A drama about civil rights icon Viola Desmond by Andrea Scott. Viola is a young woman with big dreams. She was born to a white mother and a black father in 1914, uncommon at the time, so her very existence is controversial. Not willing to settle for the traditional role women were expected to play, Viola tries her hand at teaching but faces racism and unwanted sexual advances from her superiors. She finds her passion as a beautician and creator of makeup for Black women and wrestles with her desire to be an entrepreneur and her duty as a new wife.

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Controlled Damage (Part 1)

A drama about civil rights icon Viola Desmond by Andrea Scott. Viola has the magic touch of making other women look their best, and her beauty products for Black Women are selling like hotcakes. She’s an independent woman travelling all over Nova Scotia selling goods when her car broke down in New Glasgow one fateful day in 1946. She decides to take in a movie to pass the time and inadvertently sits in the ”‘all-whites” section of the theatre, changing the course of her life and history.

Controlled Damage (Part 2)

A drama about civil rights icon Viola Desmond by Andrea Scott. After getting arrested and spending the night in jail, Viola is confronted with the gut-wrenching decision to fight her conviction. Should she risk her popular business to make a fuss? And what will happen to her already strained marriage? But Viola knows there’s more to be gained than the right to sit at the front of a movie theatre. And she’s about to discover the consequences for being brave enough to put up a fight against systemic racism.

Controlled Damage (Part 3)

Laura talks to celebrated playwright and performer Daniel MacIvor, who shares what it was like growing up as a gay kid in the 70s in Cape Breton and how it influenced his writing. He talks about why being raised on an island has made him more aware of endings, how he modelled the protagonist of his play in New Magic Valley Fun Town after his real-life brother and why he’s drawn to creating characters who struggle with mental health.

New Magic Valley Fun Town (Interview with Daniel MacIvor)

By Daniel MacIvor. Dougie’s old friend Allen has a surprise for him. A piece of nostalgia from their childhood delights his ex-wife and daughter but makes Dougie uncomfortable. They decide to knock back some drinks and turn up the music, and the party becomes a raucous night of dancing and flirting. Tempers flare, insults are hurled, and Sandy crosses a line. She digs for the real reason Allen has come back home after so many years.

New Magic Valley Fun Town (Part 3)

By Daniel MacIvor. After much anticipation, Allen arrives at Dougie’s mobile home in Cape Breton for a reunion after a 30-year absence. When Allen opts for water instead of alcohol, Dougie and Cheryl get nervous that they might be in for an awkward night. Allen finally agrees to a rum and coke, much to their relief, and he and Dougie catch up until Dougie decides he needs to get something off his chest.

New Magic Valley Fun Town (Part 2)

By Daniel MacIvor. Dougie is excited and maybe a little nervous as he prepares his mobile home in Cape Breton for a party with his childhood best friend. He hasn’t seen Allen in 30 years, and if Facebook is to be believed, he’s now a fit university professor who, unlike Dougie, still has his hair. Dougie’s church-going ex-wife Cheryl and their depressed adult daughter Sandy are there for the reunion. They bicker as they prep the booze and snacks for Allen’s arrival when Sandy upsets Dougie about Allen’s childhood nickname.

New Magic Valley Fun Town (Part 1)

As a holiday gift, we're re-releasing the radio versions of some of our favourite shows this year. These plays have been edited for a general audience, and enriched with playwright interviews. Today: Nicolas Billon's "Butcher," a wildly unpredictable crime thriller set on Christmas Eve. Warning: it's anything but holly jolly.

Butcher (Clean version)

As a holiday gift, we're re-releasing the radio versions of some of our favourite shows this year. These plays have been edited for a general audience, and enriched with playwright interviews. Today: Chloé Hung's ferocious comedy "Three Women of Swatow," about three generations of women linked by one fierce legacy.

“Three Women of Swatow” (Clean version)

As a holiday gift, we're re-releasing the radio versions of some of our favourite shows this year. These plays have been edited for a general audience, and enriched with playwright interviews. Today: Mark Crawford's hit comedy "Bed and Breakfast," a heartwarming tale of a gay couple from the big city finding home and belonging in a small town.

Bed and Breakfast (Clean version)

As a holiday gift, we're re-releasing the radio versions of some of our favourite shows this year. These plays have been edited for a general audience, and enriched with playwright interviews. Today: Keith Barker's "This Is How We Got Here," a story of two couples on a journey through grief following a young one's suicide.

This Is How We Got Here (Clean version)

As a holiday gift, we're re-releasing the radio versions of some of our favourite shows this year. These plays have been edited for a general audience, and enriched with playwright interviews. Today: Jordi Mand's debut play "Between The Sheets," about a middle-aged mother, a teacher in her twenties, and confrontation that changes both their lives.

Between the Sheets (Clean version)

As a holiday gift, we're re-releasing the radio versions of some of our favourite shows this year. These plays have been edited for a general audience, and enriched with playwright interviews. First up: Emil Sher's adaptation of "The Boy in the Moon" — Ian Brown's memoir exploring the "trials, tribulations and triumphs" of raising a child with a rare disability.

The Boy in the Moon (Clean version)

PlayME will be back in January. In the meantime, here's something we think you’ll like. Limited Capacity is a collection of six short stories about the strange and twisted ways we interact with the internet, and with each other. Each immersive episode is packed with intimate and jarring stories that are both completely familiar and somehow confoundingly alien. It’s like Black Mirror for your ears. From the fiendishly clever mind of Rob Norman, co-creator of the hit podcast Personal Best. More episodes are available at: smarturl.it/limitedcapacity

Introducing: Limited Capacity

Chris talks to actor and playwright Mark Crawford, who shares how growing up as a gay kid on a farm in southwestern Ontario has impacted his writing and the audience he likes to reach. He talks about why he feels rural theatre-goers are ready for queer narratives, why he doesn't mind being "accessible" and what he’s learned from eavesdropping on audiences.

Bed and Breakfast (Interview with Mark Crawford)

PlayME is transforming the way we experience theatre by turning contemporary plays into bingeable audio dramas. Welcome to your Digital Theatre.

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