AGE RECOMMENDATIONS & WARNINGS

The detailed content warnings relate to areas of a production that might negatively impact some audience members. Spoiler alert: the details and context section will reveal key parts of the play, which may affect your experience of the show. These warnings are a tool to allow everyone to engage on an equal footing, empowering you to take any necessary steps to prepare to experience the material safely.

It is the nature of theatre that some elements of a production are a work in progress until the show is in front of audiences. For the most accurate information, please visit our website closer to Opening Night.

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A GUIDE TO THE RATING SYSTEM:

General (G): content is suitable for all ages

Parental Guidance (PG): show may include content unsuitable for some audiences

Mature (M): recommended for older teens and adults

FOR SCHOOLS:

Ksenia Broda-Milian, our Education & Enrichment Manager, has recommended school years for each production. To learn more about a production’s suitability for school audiences, please email her at kbrodamilian@royalmtc.ca.

FOR PARENTS/GUARDIANS/CAREGIVERS:

You know your young people best. It is your decision about which shows to bring young people to see. Please remember: Royal MTC is an adult theatre that occasionally features family-friendly programming. When considering bringing a young person to the theatre, please consider the show’s running time in addition to any content warnings.

Still unsure about the suitability of a show for your child after checking this page? Feel free to contact our Box Office at 204 942 6537 or send an email.
 

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Click on the show image or title for detailed content information >>
 

Mainstage Shows

  

  

Cyrano de Bergerac • Anne of Green Gables – The Musical • Intrepid

My Name is Lucy Barton • Waiting for Godot • fareWel
 

Warehouse Shows

  

 

Goblin:Macbeth • Comfort Food • Misery • Fifteen Dogs
 

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MAINSTAGE

 

CYRANO DE BERGERAC

WARNINGS: Rated PG for some coarse language, sensuality and sexual innuendo, stage violence and death. Water-based haze, flashing lights, loud sounds.

Parental Guidance – aspects to consider: mature and potentially distressing content. Not recommended for younger children. 

• Some coarse/strong language
• Sensuality and suggestive content, non-explicit
• Violence

Details and context – may contain spoilers!

• Language: Frequent use of "sh*t" and infrequent use of "b*tch," "tabar**k,"  "da*n," "b*stard," and "Go***mn." One use of "tit" as an insult.
• Violence: Characters duel with swords causing onstage wounds and stabbings. An offstage fight makes someone late because "there were all these bodies in the way." The cadets chant that they are "here to settle bloody debts and burn down all your parapets." Characters are wounded including being stabbed, gash on the hand, being shot in war and having a nose split. There are two onstage deaths. The second act takes place at war, which is presented as a dirty, terrible environment.
• Sex and Romance: A character in power is married but lusts after another woman, so he is trying to arrange her marriage to his friend so they can "share." There are some passionate kisses between a couple. A woman reads a letter where a man has said that if she denies him he will be ruthless. There is a steamy monologue where love is revealed – not explicit, but contains lines such as "I love your purity, I want to dirty you" and "I want to trace the map of you with my mouth." A woman disguises herself as a man and puts rolled socks down her trousers, which she pulls out onstage. The cadets chant that they are here to "give the ladies heavy pets."
• Substances: Faux alcohol is consumed. Cadets chant to "dump that tea, we drink whiskey in Gascony." A character suggests "let's get plastered."

 

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ANNE OF GREEN GABLES – THE MUSICAL

WARNINGS: Suitable for general audience, but please consider running time when determining suitability for younger children. Loud volume levels from live orchestra, gunshot (starter's pistol for a race); flashing lights and water-based haze.

General Audience – aspects to consider:

• No strong language
• References to corporal punishment and alcohol
• References to romance and pregnancy

Details and context – may contain spoilers!

