your place in the world, and the ways art can save us... or destroy us.
Production
Places premiered at the Hamilton Fringe Festival in the Citadel Theatre after two years of countless workshops and drafts for a seven performance run from July 17th to 27th, 2014.
Awards
Audience Choice (Hamilton Fringe Festival 2014)
Reviews
"Michael Kras' dialogue is effortlessly real and his characters speak with his truth. There are fireworks in this production. A must-see."
-Tom Mackan (VIEW Magazine)
"It's funny, heartfelt, creative... There are no false moments... Places is unique and clever, and well worth seeing."
-Rachel More (VIEW Magazine)
"Authenticity is certainly at the heart of Michael Kras' play, Places... Evan Mulrooney, Michael Pearson and Rachel Estok are well directed by Kras and Stephen Ingram provides a moody musical score."
-Gary Smith (The Hamilton Spectator)
"A play about an aspiring playwright struggling to write a play can be a recipe for navel-gazing of the worst sort, but Places avoids this fate through its steady commitment to the fundamentals: believable characters, earnest dialogue, strong acting and artful (rather than artsy) direction."
-Ryan McGreal (Raise the Hammer)
WASP'S NEST
Cast
Chris Cracknell, Jesse Horvath, Philip Krusto, Ryan Trepanier
Written and Directed by Michael Kras
Stage Managed by Ndola Hutton
Lighting Design by Keynan McFedries
Sound Design by Laurel Niven
Synopsis
If someone took away something you loved, what lengths would you go to for revenge? This darkly funny crime drama, in the vein of storytellers like Tarantino and Mamet, tells the story of liars and losers in the fight to win. When Wade Morrison steals from a covert group, members in the group take action in a life-or-death battle to the end. If they fail, they lose all reason to exist.
Production
Wasp's Nest was one of three original plays selected for workshopping and production by Black Box Fire Theatre Company's 'Emerging Artists Series' through an extensive process of applications, proposals, and an interview. It ran at The Staircase Theatre from July 5th to 7th, 2012 as the closing show of the series.
Reviews
"It has powerful moments enough to jar a person’s attachment... Michael Kras’ writing comes through strong, his gift for true dialogue and cinematic conflict, for testosterone–filled energy is so evident."
-Tom Mackan (VIEW Magazine)
THE LAST DROP
Cast
Natalie Ruginis, Ryan Trepanier
Written and Directed by Michael Kras
Stage Managed by Darren Stewart-Jones
Synopsis
In this quirky and unsettling drama, a brother and sister are the two sole survivors of the 2012 Apocalypse, who attempt to carry on a normal life after the end of the world. When a battle between the siblings erupts, over the last remaining can of Diet Coke, the reality of their situation becomes all the more apparent and disturbing.
Production
The Last Drop, a ten-minute playette, was submitted and selected for the inaugural HamilTEN 10 Minute Play Festival, an annual festival organized and produced by Toronto theatre artist Darren Stewart-Jones. It was one of 8 plays selected from across Ontario, and Kras was the youngest playwright chosen to participate in the festival. The festival played to packed houses at The Pearl Company from April 13th to 15th, 2012, and The Last Drop was the closing piece of each evening.