life with more cowbell

Margo MacDonald in The Elephant Girls. Photo by Allan Mackey.

Parry Riposte Productions celebrates the 10th anniversary of Margo MacDonald’s award-winning sold-out hit solo show The Elephant Girls, directed by Mary Ellis, with performances in Toronto (September 10 – 14) and Ottawa (November 13 – 16).

The true story of the all-female gang that once terrorized London, England

“Without doubt, they were the most notorious girl gang Britain’s ever seen.” – Brian MacDonald, The Gangs of London

Clever, organized, devious and daring, The Elephant Girls stole from the rich and gave to themselves. This is the gripping story of the all-female gang that terrorized London for over 100 years. A fascinating piece of lost women’s history, the play centres on the 1920s when the gang was at the height of its power – and when the events took place which would mean its downfall.

“Right here, right now, for one night only, I’ll tell you something special I ain’t never told no one before; I’ll tell you the truth.” – Maggie Hale, The Elephant Girls

Maggie Hale – the gang’s butch, suit-wearing, bloody-knuckled, girl-chasing “enforcer” – will tell you all: who they were, what they did, how they got away with it, and how it all came crashing down. But should you trust the words of someone who’s made deception her stock-in-trade? Just how much are you sure you want to hear?

Wrapping issues of power, class, gender and violence around the story of Maggie Hale, the show uses history to grapple with issues society still struggles with today.

Watch the trailer here.

Catch The Elephant Girls in Toronto at Red Sandcastle Theatre (922 Queen St. East, Toronto) from September 10 – 14, with performances at 7:30 PM nightly, plus Saturday and Sunday matinées at 3:00 PM. (Please note: Masks required at the Sunday matinée.) Get advance tickets here.

From there, the show heads to Ottawa at the GCTC Studio Theatre (1233 Wellington St. West, Ottawa) from November 13 – 16, with performances at 7:30 PM nightly, plus Saturday and Sunday matinées at 2:00 PM. Get advance tickets here.

Running time: 80 minutes (no intermission)

Content warnings: Mature 14+. Descriptions of violence, abuse and sexual activity; strong language and alcohol use.

About Margo MacDonald & The Elephant Girls

A veteran of the Canadian indie theatre scene, Margo MacDonald has, together with her team, created a show that has captivated audiences wherever it has played. The show has won multiple awards, including Outstanding Overall, Critics’ Pick for Best Show (Ottawa Fringe Festival); Outstanding New Work, Outstanding Direction and Outstanding Performance, Les Prix Rideau Awards (Ottawa); Best Actor, Capital Critics’ Circle; Critic’s Choice (Hamilton Fringe Festival); and Best of Fest, OutFest (Halifax). It has sold out runs, including 100% Sold Out (Ottawa Fringe) and twice 100% Sold Out (Winnipeg Fringe), and garnered rave reviews. Touring both nationally and internationally, the show has played the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and had runs in London and Brighton in England and the International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival in Ireland, as well as various festivals and venues across Canada.

About Parry Riposte Productions

Parry Riposte Productions was originally formed to produce an as-yet-unproduced play about a female swordfighter. While still waiting to mount that show, they’ve been producing whatever else strikes their fancy, with a focus on the inclusion of queer content, as well as creating new work which takes risks and is challenging for the skills and talents of the artists involved. Read more about them and their previous productions here.

I had the pleasure of covering The Elephant Girls for the blog back in February 2017 during a run at Red Sandcastle Theatre. You can check that out here (spoiler alert).

I’m going to make this simple: Go see this.