ABOUT THE SHOW:

The CCLA/GCTC Lawyer Play is a fundraising project that supports the operations of the Great Canadian Theatre Company and each year benefits an additional charity partner.

Cast members are chosen after an audition process. All cast members are required to draw on their networks to sell a minimum number of tickets (40) and to assist in seeking sponsors for the Lawyer Play fundraiser. In meeting their fundraising goals, cast members receive helpful tips and other support from both the GCTC and returning cast members.

This year’s production is Our Town, Thornton Wilder’s timeless classic about life, love, and everything in between.

This year’s Charity Partner is Upstream Ottawa Mental Health Community Support.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Anyone in the legal profession, including articling students, paralegals, and judges are eligible to audition for the Lawyer Play. No acting experience required, just an open mind and a passion for theatre!
• Cast members must be available when called throughout the rehearsal period: Tuesday and Thursday evenings from January through mid-April. Sunday afternoons will be added beginning March 1, with exception of Easter Sunday.
• Technical Rehearsals during the following days prior to performances (April 7, 9, 11 & 12)
• Cast members must be present for all performances: April 15-18, plus a dress rehearsal before an invited small audience on April 14.
• The fundraising requirements noted above: ALL cast members are required to sell a minimum number of tickets (40) and seek sponsors for the Lawyer Play.

WHEN:

Tuesday, December 9 - 6:30-8:30pm

Thursday, December 11 - 6:30-8:30pm

Sunday, December 14 - 12pm-4pm


WHERE:

To be determined


To book your audition, contact Carolina at lawyerplay@gctc.ca and indicate your preference of audition date. Please state in subject line "2026 LP Audition"

2023 brought new challenges to the work of the Ottawa Food Bank:

The Ottawa Food Bank member agency network reported an astonishing surge in visits, totaling over 493,000 visits.

This is not just a number; these are people of all ages living in our community, working in your workplace. Agency partners are seeing more new Canadians, more two-parent households, and more employed people and families.

Food insecurity is increasing—the number of people in Ottawa experiencing food insecurity has more than doubled since 2017, from 1 in 15 to 1 in 7. Nearly 150,000 people in our city are food insecure.

With a 22% increase in the number of visits to the network from 2022 to 2023, and reduced funding (less than 2% of the Ottawa Food Bank funding comes from any level of government) Food banks try to keep up, but in this current climate, it’s overwhelming.

Once again, the CCLA is calling on the Ottawa legal community to lend its support to the Ottawa Food Bank.

For the entire month of October, support the 2024 Firms Filling Fridges campaign.

Click here to make a donation!

Using the button above, you can make a contribution to the FirmsFilling Fridges campaign.

If you would like to donate to a team that is raising funds for the campaign, you can do so by searching for the firm or department name on this page and donating to their team.

Each week, we'll be sharing the leaderboard for our "Golden Can Challenge" divisions. If you'd like to register your firm or department, it's not too late! Click here to register a team, and if you have any other questions or difficulties with your team page, you can get in touch with Nic Hupé at the Ottawa Food Bank.

Four "Golden Can Challenge" Divisions
Small Firms (1-10 lawyers)
Medium Firms (11- 29 lawyers)
Large firms (30+)
Government Department

A big thank you to the teams who have signed up so far!

• Seasonal clothing that their clients will be able to wear right away
• Suits and separates that are modern / current and in great interview ready condition
• Gently used, clean business appropriate shoes, purses and jewelry
• Clothing that is clean, laundered or dry-cleaned, separated by type and placed folded into bags.
• New hosiery and undergarments (tags on, unopened packaging)
• Unopened toiletries and cosmetics (deodorant, unopened makeup, etc.)

Please also encourage anyone that you know to also donate the required items.

When you help empower a person in need, you help their family, community, and the economy.

