Centaur presents theatre from the edge with their annual Wildside Festival

The performing arts is one of the sectors hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. There was no summer reopening of venues, and aside from a scattering of outdoor activity, no reprieve since last March for the companies and the performers who bring life to theatre and dance in Quebec.

But in recent months, Montreal’s Centaur Theatre has remained active, or at least tried to. There have been plans for outdoor shows and calls for applications for residencies to create future productions for better times. Best of all, in the short term, a streaming — and entirely free — version of their annual Wildside Festival is being presented from Jan. 12 to 31, including “four fresh, hot-off-the-press creations, each with a uniquely distinct lens on the world today” (and each of these by local artists).

Centaur’s hottest two weeks of winter just got bigger. We’re rolling with the changes outside and keeping shows online longer, so you can go wild while staying inside. Play readings and live stream dates part of #WILDSIDE will be updated soon. #wildside2021 #montreal pic.twitter.com/lfqJi9Qi8P
— Centaur Theatre (@CentaurTheatre) January 7, 2021

The Wildside Festival begins with The White Face Cabaret (Jan. 12-13) created and performed by Lady Vanessa Cardona and Todd Houseman, as well as Black Balloon: Leila (Jan. 13-31), Sophie El Assaad’s adaptation of La Passion de Jeanne d’Arc. Wildside continues with 453 St-François Xavier (Jan. 14-31), an audio tour of the Centaur space, Night Cows (Jan. 15-31), a “Queer feminist fantasia” by MoonCow Productions, and Skin (Jan. 18-31), an episodic series starring Emma Tibaldo, as well as Catalyst @ Centaur (Jan. 30-31), a showcase of future works in progress.

For more program details and to watch the streaming performances, please visit Centaur Theatre’s Wildside Festival page.

For more Montreal arts coverage, please visit the Arts section.