• Substances: A child, Diana, drinks currant wine that she thinks is cordial and portrays intoxication. Reference to a woman having a "drunken husband" (not seen onstage). 
• Sex and Romance: A couple has several children and a character asks if they are Catholic – upon finding out they're Presbyterian she remarked that's "a funny kind of Presbyterian." A teacher flirts with his adult student and they end up married. A child saw their housekeeper swimming "in her birthday suit."
• Violence: A woman keeps children in a woodshed until dinner and threatens to “whale” them when they cry. A woman recommends cutting a birch switch. Mrs. Barry says she would thrash her daughter as punishment. A child hits another over the head with a school slate. Verbal: a child is called a "monster," "demon," "bruiser" and "brawler" after hitting another.
• Religion: Ongoing references/jokes about sending clothes to the “heathens” in foreign countries including "Borneo head hunters," reference to someone's name being shared with a "heathen goddess." References to it being "a Christian household" with prayers said; church as a central part of life.
• Death and dying: The main character is an orphan. A beloved figure passes away peacefully at the age of 60, characters grieve. 
• Other: Anne calls Mrs. Lynde fat. 

 

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INTRePID

WARNINGS: ​Rated PG. Mature content, occasional strong language; loud noises, strobing & flashing lights, video screen(s), water-based haze.

Parental Guidance – aspects to consider:

• This is a world premiere; watch for updates as script is revised.
• Occasional strong language
• Sexuality ("fade to black" scenes)
• Violence
• Description of war crimes and the Holocaust
• Alcohol use
• Misogyny
• Antisemitism
• Loud war-related noises such as gunshots & bombs; flashing lights, water-based haze, video screens

Details and context – may contain spoilers!

• Language: Infrequent use of "hell," "da*n," "bloody" "wh*re," "b*tch," "sh*t," "piss," "*ss*ole."
• Vulgarity and Misogyny: A character who is meant to be villainous and off-putting mentions "the scent Czech women give off during ovulation. The mucous is more viscous at this time of the month, is it not?" A character says, “You know just how to stick your nose up the asshole of your commander and then lick your face clean.”
• Substances: Faux alcohol is often drunk but no intoxicated characters are portrayed. Some characters smoke cigarettes. Churchill sings a period song about getting drunk when the war is over. 
• Violence: A man slaps a woman. A German officer shoots another onstage. Throats are slit onstage. Battle scenes are shown via historical video as well as depicted in dance. Discussion of how to best kill enemy soldiers including "grab a rock and bash in your enemy’s head" and "sneak up behind, grab the hair, pull down the head and slit his throat."
• Holocaust and War Crimes: Mention of Kristallnacht. Mention of transports to Theresienstadt. Mention of rounding people up and the gas chambers. Several characters dismiss that the Holocaust is happening. Villainous characters make antisemitic comments. A character says to “Make an example of some wealthier Jews. And some teenage girls.” Mention of Japanese war crimes in Manchuria: rape and mass murder.
• Sex and Romance: no nudity. A woman talks about her affairs and children by men who are not her husband. Her first "affair" was at age 14 with a 21-year-old man. A woman spills a drink on herself and says, "oh dear, now I'm all wet." A character makes up a story as a distraction, about wearing a see-through nightgown that caused a ship's captain to "[throw her] on the bed and try to rape [her]." Characters having an affair kiss and sex is implied. To distract a security guard, a woman strips down to her undergarments. These are choreographed moments with parameters established with the support of an intimacy coordinator. 

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MY NAME IS LUCY BARTON

WARNINGS: Rated Mature. Mature content & language; possible use of water-based haze; video screen.

Mature – aspects to consider:

• Few instances of language
• Deals with the legacy of family trauma
• Lucy's negative childhood experiences are delilberately left ambiguous and may be interpreted in different ways. 
• Solo show; all content is narrated by one actor rather than depicted as if happening in front of us.
• Content may not resonate with younger audiences. Recommended for older teens or adults.

