Evan Tsitsias
DIRECTOR/WRITER/PERFORMER/PRODUCER
Writing
"This is a play that lingers after the lights come up." - Jon Kaplan, Now Magazine
" Tsitsias writes a tale that will leave the audience both squirming and thinking." - Toronto Star
"As a metaphor for embracing and living life to its fullest, Unstuck succeeds in spades" - Gay Vancouver
"Evan Tsitsias' smart, acerbic comedy"
- Now Magazine
"Aftershock is one of those rare shows that combines an intelligent, dramatic examination of our society, genuine witty dialogue and gruesome moments, almost cinematic in their realism, that makes the audience wince...a powerful piece of theatre."
- Twisi Theatre
This story felt very real... The issues of monogamy, sex and love was brought up right to the forefront to provoke us to examine what we think is “normal”
- Vancouver Observer
"From the first words uttered onstage, I was elated. The rhythm and timbre of the dialogue suggested a lost Michel Tremblay play, with gorgeous repetitions and layered character conversations. " - Plank Magazine
"...cleverly written blur-the-lines Book"-Our Theatre Voice
Writing is my obsession. I've been working on several plays and films over the last few years. It's terrifying and exhilarating and compulsive. I wrote and produced the short film BAGGED (CBC-Canadian Reflections/DC Shorts Film Festival/ WIFT). My plays Aftershock (nominated for the Tom Hendry Award - Best New Comedy) and Strange Mary Strange both premiered at the Summerworks Festival. My play Unstuck was part of the Foundry Theatre series, the Clean Sheets Festival and had its world premiere in Vancouver with The Frank Theatre Company. My latest play, The Murmuration of Starlings was part of the New Works Festival in Edmonton, placed 2nd in the Pat the Dog Competition and was a finalist in the Herman Voaden National Playwriting Competition.
In Germany I co-created/co-wrote I am Invisible (published) with Bluespots Productions in Augsburg (also performed at Amnesty International in Karlsruhe), co-wrote/created Berlin Bound with Sisyphos, Der Flugelefant at Kater Holzig in Berlin and wrote We Are The Play to commemorate the 25th year of the fall of the Berlin Wall that was performed as a site specific piece at the Berlin Wall Memorial in Germany. I've also created the devised pieces Interrupted, The Breakfast Variations and Grarya that premiered as part of WWL: A Director's Feast at Irondale in Brooklyn, NY and Echo at the Apollo Theatre in Syros, Greece. I was a member of the 2011 Tarragon Playwright's Unit and a proud member of the Playwrights Guild of Canada.
Two monologues from Unstuck were published in the anthology Hashtag: Queer by QCommunity. A scene from Aftershock is published in the anthology Refractions:Scenes by Playwrights Canada Press and my book The Directors Lab has also been published by the Press. I'm currently Co-Editing a new anthology titled "This is Beyond:A time capsule of Queer Experience for Playwrights Canada Press coming out late 2023. Links to purchase below books below.
PLAYS/FILMS
Director: Rob Ceballos
Starring: Patrick Garrow, Lynne Griffin, Allana Harkin, David Mackett, Catherine Rainville, Amy Rutherford
Produced by : Theatre on The Verge as part of the Summerworks Festival.
*Best of Summerworks - Now Magazine
*Tom Hendry Nomination - Best New Comedy
Director: Esther Jun and Evan Tsitsias
Starring: Sarah McVie, Catherine Rainville and Emma Mackenzie Hillier
Produced by: Theatre on the Verge as part of Summerworks Festival.
*Best of Summerworks
*Critics Pick
* Oustanding Direction, Ensemble and Production - Now Magazine
The Murmuration of Starlings
Director: Donna Marie Baratta
Produced By: New Works Festival
Starring: Sven Miller, Tatyana Rac and Holly Cinnamon
*2nd Place- Pat the Dog 24hr Playwriting Competition
* Finalist - Herman Voaden National Playwriting Competition
*Grant Recipient- Toronto Arts Council and Theatre Creators Reserve
Director: Michael Dobbin
Starring: Sean Oliver Harris, Ari Solomon and Kevin Kreussler
Produced by: Frank Theatre Company
*Shortlisted - QPlays International Playwrighting Competition
* Part of the Clean Sheets Festival - Vancouver
* Part of the Foundry Theatre Reading Series
*Jessie Nomination- Sean Oliver Harris/Best Supporting Actor
Written by: Evan Tsitsias
Co-directed by: Evan Tsitsias and Chang Nai Wen
Starring: Jonathan Aikins, Kristin Becker, Sonja Chan, Dilan Gülmez, Para Kiala, Lara-Sophie Milagro and Larius Phoulivong
Produced by: Sysiphos Der Flugelefant and English Theatre Berlin.
Performed as a site specific, immersive experience at the Berlin Wall Memorial in Germany.
