VITALS by Toronto playwright Rosamund Small was a hit on its debut in 2014 as a site-specific show. This year, the one-woman show about the lives of healthcare professionals comes back in a version that has been reimagined for a post-pandemic world.
It will be performed for the first time by a working healthcare professional. Dr. Janet McMordie is both a practicing physician and actor, and the production blurs the lines between reality and performance.
VITALs takes the stage at Factory Theatre from May 2 to 10, and you can check out the trailer here.
Proceeds from ticket sales supporting Frontline Families Canada, a non-profit for the families of fallen first responders.
The Show
The story portrays the real life experiences of a paramedic in Toronto, and it’s based on interviews with actual Canadian paramedics, nurses, and doctors, developed in a close collaboration with The Peel Regional Paramedic Association.
It’s a world of life-and-death decisions where the stakes couldn’t be higher. It’s a broken system, burdened with a top heavy institutional bureaucracy, and those who we rely on to hold it together are exhausted.
Each performance begins with a Frontline Acoustic Prelude delivered by a front line worker in the theatre lobby who is also a musician.
Here’s the schedule of musicians:
- Sat May 2 evening: Mary Kate Terepka (Peel)
- Sun May 3 matinee: Matt Rollwagen (Northumberland)
- Thurs May 7 evening: Jake Robertson (Toronto/illScarlett)
- Fri May 8 evening: Alex Walsh (Toronto)
- Sat May 9 matinee: Noah Solomon/MIRRORS (Guelph)
- Sat May 9 evening: Billy & Sarah Young (ex-Toronto/Sick Kids)
- Sun May 10 matinee: Morgan Phillips
Dr. Janet McMordie
Dr. Janet McMordie trained in medicine, including medical school, a family medicine residency, and a sport medicine fellowship, at McMaster University in Hamilton. She earned a diploma in Sports Medicine from the Canadian Academy of Sport and Exercise Medicine (CASEM) and is a member of the International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health (ISSWSH).
Today, she’s an Associate Medical Director with Odyssey Medical Inc.
She has also served as a Medical Consultant for Star Trek — Strange New Worlds.
McMordie also performs as an actor, voiceover actor, and is the creator and host of the podcast Second Act Actors. She’s performed in film and television productions, including Good Sam (CBS), Doc (Global/CBBC), and A Christmas Letter (CBC).
Show Details
VITALS is produced by Laura Philipps, written by Rosamund Small, and directed by Alaine Hutton (Lester Trips).
Some performances will also include a Post-Show Talkbacks, where artists, mental health professionals, and first responders will talk about frontline wellness.
Content Warning: This production contains explicit descriptions of violence, sexual assault, and selfharm. It is intended for adult audiences.
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