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Chris Tolley and Laura Mullin have been working as a writing and directing team for over ten years, creating cutting edge productions that explore modern urban life. With a strong focus on hip, diverse story lines, their shows have attracted international media attention and have been embraced by a wide range of audiences, from rural east coast Canada to inner-city New York.
One of Mullin and Tolley’s most notable productions was their 2002 Romeo/Juliet Remixed (remounted in Toronto in 2003, and Philadelphia in 2004). This multi-media production was nominated for five Dora Awards (General Theatre Category) including Outstanding Production, and won for Outstanding Choreography. The show received critical acclaim from CBC, Globe and Mail, National Post, and the Toronto Star, and was recently featured in the prestigious New York theatre publication “Stage Directions”.
Their recent play STATIC, was an exploration of man’s deepest fears told through theatre, light, sound, visual art, dance and video in a series of performance installations. STATIC, part of Harbourfront’s Freshground Commissioning Program, was performed throughout Harbourfront Centre and ran during September/October 2006 as part of the New World Stage Festival.
The duo also created the hour-long radio drama, The Tunnel Runners. Commissioned by CBC, it was broadcast nationally on CBC Radio 1 and was broadcast internationally on Radio Canada International in the summer of 2006.
Currently, the company is creating a new show called WAKE (formally HIGH RISE) about growing up in the priority neighbourhood of Jamestown. The company has received three years of funding to develop this new initiative. A workshop of the first 15 minutes of the show was recently mounted as part of Theatre Passe Murialle’s BUZZ Festival.
In Sept of 2009, Expect completed the 4th successful year of urbanNOISE. This program consists of specialized training in the urban arts for youth in some of Toronto’s high priority neighborhoods, culminating in a large scale festive in the fall. Past festivals have showcased the talents of Jullie Black, Drake, Divine Brown and others.
In the fall of 2009, Expect Theatre was short-listed for the Toronto Arts Foundation’s Mayor’s Arts Award.
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