​

Movement Direction for Imago Theatre's The Flood by Leah-Simone Bowen, directed by Yvette Nolan

​​​

​Summary: In 1887, women were property and could be imprisoned for any reason. Jail was considered a place for the criminal, the disabled, the mentally ill, and the marginalized. In the basement prison below Toronto’s largest market, two women named Mary—one a shunned, pregnant Irish immigrant, the other a vilified Mississauga woman—become an unlikely pair as they form a friendship within their cold, shared cell. Their bond threatens fellow inmate Sophia—who calls herself the first Black woman in Canada and the leader of the prisoners—and she plots to use the women to gain better treatment for herself. But as melting ice water pours into the prison from Lake Ontario, the forgotten women of Toronto must come together to survive. Inspired by true accounts and the history of Toronto’s St. Lawrence Market, The Flood gives voice to the little-known stories of early female prisoners in Canada.

​

Cast:
Jimmy Blais (Guard, Samuel & Fred), Quinn Dooley (Irish Mary), Krystle Pederson (Mary), Jennifer Roberts (Jennie & Victoria), Keren Roberts (Sophia), and Anana Rydvald (Iryna)

Creative Team:
Moe Clark (Composer & Sound Design), Quinn Dooley (Fiddle), Kate Hagemeyer (Stage Manager), Yvette Nolan (Director), Elaine Normandeau (Translation & Surtitles), Vera Oleynikova (Lighting Design Mentee), Veronique Pagnoux (Scenic Painter), Erika Parra (Costume Assistant), Gabriela Petrov (Movement Director), Cara Rebecca (Fight Director), Tim Rodrigues (Lighting Design), Zoe Roux (Costume Assistant), Abi Sanie (Apprentice Stage Manager), Troy Slocum (Head of Sound), Shopdogs Inc. (Technical Direction & Set Build), Julian Smith (Assistant to the Head of Sound), Diana Uribe (Set & Costume Design), and Katey Wattam (Associate Director & Trauma-Informed Theatre Consultant)

​​

February 2024

​

Photo credit: Andrée Lanthier

​