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A FESTIVAL OF NEW WORKS-IN-PROGRESS
FEBRUARY 12 - 15, 2026
A dead-of-winter festival highlighting the creative process behind new works.
Join local artists as they chat about what they’re working on and share behind-the-scenes previews of new scripts and designs. In the early stages of your own theatre career? Sign up for a Study Group or our Speed Panel Auditions!
THURSDAY
FEBRUARY 12
FRIDAY
FEBRUARY 13
SATURDAY
FEBRUARY 14
SUNDAY
FEBRUARY 15
Holiday, XOSecret
Early Stages 2025
FEBRUARY 12 @ 7:30pm
IRRELEVANT
A Work-in-Progress Showing by Alison Crosby
An aspiring reporter finds herself back in her hometown trying to solve the disappearance of a local writer, hoping this story might be the jumpstart to her career that she desperately needs. As she follows his movements in the final days before he vanished, she discovers that he was working on a story of his own. Picking up his trail in hopes of finding him, she ends up investigating an unusual funeral home, a grieving widow, and two people with the strangest government jobs in the world. The search for one missing person expands into something much larger and darker than she anticipated. Blending mystery with comedy, Irrelevant explores the idea of legacy and what we quite literally leave behind.
Playwrights Atlantic Resource Centre (PARC) is a membership-based, not-for-profit organization with charitable status, with a focus on providing new play development & dramaturgical support to members in all four Atlantic Canadian provinces and beyond.
We provide opportunities to both established and emerging playwrights and are the only organization within this region, and the only regional organization in the country serving more than one province, that exists solely to do so.
FEBRUARY 15 @ 1:00pm
THE HOLY ONES
A Work-in-Progress Showing
by Probably Theatre Collective
The Holy Ones is an electrifying and boundary-pushing trilogy by Lou Campbell about the afterlives of trans and gender non-conforming saints and religious figures from Christian history. What started as a traditionally staged three part play is in the process of transforming into an immersive, multidisciplinary performance experience. Audiences will move through three stages of the afterlife: Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise, based on the structure of Dante’s Divine Comedy. For Early Stages, Lou will be presenting fragments of what is to appear in The Holy Ones: Inferno.
Playwrights Atlantic Resource Centre (PARC) is a membership-based, not-for-profit organization with charitable status, with a focus on providing new play development & dramaturgical support to members in all four Atlantic Canadian provinces and beyond.
We provide opportunities to both established and emerging playwrights and are the only organization within this region, and the only regional organization in the country serving more than one province, that exists solely to do so.
FEBRUARY 14 @ 11:00am & 1:00pm
SHAPEVILLE VR LOUNGE
A Work-in-Progress Showing
By SiNS (Sometimes in Nova Scotia) & suddenlyLISTEN
SHAPEVILLE VR Lounge is a playful, immersive work-in-progress that invites audiences into a world where colourful soft-sculpture landscapes and a weightless VR environment meet, centring embodied exploration through tactile lounging, expansive gestures, and movement-based interaction.
FEBRUARY 14 @ 4:00pm - 7:30pm
HOW TO KNIT
A Work-in-Progress Durational Showing
By Lee-Anne Poole
HOW TO KNIT is a semi-autobiographical account of the family you have, the family you make, and knitting. This is a new work in development written and performed by Lee-Anne Poole with direction and dramaturgy by Stephanie MacDonald. For Early Stages, you are welcome to join the artist as she experiments with a durational knitting session.
FEBRUARY 13 @ 7:30pm
Movie Night
10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU
Bring a Valentine, palentine (or yourself!) for a cozy
Galentine’s Day screening of 10 Things I Hate About You, complete with popcorn, snacks, and a special performance!
FEBRUARY 14 @ 7:30pm
Concert with Stewart Legere & Guests
RESURRECTED HEARTS
An intimate candlelit cabaret reimagining iconic songs revived by film and television (and TikTok).
Join "Dartmouth’s Songbird" Stewart Legere, producer and MC Waants, and some special guests for an evening of collective nostalgia, celebrating iconic songs revived by classic film and television (and TikTok!) in this intimate candlelight cabaret at Alderney Landing.
FEBRUARY 12 @ 2pm - 4pm
AUDITION PREP
Study Group
Guided by Jade and Drew Douris-O'Hara (Shakespeare by the Sea's Artistic Associate and Associate Artistic Director), this introductory workshop will provide actors with all the basics of attending an audition: including the practical details of the submission process, what to expect when walking into "the room" and how to be your most confident self in any audition! This workshop contains a Q&A component to allow for all participants to ask their burning questions about the process of auditioning.
FEBRUARY 13 @ 10:30am - 4:30pm
SPEED PANELS
General Auditions
We’re looking for new performers and designers to sign up for three 8-minute auditions with panels of Artistic leaders across the province. These “Speed Panels” are for new and emerging artists who feel they are not yet known (or well known) by the local theatre community.
FEBRUARY 14 @ 11:00am + 12:00pm
FEBRUARY 15 @ 10:00am - 11:00am
VOCAL RANGE CHECKS
One-on-One Sessions
Join Garry Williams for an hour long vocal check, in which you can discover more about your singing voice. Learn about your voice type, range, timbre, and ways to strengthen your instrument in a friendly, affirming, and positive environment and find repertoire for your audition binder. These are paid, one-on-one sessions — registration required.
PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN-AFFORD
We believe that theatre is for everyone, and try to offer affordable options to make sure there are no financial barriers in the way of anyone coming out to see a show.
If you are able to afford the full price, we encourage you to do so.
If price is still a barrier, please reach out to Kat@EasternFrontTheatre.com
Volunteers see the show for free!
