The North American Premiere of April Fools
By The Segal Centre
The North American Premiere of April Fools
The Segal Centre is reopening and putting theatre back in the spotlight with the upcoming English-language premiere of April Fools, a pop/rock cabaret musical from Israeli superstar and two-time “Israeli Singer of the Year” Keren Peles. Directed by Moshe Kepten, adapted for North American audiences by Akiva Romer-Segal from a translation by Shelly Ben Shachar, it is a sensual musical rendezvous not to be missed, in the Sylvan Adams Theatre from May 1 to May 22, 2022.
A Tantalizing Spring Fling at the Theatre
While living the seemingly perfect life – complete with career as a rock star, a family, and a home of her dreams – Eva, a woman played by Eva Foote (Girl in Segal Centre’s Once), begins a torrid love affair with an attractive and soon-to-be-married man played by Daniel Murphy (appeared in Segal Centre’s Forever Plaid, Duddy Kravitz, and Lies My Father Told Me). In this adults-only rock cabaret, forbidden love leads to a deep dive into a woman’s mind, where a battle erupts onstage as her conflicting drives, personified by multi-talented performers, all grapple with her desire to break free of societal expectations. Doubling as Eva the rock star’s band and embodying her Greek-chorus-like subconscious who sing, dance, act, and accompany the love story on their musical instruments, are Julia Juhas as Confidence (Segal Centre’s Indecent), Dominique LeBlanc as Doubt (Citadel Theatre’s Almost a Full Moon: In Concert), Heather McGuigan as Morality (Demeter in Segal Centre’s Mythic), Jamie McRoberts as Libido (TIFT’s Into the Woods), Ruthie Nkut as Poet (Neptune Theatre’s The Colour Purple), Zou Zou Robidoux as Music (Cellist in the Segal Centre’s Sisters: The Belles Soeurs Musical at Theatre Calgary), and Rosie Callaghan (last seen at Segal in the DWYT’s It Shoulda Been You) will be the Standby.
“April Fools is about embracing our true selves, including our imperfections, and how our sensuality and sexuality are a part of that, adding to one’s power rather than detracting from it. We’re exploring new boundaries and taking risks in many ways, but like every show this season, at its heart it is a celebration of joy: of life and of being back for the incredible experience that is live theatre,” said Artistic and Executive Director Lisa Rubin.
The story is inspired by Keren Peles’ own life and went on to have hundreds of sold-out performances in Israel before the pandemic, with audiences hooked by the question of what was fiction and what was fact. This will be a rare opportunity to hear her award-winning songs in English. Reprising his role as director is Moshe Kepten, current Artistic Director of HaBima, the National Theatre of Israel where April Fools first premiered in Hebrew. His past credits include countless musicals and televised shows like Eurovision, The Masked Singer and The Voice. Akiva Romer-Segal (rising theatre writer best known for The Louder We Get, FKA Prom Queen, and Grow) has adapted the script for American audiences based on a translation by Shelly Ben-Shachar. As a cherry on top of this scintillating creative team is the internationally renowned So You Think You Can Dance choreographer Sean Cheesman. He choreographed the Segal’s production of Prom Queen, now known as The Louder We Get, and has choreographed for Janet Jackson, Prince, Tina Turner, Vanessa Williams, Whitney Houston, Queen Latifah, and Britney Spears.
“We have big plans for this show. It was huge hit in Israel and the English version may be even better; we can't wait for Montreal audiences to see it before anyone else,” says Director Moshe Kepten.
Technology and Theatre, a budding love affair
On top of a titillating tale of seduction and female empowerment, April Fools also pushes the boundaries of today’s technology to create an innovative, interactive, and immersive experience for audiences. The Segal Centre is partnering with VideoCompany and FunToad to create exciting multimedia visuals to accompany the show on stage and via an app on the audience’s own phones. During the show, audience members will be asked to keep their phones on and download the April Fools app to gain full access to Eva’s cell phone. They will be able to see, in real time, the text messages and snapshots being shared between Eva and her lover, Daniel. Also using their mobile devices, the audience becomes an active part of the story via voting and influences the course of the cabaret.
BONUS:
Keren Peles Trio North American Tour
April 6 at 8:00 p.m.
