About Us

Women at Play(s) offers a supportive, co-operative atmosphere for women artists of varied ages, abilities, racial and cultural backgrounds, appearances, sexualities, and life experiences to tell stories that matter to them through theatre.

Participants learn and grow within this community of artists, network within the group, and showcase their work to the community and to professionals in the industry.

A Brief History

In 2005, Artistic Director Marianne Sawchuk founded the festival in Vancouver as an initiative to address both the under-representation of women in theatre and film and the narrowness of women’s representation in both genres.

Three successful iterations of Women at Play(s) took place in Vancouver at the Jericho Arts Centre, followed by a break.

In 2020, the festival moved to Toronto, with the 4th edition occurring just before the COVID shutdown. WaP bounced back with successful runs in 2023 and 2024, selling out the Red Sandcastle Theatre. WaP 7 was held at the Alumnae Theatre in March of 20205 and Women at Play(s) 8 will take place at VideoCabaret in March of 2026.