Heated Rivalry Heads to Toronto Stage for Limited Three-Night Run
Soulpepper Theatre brings the viral queer hockey love story from Crave to the Distillery District as a special stage reading July 10–12.
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The queer hockey love story that became one of Canada's biggest television phenomena is heading from the screen to the stage — but Toronto's production will take a different form than the international versions.
Soulpepper Theatre is presenting "Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody" as a limited three-night concert event from July 10 to 12 at the Distillery District (50 Tank House Lane). The production has already toured Off-Broadway, Montreal's Just For Laughs Festival, and the Edinburgh Fringe, sparking an international movement.
The show is based on the viral Canadian series "Heated Rivalry," which aired on Crave and has become a cultural phenomenon for representing queer love in professional hockey — a sport typically portrayed as exclusively straight on television. Since the show aired, professional athletes have started coming out publicly to support actor Hudson Williams, who plays Shane Hollander.
Director Alan Kliffer launched the parody in New York before bringing it to major festivals. But Toronto's version will be presented as a stage reading rather than a full theatrical production, due to scheduling conflicts with Soulpepper's existing slate.
"The team is working really hard over the last two weeks to make it possible," Soulpepper's Artistic Director Paolo Santalucia said. "Alan, the director and co-creator, was also sort of interested in saying we shouldn't necessarily have to wait for there to be a full-scale production in order for people to get their hands on experiencing this project."
The parody follows Shane Hollander's journey from "power centre to power bottom," reimagining favourite moments from the original show and book. Despite the reading format, Santalucia said the performance will still move the face of theatre by putting queer stories at the forefront.
"Sometimes we forget that Queer people operate in every kind of space. We are in the locker rooms, we are in major league sports, we are in banks, we are everywhere," Santalucia said. "I think part of the reason 'Heated Rivalry' is so special is because it really reminds us of that."
Tickets are expected to be in high demand given the show's cult following. The Soulpepper Theatre location in the Distillery District has become a hub for arts programming, making it an ideal venue for this limited engagement.