Details and context – may contain spoilers! - coming soon

• Language: Two uses of "f*ck," one "damn." A father calls his son a f*gg*t.
• Medical: The play takes place in a hospital room as Lucy narrates her 9-week recovery from complications after appendix surgery when she was unsure of her survival.
• Neglect and abuse: When a child, Lucy’s mother “struck us impulsively, vigorously” for lying or wasting food. Lucy refers to The Thing as something her father did but does not tell us what that means. As a child Lucy was locked in a truck, describes it vividly. Lucy cannot say the word "snake" due to unspecified trauma. There is much debate among readers of the book as to whether sexual abuse is implied or not. 
• Homophobia: A man is referred to as a "homo." When Lucy's brother was caught dressing in mother’s clothes, father paraded him down the street in women’s underwear yelling at him.
• Sex and romance: A woman left her family for another man; brief mention (1 sentence) of an affair that led to divorce; a husband "ran off with someone else;" a mention of a husband having an affair with his secretary.  Recounting a conversation: "and I had to ask her 'but didn’t they ever do it?' 'Do what? Have intercourse? How would I know?!'" A friend’s father had a nervous breakdown and “started walking around the house just masturbating compulsively.”
• WW2 and the Holocaust: Lucy's doctor’s grandparents and 3 aunts “had been killed in the camps.” The yellow biohazard signs on AIDS patients' rooms remind her of yellow stars that Jewish people were forced to wear. As a soldier, Lucy's father killed 2 young Germans and has PTSD from the experience.
• Death and dying: Lucy narrates the experience of losing each of her parents.
• Other: Extreme poverty. Mention of September 11, seeing the plane go into the second tower on the news. Lucy's brother “spends the night next to any animal that will be killed the next day.” A few mentions of the AIDS epidemic; Lucy wonders if the man across the hall in the hospital that she sees dying of AIDS is a friend of hers.
   

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WAITING FOR GODOT

WARNINGS: Rated PG. Mature content, mild language; probable use of water-based haze.

Parental Guidance – aspects to consider:

• Mild language
• References to death and suicide
• Depiction of slavery

Details and context – may contain spoilers! - coming soon

• Language: Infrequent use of "d*mn" and one use of "b*tch."
• Violence: A character is dragged by a rope, pushed and threatened with a whip by his enslaver, and spit on by another character. General physical and emotional abuse towards this enslaved character.
• Substances: Faux wine is drunk onstage.
• Death and Suicide: Partway through Act 1, two characters discuss hanging themselves in a casual manner, as something to do while they wait; they discuss logistics. Late in Act 2, a character reminisces about when he threw himself into the river. A character looks at the tree and says it's a pity they don't have rope. 
• Sex and Romance: A character says that hanging themselves would give them an erection. 
• Other: General themes of the futility of life and contemplation of death, juxtaposed with comedic actions (or inaction).

 

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FAREWEL

WARNINGS: Rated PG. Strong language, mature content including frequent substance use.

Parental Guidance – aspects to consider:

• Strong language
• Violence
• Substance use and intoxication
• Misogyny
• Sexuality and innuendo
• Discussion of killing an animal

Details and context – may contain spoilers!

• Language: Frequent use of "sh*t" and 'f*ck," use of "d*mn," "b*tch," "*ss*ole," "ass," sl*t" and "wh*re."
• Substances: Frequent cigarette smoking (TBC how this will be portrayed). A character sniffs gas onstage and refers to the habit frequently. Faux alcohol is often drunk and intoxicated characters are portrayed.
• Violence: A character punches another with a toothache to remove the tooth and the one with the toothache sports a black eye. A character has many scars from various traumas. Rachel slaps Melvin. Teddy grabs Rachel’s hair and kicks Phyllis. Reference to kids hitting a dog. Talk about a dog in the past who ate another small dog.
• Animals: A dog bites someone (offstage) who later talks about killing it. Someone pulls all its teeth out.
• Misogyny: Women are not allowed at a self-governance meeting. Various gender-based insults.
• Sex and Romance: A stage direction reads "Rachel enters wearing the [dancing] outfit, her breasts bared" (this action TBC in the new year.) A character vaguely describes having sex.
• Other: Tools of white supremacy have been and are used, historically and presently, to disenfranchise Indigenous peoples. This show depicts these and their results, including blood quantum, racism, (lack of) education, substance dependency/addiction, colourism, poverty and the reservation system.

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WAREHOUSE

 

GOBLIN:MACBETH

WARNINGS: Rated PG. Strong language, violence, innuendo; water-based haze, flashing lights.