ECHO
Written by: Evan Tsitsias, Chang Nai Wen and Laura Tesman
Co- Directed by : Evan Tsitsias, Chang Nai Wen and Laura Tesman
Starring: Iphigenia Grivas Aristea Stafylaraki, Irene shoulder, Katerina Drakopoulou Thanos Foskolos, John Harbatsis Stavros Giannouladis George Kissandrakis, James Mindrinos & Tali Custer
Performed at the historic Apollo Theatre in Syros, Greece.
This is a book I created and edited with Playwrights Canada Press released in 2019. It is based on my experiences running the Directors Lab North in Toronto and attending the Lincoln Center Directors Lab and the Chicago Lab. It's full of interviews, master classes, information, techniques, and a manual perfect for directors, actors, designers or anyone interested in theatre creation.
"Tsitsias has assembled a crucial volume of knowledge on the craft of directing." - The Drama Review Journal
This is a book I co-edited with Bilal Baig.
Monologues, essays, poetry, and opinion pieces speak to the transformation of queer theatre through a myriad of diverse experiences, using stories, myths, and magic to unveil the intersections of queerness and cultures. Each piece gives voice to what it means to be a member of the queer community in an ever-evolving society, offering actors of every age, colour, culture, and generation empowered queer stories to play with, ponder over, learn from, and embody within our current cultural moment.
Photo Gallery of Shows I've Written
 AFTERSHOCKAmy Rutherford - Summerworks Festival NOW MAGAZINE - NNNN’s/BEST of Summerworks/Critic’s Choice. Anna (Amy Rutherford), recipient of an extreme makeover, returns to her working-class family pert and permed (but not for long) in Evan Tsitsias’s smart, acerbic comedy. Crammed into Glenn Davidson’s impeccably designed kitchen, the terrific cast moves from the whimsical opening sequence through increasingly harrowing events …bitterly successful. |  BAGGEDShort Film aired on CBC Screened at WIFT Official Selection- DC Short Film Festival |
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 Strange Mary Strange |  BaggedShort Film aired on CBC Screened at WIFT Official Selection- DC Short Film Festival |
 BAGGEDShort Film aired on CBC Screened at WIFT Official Selection- DC Short Film Festival |  Voices in the DarkAn original piece I co-created and directed as a project for Ryerson University based on Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed. I worked with an artistic team and a group of incredible refugee and immigrant women for over a year to turn their stories into a new piece of Forum Theatre. |
 Cover of Xtra West for "UNSTUCK" |  UNSTUCK |
 UNSTUCKCast from the workshop production as part of the Clean Sheets Festival in Vancouver. |  BAGGEDShort Film aired on CBC Screened at WIFT Official Selection- DC Short Film Festival |
 "Unstuck"- Frank Theatre Company"I was engaged and was struck"- On The Scene |  The Murmuration of Starlings |
 The Murmuration of Starlings |  The Murmuration of Starlings |
 The Murmuration of Starlings |  The Murmuration of Starlings |
 The Murmuration of Starlings |  The Murmuration of Starlings |
 "Unstuck"- Frank Theatre Company 201"Playwright Tsitsias has stitched yearning and intelligence into Jared and, thanks to the actor’s responsiveness, you get to see Jared’s full range on-stage." - Georgia Straight |  The Murmuration of Starlings |
 BERLIN BOUNDSisyphos Der Flugelefant Berlin, Germany |  Screen Shot 2014-08-13 at 6.25.45 PM.png |
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 AFTERSHOCK"In an odd, surreal twist, she is rooted to the same spot onstage, literally unable to move. As time passes and life goes on around her. Anna then undertakes a process of self-mutilation that becomes progressively more difficult to watch. Bolstered by a strong cast, Aftershock is a blend of comedy and eerie tension. There’s plenty of food of thought in the script about the nature of beauty and the possibility of change." - Toronto Star |  Aftershock"Aftershock is a powerful piece of theatre... a harrowing and emotional piece...Aftershock raises some fascinating questions about the consequences of our society’s obsession with artifice, with the illusion of perfection and Tsitsias refuses to offer us a simplistic solution." - Twisi Theatre |
 AFTER7.jpg |  AFTERSHOCK |
 AFTERSHOCK |  AFTERSHOCKLynne Griffin and Allana Harkin |
 BAGGED |  Strange Mary Strange |
 Strange Mary Strange |  Strange Mary Strange |
 Strange Mary Strange |  Strange Mary Strange |
 Strange Mary Strange |  BAGGED |
 BAGGED |  BAGGED |
 BAGGED |  BAGGED |
 BAGGED |  BAGGED |
 BAGGED |  Strange Mary StrangeWorkshop at Pat the Dog Playwrights Centre. Melissa Kramer and Valerie Buhagiar |
 Strange Mary StrangeWorkshop at Pat the Dog Playwrights Centre. Melissa Kramer and Valerie Buhagiar, Catherine Rainville |  Strange Mary StrangeWorkshop at Pat the Dog Playwrights Centre. |