Cast size: Ten plus optional ensemble
Length: Two hours, five minutes.
Setting: A large unnamed city, and Barnabus Bay (a neighbouring small town)
Production History:
- Conceived and developed as part of Tarragon Theatre’s Playwriting and Dramaturgy Course. (2021)
- Workshopped by Arts Club Theatre in Vancouver, BC. Artistic Director: Ashlie Corcoran; Director: Barbara Tomasic; Dramaturg: Stephen Drover. (2022)
- Public Reading with industry professionals – Toronto. (2022)
- Recipient of Playwright Guild of Canada’s Mentorship Program, resulting in dramaturgical development guided by the internationally-celebrated director/dramaturg, Robert McQueen. (2023)
- Recipient of Playwriting Guild of Canada’s PlayConnect Program (2023)
- Public Reading with industry professionals. Hosted by Theatre Aquarius – Hamilton, Ontario (2023)
- Shortlisted for the Tom Hendry Playwriting Award for Best New Musical. (2023)
- Named #1 Stage Play of the Month by Coverfly (2023)
- Developed and presented as part of Theatre Sheridan’s 2025 Canadian Music Theatre Project. Director: Stephanie Graham; Musical Director: Jonathan Corkal-Astorga. (2025)
- Shortlisted for the National Music Theater Conference at the Eugene O’Neill Theater. (2025)
DEMO TRACKS
(featuring Alana Bridgewater, Eric Craig, Dan Duran, Bruce Dow, Sara Farb, Hailey Gillis, Kaylee Harwood, Arinea Hermans, Aaron Jensen, Linda Kash, Ryan Kelly, David Lopez, Jeff Madden, Whitney Ross-Barris, Nick Settimi, Sarah Strange, & Paula Wolfson)
Why the Hell Are You All Still Here? (Ensemble)
In Barnabus Bay (Ensemble)
Throw Me A Line / Sure Seems Fishy to Me (Teuta, Shepherd, Pascal, Donna, Lucy)
SYNOPSIS
Armchair Confidential, is a scrappy buddy-comedy mystery that takes the crafty lyrics and jazzy showstoppers of a Golden Era musical, and melds it with a contemporary True Crime procedural. Imagine On the Town meets Only Murders in the Building. It tells the story of Lucy, a neurospicy accountant who’s forced to reassemble her fractured friend group to solve a murder in the neighbouring small town. Through arguments and escapades, she learns that tackling her emotional baggage may be even harder than catching a killer. The show’s written for a cast of ten, a three-piece band, and a basic unit set.
Why Armchair Confidential?
Why is this show relevant in 2025? For one – Netflix can’t pump out murder shows fast enough! Also, we’re living in a time marked by division and isolation. Armchair Confidential celebrates our basic need for connection, it shines a light on the dark corners of the human condition, and it tips a hat to the joyful, madcap musicals I grew up loving. Looking past the gags, the show tunes, and the pratfalls – at its core, Armchair Confidential is a redemptive story about hope, friendship, and our fundamental need for human contact. By some lucky turn of fate, this project has provided opportunities for me to connect. It’s given me the chance to deepen relationships, and to make new friends with the artists who’ve helped with demos, taken part in readings, and offered dramaturgical insights along the way.