Parental Guidance – aspects to consider:

• Strong language
• Discussion of violence including an offstage murder
• Occasional light innuendo

Details and context – may contain spoilers!

• Audience Interaction: occasional conversations with individuals near the stage - aside from one "witch" who they speak to at more length, just a few short solo encounters; overall participation is as a group, like everyone waving their arms to represent trees or joining in a shout of dramatic death, so you can participate or not as you wish.
• Language: Use of the words "f*ck," "sh*t," "son of a b****," and "*ss*ole." 
• Sex and Romance: Lady M's "unsex me here" monologue is steamy but not explicit; a baguette is used for phallic imagery; the phrase "I to your assistance do make love" is discussed; Oedipus joke. 
• Violence: Some stage violence, no gore. Characters are killed offstage. 
• Substances: Some versions of the show have a joke about psychedelic mushrooms.
• Other: Discussion of the gender spectrum (goblins recognize 17 genders).

 

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COMFORT FOOD

WARNINGS: Rated PG. Strong language; the potentially distressing realities of climate change; video screens. Food prepared onstage may be shared with audience. 

Parental Guidance – aspects to consider:

• Some strong language
• As scripted, sourdough baked onstage and shared – likely not gluten free
• KitKat is a climate activist and as such shares anxiety and facts about the state of the environment, factory farming, etc.
• Sensory: several screens as the show is filmed and "broadcast" onstage. Smells from food cooked onstage.

Details and context – may contain spoilers!

• Language: Use of the words "f*ck," "sh*t," "b*tch," exclamations of "Jesus."
• Sex and Romance: Discussion of KitKat being conceived with a donor via IVF. 
• Substances: A character relapses into smoking cigarettes and hides it from her son.
• Other: A character puts a pulled tooth in their mouth. 

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MISERY

WARNINGS: Rated Mature. Strong language; intense stage violence & gore, forcible confinement; loud noises and possible flashing lights.

Mature – aspects to consider:

• Faithful retelling of the Stephen King horror novel; consider that some may have stronger reactions from seeing the events rather than reading about them
• Intense theatrical violence and threats with weapons
• A character is depicted in pain for much of the show including screaming 
• Loud noises will likely include thunder, gunshot, explosion and shouting

Details and context – may contain spoilers!

• Language: use of the words "f*ck,", "b*tch," and "ass" and one use of "d*go."
• Substances: Faux alcohol is poured multiple times, TBC whether it is drunk onstage. Intoxication not portrayed. 
• Violence: As scripted, violence is visibly stages. Levels of gore TBC. A character is in agonizing pain throughout the play. A character is threatened with and eventually beaten with a sledgehammer. A character is shot and dies covered in blood. A character's head is smashed multiple times with a heavy object. A character attempts to poison another. All of these are choreographed by a fight director.
• Flame: As scripted, papers are burned on multiple occasions. 
• Other: Kidnapping/forcible confinement. An author says that a character "f*cks a dog" in his new book. 

 

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FIFTEEN DOGS

WARNINGS: Rated Mature. Occasional strong language; mature themes including animal violence and death & mention of suicide. Possible use of water-based haze & flashing lights; loud sudden noises. 

Mature – aspects to consider:

• Loud sudden noises such as thunderclaps and traffic
• All violence is described, sometimes graphically, but not likely depicted visually

Details and context – may contain spoilers!

• Language: use of "b*tch," referencing female dogs; occasional use of "sh*t", "f*ck" and "vagina." 
• Violence and death: SPOILERS: A dog murders another small one by biting her. A dog brings a "small struggling creature" to the Narrator, who bashes it against a rock. A dog lures another into the street to be killed by a car. Dog pack attacks others, killing two. Poodle attacks beagle for speaking to humans. Dog kills or bites a cat offstage. Dogs are poisoned; they describe what it feels like. The dog who led them to poison is abandoned by humans and accidentally eats more poison. The gods blind and deafen the last dog.
• Suicide, death and dying: A woman says that she "can't go on anymore." A dog "gives up his vigil" and his soul travels away with a god. SPOILER: As the gods' experiment is about whether the dogs will die happily, unsurprisingly, none of them are alive at the play's end. 

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