Best Ensemble Performance in a Play - Toronto Theatre Critic’s Award

6 Dora Award Nominations:

Outstanding Independant Production

Outstanding New Play: Andrew Kushnir

Outstanding Direction: Andrew Kushnir

Outstanding Performance by an Individual: Daniel Maslany

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble: Mariya Khomutova, Ivy Charles, Alon Nashman, and Karl Ang

Outstanding Costume Design: Sim Suzer and Niloufar Ziaee

After publishing a eulogy for his renowned watchmaker grandfather in a national newspaper, Andrew is confronted by an accusation in the comments section. The charge sends him on a 19,000-kilometre journey through Ukraine and Europe with daunting questions—and the rare timepiece he's inherited. Retracing his grandfather’s footsteps as a soldier and immigrant, he unearths a family mythology that has astonishing implications for the present.

In a landscape where history is both weapon and wound, Andrew’s search pulls him deep into the stories of a shrinking Ukrainian village, into the fallout of Russia’s full-scale invasion, and into the silence of the dead.

Originally featured at Lincoln Center, NYC, The Division is a gripping new work on identity, legacy, and the slyness of memory. With his acclaimed blend of documentary theatre and deeply personal storytelling, Kushnir faces the unspoken truths that shape both our individual and collective histories — and our here and now.

Reviews

NNNNN

"Come for the excellent performances and production quality, stay for the thought-provoking questions it leaves you with.”

- Next Magazine

★★★★★

"intellectually, emotionally and morally demanding"

- Stage Door

Critic’s Pick

"It’s not a history lesson, or even a call to action. It’s a love story."

- The Globe and Mail

THE TEAM

Written and Directed by Andrew Kushnir

Featuring Daniel Maslany (Things I Know to Be True; Murdoch Mysteries), Karl Ang (CHILD-ish, Cockroach), Ivy Charles (Casey and Diana, Someone Like You), Mariya Khomutova (First Métis Man of Odesa; Madame Minister), and Alon Nashman (The Children's Republic, The Merchant of Venice)

Sim Suzer and Niloufar Ziaee (set & costume design), Christian Horoszczak (lighting), Thomas Ryder Payne (sound), Lianna Makuch (associate director, co-producer), Sam Hale (stage manager), Evan Reid (apprentice stage manager) Gabby Noga (Producer), Nathan Gregory (technical director), Chloë Dirksen (dialect coach), Katie Saunoris (publicist)

ANNOUNCEMENT

With Gratitude

It takes a village to bring a work like The Division to life. This deeply personal story has grown into a shared artistic journey made possible with the generosity of our extraordinary community.

Foundations: The Shevchenko Foundation, Metcalf Foundation, Temerty Foundation,Janice Lewis and Mitchell Cohen Foundation, SUS Foundation of Canada, Huculak Foundation, Olzhych Family Foundation, Alberta Ukrainian Commemorative Society, and the Koziak Foundation.

Arts Councils: Canada Council for the Arts, Toronto Arts Council

Key production donors:  Hugh Brewster and Phillipp Andres

Community Night sponsor and Charity-of-Choice: The Canada Ukraine Foundation’s Aid for Artists Fund.

Research and Educational Support:  Ukrainian Jewish Encounter, St. Volodymyr’s Institute

This production contains strong language and references to war, violence, and genocide, including World War II, the Holocaust, the Revolution of Dignity, and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Themes of grief, trauma, and loss are present, along with brief references to intimacy. The performance includes loud music, sudden sounds, haze, shifting lighting states, and sudden changes to the set.