The Bacchus Players is an independent and largely self-supporting, student-run drama troupe that seeks to mount professional-quality, cutting-edge theatre, typically in the form of a major stage production each year at Heritage. The technical staff and cast are comprised of CÉGEP Heritage College students, with volunteers from faculty and community members.
The directors for the 2025/6 season are Monica Andrews and Nick Strachan.
Our mission is foster an inclusive and supportive environment in which to introduce student actors, directors and audiences to the world of serious theatre; to inspire them with the possibilities of theatre as an agent of change; to engage and challenge audiences with edgy, relevant theatre that ranges from the classics to new works.
The Bacchus Players typically mounts one major production each year, directed by students, faculty and/or student alumni. Past productions have included works by William Shakespeare (A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Macbeth; The Merchant of Venice, Arden of Faversham, and Twelfth Night; Sophocles (Antigone; Oedipus Rex); Orestes by Euripides; Pirandello's Six Characters in Search of an Author; The Lieutenant of Inishmore by Martin McDonagh; and Christopher Marlowe's Dr. Faustus. Student-directed productions have included Arsenic and Old Lace (dir. Julia Murphy-Buske); The Glass Menagerie (dir. Ashley Latour); The Cripple of Inishmaan (dir. Miranda Abrams). Last year, The Bacchus Players presented the Canadian premiere of Lucy Kirkwood’s The Welkin.
Many Bacchus Players alumni have gone on to study drama at theatre schools across the country and find their profession in the industry.
Founded in October 1999, when director Samer Al Saber mounted an acclaimed production of Departures and Arrivals by Carol Shields, The Bacchus Players has since enjoyed many years of successful and continuous productions. In 2006, Nick Strachan first directed for The Bacchus Players (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) and has directed or co-directed each year since.
