Sacred, strange, and seriously creative: What to expect at IGNITE! Festival 2025

What if a wedding, a concert, and a confessional all merged onstage? At this year’s IGNITE! Festival, theatre gets personal and unpredictable. And if you’ve got the itch for live theatre, the ticket prices can’t be beat — starting at just ten bucks.

Now in its 15th year, the IGNITE! Festival is more than a play festival. It’s a space for introduction — for Calgary audiences to see what’s coming next in local theatre, and for artists to put ideas on their feet.

Artistic Director Jason Mehmel calls IGNITE! “a launching pad,” not just for early-career artists but for big, gutsy ideas.

“There’s real ambition here,” Mehmel says. “Not to break into the industry, but to challenge what theatre can be.”

Each piece in the festival comes from artists stepping into unfamiliar territory. That’s the definition of “emerging artists” at IGNITE!, Mehmel explains: it’s not just for newcomers or new grads, but anyone creating something unlike what they’ve done before.

“We’re not a training program,” Mehmel says. “We’re a bridge. A place where connections happen between artists and with the community.”

“The mentorship is the special sauce,” Mehmel adds. “It’s what helped me build my career. And it’s what we offer every artist who walks through our doors.”

Full schedule and details at sagetheatre.com/ignite-festival-of-emerging-artists

What you’ll see at IGNITE!

The Church of Springsteen

Equal parts satire and love letter, this workshop performance stages a full church service devoted to The Boss himself. Think gospel choir meets arena rock — all in the name of Bruce.

Created by IGNITE! alumni Conrad Belau and Alixandra Cowman, it’s a theatrical experiment in fandom-as-faith.

“This is one of those shows where no one’s ever seen anything like it,” says Mehmel. “It takes that ‘religious experience’ feeling at a Bruce concert and turns it into something sacred and silly and heartfelt.”

The Event

You’re invited to a one-time-only ritual. It’s elegant, emotional, and a little eerie — an immersive piece inspired by the structure and symbolism of a wedding. Dress code: semi-formal. Role: witness.

“You’re not just watching,” Mehmel says. “You’re part of it. Like clapping at a wedding, it’s all part of the moment.”

The creators (known as Three Cheese) are intentionally keeping the details under wraps. But expect intimacy, melancholy, and a sense that you were meant to be there.

Good ’n Gooders

Philosophy via drive-thru speaker. A hungry wanderer finds unlikely friendship — and maybe even answers — from a fast-food operator on the other end of the intercom.

“It’s dealing with questions as deep as any play in the canon,” Mehmel says. “But instead of a kitchen table, you’re getting it through a drive-thru window.”

Funny, strange, and unexpectedly moving.

Cardboard Castles

In her sister’s apartment-turned-imaginary-kingdom, Amelia discovers that grief and fantasy can be hard to untangle. Can she bring Vera back to reality — or is this cardboard world exactly what Vera needs to survive?

A quietly devastating look at how we cope when the real world feels too sharp.

Fabre

Set in a dreamlike park, a young woman wrestles with two deep betrayals — a cheating boyfriend and a mother who left. Memory haunts her, but so does the question of whether she’s ready to reach out.

A tender, aching story about reconnection and the pain that comes with it.

Last Minute

The clock’s ticking. Two teens cram for a mysterious test that promises to define the rest of their lives — career, relationships, even future kids.

Absurd, anxious, and hilariously sharp, this one hits a little too close to home for anyone who’s ever faced a system that claims to know your future better than you do.

But What Is Natural

A wild, genre-blurring epic from University of Calgary collaborators. It’s King Maverick’s Celebration of Death — a surreal, high-stakes spectacle where truths are uncovered, bonds are broken, and the fate of a kingdom hangs in the balance.

Expect audience participation, plot twists, and a serious dose of theatrical chaos.

DANCE PACK

Raw movement meets emotional release in this triple bill of physical storytelling:

• DANCERsHIGH — sweaty, intense, and cathartic. Dancers push past exhaustion to find clarity.
• Each Ball We Carry — intimate solos and duets, each tied to a shifting object and the weight it represents.
• Grow — an earthy, hypnotic exploration of how humans channel the power of forests.

“These dancers are right at the edge of their craft,” says Mehmel. “It’s one of the most exciting parts of the festival.”

IGNITE Sparks! Readings

New work doesn’t just happen — it evolves. That’s the idea behind IGNITE Sparks!, a reading series that pairs emerging playwrights with seasoned mentors for one-on-one feedback, creative guidance, and room to grow.

This year’s lineup includes writers working closely with names like Natalie Meisner and Gordon Pengilly, with each piece presented as a live staged reading during the festival.

“You’re going to catch some sparks,” organizers promise — and it’s true. These works-in-progress might be early drafts, but they come packed with bold choices and fresh voices. It’s a rare glimpse into the creative process and a celebration of where stories begin.

The IGNITE! Festival runs in Calgary from June 4 to 7 at the Pumphouse Theatre.