Making Toronto a theatre town
Mirvish Production’s founder, David Mirvish, shares his thoughts on how and why audiences keep coming back
Lace up a pair of tight, thigh-high red leather boots with spiked heels and heads are bound to turn.
Especially when the person donning them is theatre magnate David Mirvish.
In the promotional shot for the flashy, energetic musical Kinky Boots, which ends its 11-month run at the Royal Alexandra Theatre on May 15, Mirvish sits in a red wingback chair grinning.
In contrast to his eye-catching footwear, glistening like they’ve been dipped in a jar of glossy nail polish, he sports a classic suit jacket and tie. “You know, I only wore those boots once but it seems people remember it more than when I carried Mary Poppins’ umbrella,” Mirvish laughs.
“I rode on Aladdin’s carpet in one of our publicity shots, but Kinky Boots seems to have upstaged that.”
Mirvish’s laugh is something to note. It is childlike in some ways, generous, a little hearty and jovial.
Clearly the founder of Mirvish Productions is enjoying life. In part, he has the stage to thank for that.
“We’ve been at it 53 years and there are very few families or individuals who’ve been at it that long,” he says.
“I am beginning to feel on one level that we have endurance on our side, but on the other I feel we are just babies. I think that as long as storytelling counts for something, as long as people want to have emotional encounters with each other, live theatre is handmade and it can’t be replaced by any other form.”
As the son of late Toronto retail icon Ed Mirvish — famously known for Honest Ed’s, the kitschy discount department store with carnival-style signage at Bloor and Bathurst Sts. (scheduled to close Dec. 31), David comes by his love of theatrics honestly.
His father was responsible for rescuing and restoring the once-crumbling Royal Alexandra Theatre and thus, laying down the family’s entertainment roots.
“Is it a disease or a business?” ponders Mirvish.
“There’s no question we know what it is, because it’s not predicable. There are other businesses that are simpler and more direct and linear. It’s a disease, not a business, and I don’t think it’s hereditary. Anyone can catch it. All you need to do is go to a couple of shows and you, too, may find you can’t stop going to the theatre.”
More than five decades on, the 71year-old still undeniably has the bug.
While he is a thoughtful, eventoned speaker, his enthusiasm is infectious. And why shouldn’t it be? After all, he has helped build Toronto up as a formidable theatre town by drawing internationally renowned and emerging works to the stage, along with about two-million theatregoers annually, and he remains deeply captivated and inspired by the energy of a live performance.
“You’re a collaborator in the room because your body language, your breathing, your laughter, that all comes back to the actors on stage and they change their timing,” he says. “Every night is a little bit different.” At a media conference recently, the 34-member cast for the Canadian premiere of Matilda The Musical was announced. Sharing the starring role of Matilda are three young actors, Hannah Levinson, Jaime MacLean and Jenna Weir.
The production, showcasing from July 5 to Sept. 4 at the Ed Mirvish Theatre, is based on the beloved novel by Roald Dahl.
“Matilda I think is very special,” says Mirvish.
“Theatre can do so many different things and that’s its great strength. In Matilda, here’s a little girl who realizes that if you just accept things as they are, you’re not going to stop being bullied. You have to solve it, and ultimately, she finds a way by being mischievous to deal with it within her family, but when she gets out into the bigger world with bigger problems, she has to take more charge, and she does.”
When considering the timeliness of Matilda, with bullying a significant issue facing young people today, the arrival of the narrative might seem masterfully contrived.
However, it is simply good luck and taste.
“We like to pretend we know what we’re doing,” says Mirvish.
“But the truth is, we make these decisions a year-and-a-half or two years ahead and, if we get lucky, they come at a moment when they’re meaningful to people.”