A national theatre project rooted in listening, land, and community 

Climate Play is a verbatim theatre project led by artists Yvette Nolan & Joel Bernbaum. We work with communities across Canada to listen, build relationships, and create performances using the exact words of the people we interview.  

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About the Project

Climate Play is a national verbatim theatre project. In each community we build relationships and gather stories about our changing climate. Those stories become theatre.  

This project is about more than awareness. It is about relationship. Creating a place for dialogue, for connecting and for all the thoughts and feelings we carry when we think about the future. Climate Play invites us to move away from helplessness toward creativity, connectivity, and action.  

Whether you love theatre, care about climate, are interested in your community or are just curious, you are welcome here.  

What is Verbatim Theatre?

Verbatim theatre begins with real conversations.

We interview people from the community and then build a performance from their words.  The dialogue you hear is not imagined. It is created from what people actually said. It is like watching a documentary on stage, with room for humour, emotion, and surprise. Every performance becomes a way to listen to each other, reflect on what we share, and hold space for difference.  

The Process

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Listening comes first  

We take time to meet people and hear what they have to say. We do not arrive with a message to  deliver. We arrive to learn. 

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A national play that becomes local

Climate Play is being developed as a national production that changes as it travels. As the  performance unfolds, it becomes more local, more specific, and more connected to the  place it is being performed. 

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Relationship with land and community 

In every location, we spend time connecting to local land and community through ancillary events.

Events

Climate Play workshops and performances take place across many communities.

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Want Climate Play to come to your community?

Reach out and say hello.  

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Find workshop dates, performances, and public presentations on our Events page.

Upcoming events 

Media Gallery

A look inside the process.  

This gallery includes workshop moments, behind-the-scenes footage, and community  snapshots from across the journey. You will find a mix of high-quality production visuals  and phone-captured clips that reflect the realness of the work as it happens.  

  • Theater stage with white rectangular cards arranged in a starburst pattern on the black floor, several people standing and sitting, stage area with bookshelves, chairs, and colorful decorations in the background.

  • A group of people in a meeting room are seated around a table, observing a woman leading a presentation on a wall covered with colorful sticky notes and papers.

  • Group of people sitting on chairs and the floor in a rehearsal space with a musician holding a guitar and reading from a sheet of paper, surrounded by audio equipment and scripts.

  • A group of five people sitting around a large table in a room with bookshelves, laptops, notebooks, and papers, participating in a meeting or workshop.

Partners & Funders

Climate Play is built with community partners, festivals, theatres, and supporters across Canada.  

We are grateful for the organizations, funders, and collaborators who make this work possible.  

  • Logo for Belfry Theatre with the words 'Belfry Theatre' in large dark olive green text, with 'Belfry' above 'Theatre'.
  • Logo of i/o Amago Theatre in stylized font with a dark olive green color.
  • Gwaandak Theatre logo featuring a stylized human figure with arms raised, accompanied by the text 'Gwaandak Theatre' in dark green.
  • Logo for Lunchbox Theatre featuring a stylized lunchbox with a sandwich on top, established in 1975, with bold text.
  • Text saying 'Native Earth Performing Arts' in large, dark green, exaggerated letters, with smaller text beneath that says 'Performing Arts'.
  • Logo for the Writers Festival at Wakefield-LA PĂȘche featuring stylized text and a graphic of a typewriter.
  • Logo of the University of British Columbia Sustainability Hub, featuring a shield with waves and a sunrise.
  • Logo for Writers Festival, featuring a stylized pencil and text in English and French, including Wakefield and La PĂȘche.
  • Yukon University logo with a stylized leaf symbol to the left of the text 'Yukon University' in dark green.

Contact & Social

Want to connect, collaborate, or follow along?  

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