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The Importance of Being Earnest set to run “Wilde” at the Grand Theatre
Design plays lead role in London Made production of Wilde’s Classic Comedy at the Grand
Directed by Alistair Newton
March 24 to April 12 on the Spriet Stage at the Grand Theatre
grandtheatre.com/event/importance-of-being-earnest
March 17, 2026 – London, ON – An all-new, London Made production of Oscar Wilde’s classic romp of friendship and falsehoods will take to the Spriet Stage at the Grand Theatre, running from March 24 through April 12. Director Alistair Newton helms a vivid, design-forward staging of The Importance of Being Earnest with an attention to the aesthetic that rivals perhaps even that of Wilde himself.
“The Importance is rife with biting wit and social commentary that remain relevant today, delighting audiences around the world for more than one hundred years now. If we were going to bring this play back to our audiences at the Grand, we wanted to bring a bold idea to it,” shares Rachel Peake, Artistic Director of the Grand Theatre. “Enter Director Alistair Newton.”
Director Alistair Newton on The Importance of Being Earnest at the Grand Theatre.
Newton has penned new text, “On the Language of Fans”, and has introduced a new role – Lady Stella Clinton. Also known as Ernest Boulton, Lady Stella was a 19th-century queer trailblazer who famously fainted when she was found innocent in the trial of the century, after being arrested for wearing women’s clothes. In Newton’s The Importance, Lady Stella will delight audiences with a pair of musical numbers by Gilbert and Sullivan that have been added to the show.
Billy Lake as Lady Stella Clinton. Costume design by Judith Bowden. Photography by Mai Tilson.
Billy Lake (he/they) makes his Grand Theatre debut as Lady Stella Clinton, and joins a familiar cast of characters (and audience favourites) including Deena Aziz as Miss Prism, James Daly as Algernon Moncrieff, Julien Galipeau as John Worthing, Kaylee Harwood as Gwendolen Fairfax, Claire Jullien as Lady Bracknell, Ben Sanders as Rev. Canon Chasuble / Lane, and Mirabella Sundar Singh as Cecily Cardew.
“Productions of The Importance are usually accompanied by associations –heavy curtains, fussy furniture, lace doilies – which are drawn more from our culture’s received ideas about the late Victorian period than from an aesthetic universe whose dramatic language included melodrama and the transgressive queerness of the music hall,” considers Newton. “In fact, Wilde’s plays have the potential to illuminate the 19th Century in ways that challenge many of these preconceptions, full as they are of secret codes, hidden symbols, double entendres, and perhaps above all, delightful paradoxes.”
Featuring opulent, high-fashion wardrobe, the production will be stunningly colour-blocked with each act unveiling itself as vividly monochromatic. “The green of Act One comes from the code of the dyed carnation flowers which Wilde and his set wore on their lapels to identify one another,” reveals Newton. “The yellow of Act Two is the same hue as the covers of ‘decadent’ French literature of the period, as well as of the Yellow Book, a publication of the Aesthetic Movement. The red of Act Three is taken from Wilde’s vermillion office at his family’s London home on Tite Street; a blast of shocking, subversive colour amidst an otherwise tastefully minimal, and mostly white, interior.”
Sketches by Costume Designer Judith Bowden.
Newton’s bold vision becomes reality through the show’s creative team which includes Stephen Ingram as Music Director, George Absi as Choreographer, Michelle Tracey as Set Designer, Judith Bowden as Costume Designer, Siobhán Sleath as Lighting Designer, Olivia Wheeler as Sound Designer, Phyllis Cohen as Dialect Coach, Michael Hart as Stage Manager, Jordan Guetter as Assistant Stage Manager, and Tsz Ting Lam as Apprentice Stage Manager.
With the show’s innovative design, spectacular wit, and the addition of song, dance, and drag, this London Made production of The Importance of Being Earnest highlights the underlying queer code that exists throughout Wilde’s masterpiece.
The Importance of Being Earnest plays on the Spriet Stage at the Grand Theatre from March 24 to April 12. Single tickets range from $25 to $97 and are available in-person at the Box Office, by phone at 519.672.8800, and online at grandtheatre.com/event/importance-of-being-earnest.
The Grand Theatre is grateful to offer Canada Life Pay-What-You-Can pricing presented on Sunday, March 29 at 2 p.m., as well as an Open Caption Performance on Saturday, April 4 at 2 p.m.
The Grand Theatre gratefully acknowledges Season Sponsor BMO, Downtown Community Partner Old Oak Properties, and Title Sponsor London Hydro for their generous support.
