Eva Barrie
Director-Writer-Dramaturg-ArtMonster
Press, Interviews & Published Writing
Some people have said very nice things about my work. Others have not. And I wouldn't want it any other way.
"This is a gripping yarn, and the capacity of director Barrie, the 11-person cast, and the design team keep the tension and energy high in the outdoor setting of Withrow Park for a nearly two-hour running time is remarkable.
Karen Fricker, “Portia’s Julius Caesar finds women’s story in remixed Shakespeare", Toronto Star, 2018
"As the well-paced tension builds to a bloody climax, director Eva Barrie makes sure audiences get lots of what they've come to expect from the reliably excellent Ruffians: strong, engaging performances that make complex language and stories easy to follow, and clever uses of the tree-framed stage and surrounding park space."
Jordan Bimm, "Portias Julius Caesar is a fascinating feminist overhaul of a familiar play", NOW Magazine, 2018
"Director Eva Barrie worked with the Withrow Park location to make this an atmospheric, resonant and provocative summer evening’s entertainment."
Named one of "The 11 best Toronto theatre productions of 2018" by Karen Fricker & Carly Maga of the Toronto Star
"I loved the play in its dark and brooding glory. Barrie’s work shines both in its dialogue and relationships." Madeline Copp "Eva Barrie play, on stage in Toronto, is a fascinating character study", Mooney on Theatre, 2016.
"What I loved most about Yell Rebel’s Agency is its originality. I’ve never experienced a story of this sort before."
Lorenzo Pagnotta Agency at The Theatre Centre,
My Entertainment World, 2016
"The show uses music and creates comical characters that are hilarious and captivating to watch. The text of poets and Shakespeare doesn’t dwindle the humour in the show. I applaud Eva Barrie for using such texts in a refreshing way."
Saba Akhtar, “'Charming and fun' immersive play engrosses children, adults alike in Toronto" Mooney on Theatre, 2016
"Eva Barrie is a major new talent. Her writing is totally engrossing: it’s got an impressive technical complexity – lots of tasty plot – but also a very natural, relatable tone that will catch you off-guard."
Ben Sanders Talking Canadian Stories & the Upcoming Production of AGENCY with actor Ben Sanders
In The Greenroom, 2016
Interviews
Interview with Jon Kaplan of NOW Magazine: My Co-Mates & Brothers In Exile tackles the refugee experience
"Comedy is about humanity. The script and the rehearsal process have been made with a lot of love, which I think will trickle out to the audience and the community afterwards.”
Interview with She Does The City: Eva Barrie On Love, Walls and Agency
"I don’t really think good theatre should elicit a single response from an audience. That normally means audiences were manipulated rather than challenged. As a society, we’re really used to wanting one answer to complicated subjects. A person is evil. A person is a hero. But that’s not how the world works. So why do we expect that of our theatre?"
Interview with Carly Maga of the Toronto Star: "Shakespeare’s women take the spotlight in Portia’s Julius Caesar"
"... the idea that we can’t be critical with the things we love. I love Shakespeare, but I’m also tired of the casual misogyny and the casual racism that exists in it that speak very directly to me and my family, and I don’t need that. If you love something, really love it, love it fully, that means you have to analyze it.”
Published Writing
"Words have Weight (unless you’ve never had to carry that weight): The White Lens in Theatre", Canadian Theatre Review, Volume 186, Spring 2021
Abstract:
"Whether it’s an expert opinion or an offhand comment from an emerging actor, racism in Canadian theatre culture has embedded itself in our views, our training, and the ways we make theatre and take in theatre. In this article, Eva Barrie uses a racist review of a show she was in and unpacks how the theatre community has supported those thought processes. She discusses how discussing racism has been continuously silenced by the white establishment: in the first part of the article, she reproduces an essay written in 2017, which was pulled from release by an online theatre publication for “turning off white readers” and “not being relevant since the Toronto theatre community isn’t racist.” In the second part, she includes reflections from September 2020, after the murder of George Floyd. The piece sheds light on the calls for change from BIPOC artists and the possibility of a more inclusive future."
"Ms. Barrie, Tear Down This Wall (Or: Why I Listened to Ronald Reagan)", Intermission Magazine, November 2016.
"I equate hearing an early draft of a play to getting out of a shower that was far too cold with a towel that is far too small. And a crowd has gathered in your bathroom. And everyone is ready to offer their opinion."
