Nina Lee Aquino is going big for her sophomore year as the Artistic Director for the National Arts Centre’s (NAC) English Theatre programming. The NAC has released their English Theatre programming for the 2024-25 season, and the stories are nothing short of an odyssey.
“I’m really digging deep, trying to go for bold storytelling, for different kinds of theatrical containers to match the beautiful stages we have here at the NAC,” she says.
“My inaugural season was fantastic—I think that it was a great warm-up and our audiences got to really know who I am through the work,” says Aquino. “I really hope [audiences] get a sense of how the power of theatre can transport you to places here in Canada and around the world.”
The season begins with Walking on Water from Sept. 14-15, which is a collaboration with NAC English Theatre and NAC Orchestra, and showcases a double bill of live radio dramas about imagined futures in two Canadian neighbourhoods. The First Métis Man of Odesa, from Sept. 18-28, is about the real-life love story of a Métis man (Matthew MacKenzie), and his Ukrainian wife (Mariya Khomutova) and how they navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and the personal impact of the war in Ukraine.
(L-R): Mariya Khomutova and Matthew MacKenzie in The First Métis Man of Odesa. Photo by Alexis McKeown.
Snow in Midsummer performs from Oct. 30-Nov. 9, and follows the story of a wrongly executed woman casting a curse on her town, only to have this curse impact the community years later. This Chinese folk tale blends ghostly themes, perfect for spooky season.
Salesman in China rings in the new year from Jan. 16-25 which follows playwright Arthur Miller to China as he attempts to put on the Mandarin version of Death of a Salesman.
And, Controlled Damage takes over the Babs Asper Theatre from Feb. 13-22. The play follows the story of Canadian civil rights figure Viola Desmond and the continuing struggle for social justice in Canada.
Trident Moon performs from April 2-12, and follows six women—three Hindu, and three Muslim—hiding in the back of a coal truck from the ongoing violence of the newly divided Hindustan in August of 1947.
The season ends with an epic two-part masterpiece Mahabharata from May 13-24. A once-in-a-generation theatrical journey, this piece highlights the relationship between the traditional and the contemporary, and is not something you want to miss.
Ellora Patnaik as Kunti with the cast of Why Not Theatre’s Mahabharata (Shaw Festival, 2023). Photo by David Cooper.
Aquino says the programming follows a chronological formatting, ending with a fantastical mythical world meant to bring the audience into a stunning spectacle.
“I really love the idea that we’re ending in the mythical past,” she says. “We do start with the most present with First Métis Man of Odesa; a pandemic, Ukrainian war love story. But then, we end with the retelling of this 4,000 year old Sanskrit text that is foundational, not only to the people of India, but globally.”
Speaking to the odyssey-like nature of this programming, Aquino says that these stories ultimately confront the same human, universal truths.
“Here we are again, confronting the same issues, almost the same kind of events, just in a different time,” she says. “Being able to look back so that we can look forward and do something about our ongoing narrative—I feel like all of the shows at least give us that kind of hope that it is up to us to write a better future.”
This season also brings some heavy-hitting Canadian collaborations with the Shaw Festival, the Stratford Festival, Crow’s Theatre, Why Not Theatre?, Punctuate! Theatre, and Neptune Theatre to name a few. Aquino wants to challenge the way we feel about national art, living in a post-national world.
“I think the NAC represents the artistic soul of the country, not just going beyond geographic lines, but community lines as well,” she says. “We have a responsibility to be generous partners in art with theatre companies from across Canada as well.”
Neil D’Souza as Krishna and Anaka Maharaj-Sandhu as Arjuna in
Why Not Theatre’s Mahabharata (Shaw Festival, 2023). Photo by David Cooper.
Aquino has also put some of her own directorial work in this season—specifically with Snow in Midsummer and Trident Moon. She describes how vulnerable it is putting her own work up on this incredible stage, but that her directorial work is “the purest expression of who I am as an artist and as a human being.”
“As nerve-wracking as it is, it’s only right for me to kind of reveal my work and a little something of myself as well.”
Ultimately, Aquino is ready to show this season how theatre can be galvanizing and unifying at the same time.
“I feel like the stars really aligned with the kinds of works that I was really crazy about,” says Aquino. “Putting together a season is like piecing together a beautiful picture—you want to see how these all interlock and intersect together.”
For more information about the 2024-25 season of the NAC’s English Theatre programming, you can visit their website.
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