A one-night only, exclusive concert by the outstanding Israeli artist Keren Peles as the Segal Centre gets ready for the English-language premiere of her new rock musical, April Fools. An unprecedented intimate concert in Hebrew with one of the biggest stars in the world.
Israel’s celebrated singer-songwriter Keren Peles has won every possible Israeli music award. This new concert features some of her most well-known songs, including ones she has written for other Israeli musicians such as Miri Mesika. The show will include songs such as “Peugeot 84”, “Flood” (Mabool), “Running Home” (Ratza Habaita), “Lake Wanka”, “Itay”, “And You” (Ve’at), and many more.
For information about the COVID protocols in place at the Segal Centre, please visit segalcentre.org/en/coronavirus.
Tickets are on sale now at 514.739.7944 or at www.segalcentre.org
WHERE: 5170 chemin de la Côte-Sainte-Catherine, Montreal, H3W 1M7
CAST
EVA Eva Foote
DANIEL Daniel Murphy
CONFIDENCE Julia Juhas
DOUBT Dominique LeBlanc
MORALITY Heather McGuigan
LIBIDO Jamie McRoberts
POET Ruthie Nkut
MUSIC Zou Zou Robidoux
STANDBY Rosie Callaghan
CREATIVE TEAM
CREATED BY Keren Peles
ADAPTED BY Akiva Romer-Segal
FROM A TRANSLATION BY Shelly Ben Shachar
DIRECTOR Moshe Kepten
CHOREOGRAPHER Sean Cheesman
MUSICAL DIRECTOR AND SCORE SUPERVISOR Nick Burgess
MUSICAL SUPERVISOR Brian Rivlin
MUSIC PRODUCER (ORIGINAL PRODUCTION) Adi Rotem
MUSIC PREPARATION Ran Raiten
INTIMACY COACH Luciana Burcheri
SET Brian Dudkiewicz
COSTUMES Louise Bourret
LIGHTING Martin Sirois
VIDEO VideoCompany
SOUND Sylvin Sévigny
INTERACTIVE MOBILE APP FunToad
CASTING Rachelle Glait
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR Lisa Rubin
ASSISTANT CHOREOGRAPHER Kelly Fletcher
STAGE MANAGER Danielle Laurin
ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER Elyse Quesnel
APPRENTICE STAGE MANAGER Ava Bishop
TICKETS: $62 - $67
Group, Senior, Student, Under 30 discounts available. Subject to availability.
514.739.7944
www.segalcentre.org
PERFORMANCES
May 1 to May 22, 2022
Previews:
Sunday, May 1 – 2:00 p.m.
Monday, May 2 – 8:00 p.m.
Tuesday, May 3 – 8:00 p.m.
Wednesday, May 4 – 8:00 p.m.
Regular Run:
Tuesday to Saturday – 8:00 p.m.
Sunday and Monday – 7:00 p.m.
Regular Run Matinées:
Saturday and Sundays – 2:00 p.m.
VIRTUAL SUNDAY @ THE SEGAL
An enriching, online, pre-show lecture on the ideas and themes of the play streamed live on the Segal’s Facebook and YouTube pages.
Sunday, May 1 – 11:00 a.m.
TNL
The ideal night out for theatre-lovers in their 30s, 40s, and 50s!
Thursday, May 12, 2022
Tickets: $68 – Subscribe to 3, 4, or 5 TNL events for only $56 per play*! Please visit our website for more information.
WITH THE GENEROUS SUPPORT OF: Aldo
AND ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FROM: HarbourVest
About the Segal Centre for Performing Arts
Driven by a belief in the transformative power of the arts to connect communities, the Segal Centre for Performing Arts is a not-for-profit theatre company with the unique mission to program high quality professional English-language theatre, celebrate and explore Jewish cultural identity, and promote the diversity of voices and perspectives in society at-large via our artists, staff, content, and other programming. The Segal Centre is dedicated to creating, developing, producing, and presenting high quality theatre that is accessible to all. The Segal Centre is a nationally recognized institution with an emphasis on programming original interpretations of popular classic and contemporary works, and invests in new Canadian musicals. www.segalcentre.org
For interviews and media inquiries:
Segal Centre for Performing Arts
Melanie Thompson
Head of Communications
514 739-2301 ext. 8363
mthompson@segalcentre.org
