“The Sermon” is a solo-show in progress following the life of an aspiring young pastor navigating the unpredictable and wacky terrain of evangelical bible college as he prepares to deliver his senior-year sermon. On his mission to be more like Christ, he wrestles with temptation, doubt, a professor with a vendetta and an unholy obsession for Donna Summer.

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What does it mean to "be yourself" when the environment around you wasn't built with your identity in mind?

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In collaboration with UPlift Black, Talk Is Free Theatre presents an evocative panel discussion exploring the intersection of racialized identity and creative practice in non-urban Canada. Inspired by the themes of institutional navigation and personal truth in The Sermon, this conversation brings together three visionary racialized artists living and working within Simcoe County.

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Led by Shelly-Ann Skinner, President and Founder of UPlift Black, the panel will pull back the curtain on the "unspoken" realities of the rural creative life. From the pressure of being a "pioneer" voice to the profound joy of building community from the ground up, our panelists will discuss how they navigate, challenge, and ultimately reshape the non-urban landscape through their art.

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Join us for an honest, unfiltered exploration of what it takes to not just survive, but to create and thrive in the spaces in between.

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The reading of an excerpt of Something Old by Barrie artist Keara Voo. The play will receive its world premiere production with TIFT in June!

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Lily Chan is engaged. While her mother is excited to begin planning, Lily has a different vision for her wedding. Leaning on her beloved Pau Pau to support her, the status quo of the family is put to the test. But when a wrench is thrown into Lily's plans, the family must put aside their differences and rally to help her pull off a wedding that honours both where their family has come from and who they are today. 

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What does it mean to grow up in Barrie while holding onto a culture that isn’t always visible around you? In this intimate conversation, local artists Keara Voo and Matthew MacQuarrie-Cottle sit down with their parents to reflect on identity, memory, and what gets passed from one generation to the next. Through personal stories and shared experience, the panel explores belonging, adaptation, and the quiet negotiations that shape family and community life. At its heart, this session asks how culture survives, changes, and finds expression, most especially through art,  in places still learning how to see themselves as multicultural.

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