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Photo of a hot dog cart at night on a city sidewalk, with a close-up image of a person's eyes and nose inside it. Two men walking to the right of the cart, with one standing to the left and another person standing near the cart.
Photo of a hot dog cart at night on a city sidewalk, with a close-up image of a person's eyes and nose inside it and a person standing near the cart.
Photo: Collage and poster design by Emily Jung.

Survival & kindness

on the street in downtown Toronto.

Photo: Collage and poster design by Emily Jung.

Home Events Performance No One’s Special at the Hot Dog Cart

No One’s Special at the Hot Dog Cart

A world premiere
Views of life on the street: a hot dog vendor’s tales of survival & kindness

Charlie Petch (they/he) shares their personal accounts of working at hot dog stands around downtown Toronto, using spoken word, musical storytelling and de-escalation techniques to regale audiences with tales of survival and kindness as a witness to life on the street. This work will be paired with a de-escalation technique workshop on Sunday, March 17, taught by Charlie.

“Everything I needed to know about emergency response, I learned as a teenage hot dog vendor in downtown Toronto.”

– Charlie Petch, playwright, performer

From Thursday, March 14 to Saturday, March 23, Theatre Passe Muraille and Erroneous Productions present the world premiere of No One’s Special at the Hot Dog Cart, written and performed by award-winning playwright, author and spoken word performer Charlie Petch and directed by Autumn Smith, at Theatre Passe Muraille. The show will be touring to Public Energy Performing Arts in Peterborough on April 24, 2024.

About the performer

Charlie Petch (they/them, he/him) is an award-winning disabled/queer/transmasculine multidisciplinary artist who resides in Tkaronto/Toronto. A touring performer, as well as a mentor and workshop facilitator, Petch is also the founder of Hot Damn it’s a Queer Slam. Their debut poetry collection Why I Was Late (Brick Books) won the 2022 ReLit Award and was named Best of 2021 by The Walrus; and their film with Opera QTO, Medusa’s Children, premiered in 2022. They have been featured on the CBC’s Q, are the 2023 Writer-In-Residence for Berton House and were long-listed for the 2021 CBC Poetry Prize. Read more here.

About Theatre Passe Muraille

Founded in 1968 by Jim Garrard, Toronto-based Theatre Passe Muraille (TPM) is one of the first alternative theatre companies in Canada. Their name means “theatre beyond walls”, reflecting their mission to push boundaries; engage the audience in the creative process; and “examine the marginal, unexplored and unforeseen”. Committed to a more diverse representation of artists, audience and stories, they aim to give a distinct voice to the intercultural Canadian society in which they live, work and create.

 

Poster for No One's Special at the Hot Dog Cart by Charlie Petch, the title on a photo of a hot dog cart at night on a city sidewalk with an apartment building in the background. There's a close-up image of a person's eyes and nose inside the cart and a person standing near the cart.

(Photo credits: Collage and poster design by Emily Jung. Pictured within the hot dog cart: Charlie Petch.)

 

Event details

Hosted by: Theatre Passe Muraille and Erroneous Productions

Type of event: theatre performance

Written and performed by: Charlie Petch

Directed by: Autumn Smith

Dates:

Thursday, March 14 – Saturday, March 23, 2024 in Toronto at Theatre Passe Muraille. There will also be a performance in Peterborough on April 24, presented by Public Energy Performing Arts.

Masks are mandatory for Toronto performances on:

    • Thursday, March 14 @ 7:30 PM ET and
    • Wednesday, March 20 @ 7:30 PM ET.

As part of TPM’s “Prelude” – an annual series of community events inspired by the productions in the current season – they will be hosting a de-escalation techniques workshop facilitated by artist Charlie Petch on Sunday, March 17. More information to come!

Start times: Wednesdays – Saturdays @ 7:30 PM ET & Sunday matinées @ 2:00 PM ET

Duration: 65 minutes (no intermission)

Cost: Pay-What-You-Can-Afford: C$12.00, $35.00 or $65.00

Location: Theatre Passe Muraille, 16 Ryerson Street, Toronto, ON, M5T 2P3

Booking link: Book your tickets here

Contact Details: Theatre Passe Muraille, 16 Ryerson Street, Toronto, ON, M5T 2P3, Canada; 416-504-7529, info@passemuraille.on.ca, passemuraille.ca

 

Content warning: Depictions of violence, strong language, sexual content, reference to police violence. There will also be a man’s deep voice yelling in one part of the show. If you would like information on the topics or themes in this production, or to determine the suggested age for attending a performance, please reach out to the Box Office staff at 416-504-7529 or by email at info@passemuraille.on.ca.

Accessibility: All performances will be presented in a relaxed environment. There will be ASL-interpreted performances on Sunday, March 17 at 2:00 PM and Friday, March 22 at 7:30 PM. More info on Theatre Passe Muraille’s accessibility here..

COVID-19 policy: Masks are still strongly encouraged inside the TPM building. There will be select “Mask Mandatory” performances for this production: Thursday, March 14 and Wednesday, March 20 at 7:30 PM. See Theatre Passe Muraille’s COVID-19 policy here.

Refund policy: Please contact the organizer.