About the Play:

Finalist for the 2007 Governor General's Award for Drama (Canadian equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize)

Léo is a full-length drama by Rosa Labordé. Told through Léo's memories, the play travels through childhood, first friends, and first loves. Passion and poetry weave together in this story of innocence disappeared.

Léo is a lyrical but ultimately tragic story about three childhood friends – Léo a romantic poet whose memories unravel the action of the play in flashbacks, Rodrigo, an idealistic socialist, and Isolda a maladjusted young woman adrift in life. Set in 1973, Santiago Chile, these three adolescents journey from innocence to understanding. Their triangular love story explores the tensions emanating from their maturing views on sexual identity, politics and arts as their country collapses into fascism. With a haunting epilogue that brings the story full circle, Leo speaks to contemporary audience also struggling to square their ideals in the world around them.

Léo was mounted twice (2006 and 2007) at Tarragon Theatre in Toronto before touring Canada. It was nominated for five Dora Mavor Moore Awards including Outstanding New Play and was also Finalist for the Governor-General's Literary Award for Drama.

Cast: 1 woman, 1 man

What people say:

"...an outstanding new play." — National Post

"This is clearly one of the most interesting, captivating and thought-provoking new scripts to come our way in a long time and it marks Laborde as a writer who deserves both attention and respect... Leo is a small jewel… one that deserves to be treasured by anyone looking for superb theatre." — Toronto Star

About the Playwright:

Rosa Labordé is a critically acclaimed Chilean-Canadian playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A finalist for Canada's Governor General's Literary Award, Dora award and Canadian Screen Award, she has also received K.M. Hunter Artist's Award for Theatre. She is a graduate of both The Oxford School of Drama in England and the Canadian Film Centre.