To learn more about The Importance of Being Earnest at the Grand Theatre, please visit grandtheatre.com/event/importance-of-being-earnest. Follow the production and peek behind the scenes by following @thegrandlondon and #GrandPiafDietrich on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Threads, Bluesky, YouTube, TikTok, & Substack.
Tickets can be purchased online at grandtheatre.com, by phoning the Box Office at 519.672.8800, or by visiting the Box Office in person at 471 Richmond Street (weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.)
The Importance of Being Earnest
A Trivial Comedy for Serious People
By Oscar Wilde
Additional text, "On the Language of Fans", by Alistair Newton.
Directed by Alistair Newton
March 24 to April 12 on the Spriet Stage at the Grand Theatre
Title Sponsor: London Hydro
Creative Team
Alistair Newton – Director
Stephen Ingram – Music Director
George Absi – Choreographer
Michelle Tracey – Set Designer
Judith Bowden – Costume Designer
Siobhán Sleath – Lighting Designer
Olivia Wheeler – Sound Designer
Phyllis Cohen – Dialect Coach
Michael Hart – Stage Manager
Jordan Guetter – Assistant Stage Manager
Tsz Ting Lam – Apprentice Stage Manager
Cast
Deena Aziz – Miss Prism
James Daly – Algernon Moncrieff
Julien Galipeau – John Worthing
Kaylee Harwood – Gwendolen Fairfax
Claire Jullien – Lady Bracknell
Billy Lake – Lady Stella Clinton / Merriman
Ben Sanders – Rev. Canon Chasuble / Lane
Mirabella Sundar Singh – Cecily Cardew
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The Grand Theatre is located on the traditional territories of the Original storytellers and caretakers of this land and the Nations, both settler and Indigenous, who continue to uphold the various treaties of the Anishinaabek, Haudenosaunee, and Lunaapéewak. We value the significant historical and contemporary contributions of local and regional First Nations, and all of the Original Peoples of Turtle Island (colonially known as North America), and acknowledge the traditional lands upon which we live, work, share, and tell stories together.
ABOUT THE GRAND THEATRE – WORLD CURIOUS. LONDON MADE.
The Grand Theatre is known for world-class theatre created and built in London, Ontario. As southwestern Ontario’s premier producing theatre and one of the most beautiful theatre spaces in Canada, the company has deep ties to the community and to its artists, artisans, and technicians.
As a vibrant cultural hub and not-for-profit professional theatre, the Grand serves to gather, inspire, and entertain audiences in London and beyond. At our home in downtown London, we create productions on two stages: the Spriet Stage (839 seats) and the Auburn Developments Stage (144 seats). The Grand season of theatrical offerings runs from September to May, and we collaborate with companies and artists across the country through our co-productions that see London-made artistic and creative work travel to audiences nation-wide. Through our successful New Play Development Program, the Grand is committed to developing and premiering new, original works and supporting the growth and reach of theatre writers and creators. Our recently renovated venue offers a contemporary and welcoming environment that is also home to several successful music series, community arts rentals, and cultural and special events.
A cornerstone of the organization is our place as a teaching theatre, exemplified in our many mentorship programs and highlighted in our annual Grand Theatre High School Project. As the first program of its kind in the country and currently in its twenty-eighth year, the High School Project involves as many as one hundred high school participants annually from schools across the region. These students participate at no cost and take on roles both on stage and off, in a fully realized mainstage production under the direction of a professional creative team.
For more information, visit: grandtheatre.com.
MEDIA CALL
When: Tuesday, March 24 at 1:00 p.m. (Cameras, please arrive at 12:30 p.m. to set up)
Where: Spriet Stage, Grand Theatre, 471 Richmond Street, London, Ontario
What: Photo, video, and interview opportunities for media.
PHOTOGRAPHY
When available, production photography will be added to the linked folder above. If you are working towards a deadline and are including photography, please contact Melissa Mae Shipley for the best and fastest options available at any moment. Melissa can be reached via email at mshipley [at] grandtheatre.com (mshipley[at]grandtheatre[dot]com) or by phone at 519.672.9030 x266.
FOR MORE INFORMATION & ALL MEDIA INQUIRIES
Melissa Mae Shipley, Communications and Public Relations Manager
mshipley [at] grandtheatre.com (mshipley[at]grandtheatre[dot]com)
office: 519.672.9030 x266
cell: 519.280.4008
Header Photo
Pictured: Billy Lake as Lady Stella Clinton. Costume design by Judith Bowden. Photography by Mai Tilson.