ABOUT THE SHOW:

• The GCTC/CCLA Lawyer Play is a fundraising project that supports the operations of Great Canadian Theatre Company and each year benefits an additional charity partner.
• Anyone in the legal profession, including articling students, paralegals, and judges are eligible to audition for the Lawyer Play. No acting experience required, just an open mind and a passion for theatre! 
• This year’s production is the classic Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Anne-Marie MacDonald
• Rehearsals begin in the spring and will run on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Sunday afternoons.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Actors must be available when called throughout the rehearsal period
  • Tuesday and Thursday evenings, Sunday afternoons
  • Technical Rehearsals during the following days prior to performances (May 17, 18)
• Actors must be available for all performances: May 22 to 25
• ALL cast members are required to sell a minimum number of tickets (40) and seek sponsors for the Lawyer Play.  

WHERE:
GCTC Studio, 2nd floor of the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre,
at 1233 Wellington St. West 

WHEN:
Wednesday, February 7th: 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Thursday, February 8th: 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Saturday, February 10th: 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Tentative: Saturday, February 10th: 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm (Callbacks)

To book your audition date, contact Carolina at lawyerplay@gctc.ca and indicate your preference of audition date.

Please state in subject line "LP 2024 audition" 

For every $1 donated, the Ottawa Food Bank is able to deliver
$5 worth of food into the community.

Help us help people get beyond hunger.

CLICK HERE TO MAKE A DONATION!

Using the link above, you can make a contribution to the Firms Filling Fridges campaign.

If you would like to donate to a team that is raising funds for the campaign, you can do so by searching for the firm or department name on this page and donating to their team.

Each week, we'll be sharing the leaderboard for our "Golden Can Challenge" divisions. If you'd like to register your firm or department, it's not too late! Click here to register a team, and if you need assistance registering your team, here's a YouTube video to help you out. You can also contact Anthony Cardozo at the Ottawa Food Bank for assistance.

Each firm or legal department that registers for this event will have their own personalized page to share with their network and rival with the other teams in their division. You will receive a weekly update of the top 3 teams in each division, and the event-wide goal thermometer can be checked at any time to see the live donations as you climb towards your overall goal. Winners in all divisions will be announced at the end of the campaign.

Four "Golden Can Challenge" Divisions
Small Firms (1-10 lawyers)
Medium Firms (11- 29 lawyers)
Large Firms (30+)
Government Department

Last year we raised $98,131. In 2023, let's top $100K!

Make a Donation to Firms Filling Fridges!

Using the button above, you can make a contribution to the Firms Filling Fridges campaign.

If you would like to donate to a team that is raising funds for the campaign, you can do so by searching for the firm or department name on this page and donating to their team.

Each week, we'll be sharing the leaderboard for our "Golden Can Challenge" divisions. If you'd like to register your firm or department, it's not too late! Click here to register a team, and if you have any other questions or difficulties with your team page, you can get in touch with the Ottawa Food Bank.

Four "Golden Can Challenge" Divisions
Small Firms (1-10 lawyers)
Medium Firms (11- 29 lawyers)
Large firms (30+)
Government Department

A big thank you to the teams who have signed up so far:
Borden Ladner Gervais
Burn Tucker Lachaîne
CCY Family Law
Durant Barristers
Family Duty Counsel Ottawa
Fresh Legal
Gowling WLG
Kelly Santini LLP
Low Murchison Radnoff LLP
Mann Lawyers LLP
Merovitz Potechin LLP
Nelligan Law
NextGenLaw LLP
Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP
Rasmussen Starr Ruddy LLP
Teshebaeva Henderson
Tierney Stauffer LLP
.

Last year we raised $97,991. This year, let's hit $100K!

Register Your Team Today!

If you have any difficulties with registration,
please email Casandra Wood - casandra@ottawafoodbank.ca

Tickets can be purchased by calling our box office at 613-236-5196 or just pop by the corner of Wellington and Holland. You can also visit us online to purchase tickets and find out more about our cast and creative team.

Great Canadian Theatre Company and the County of Carleton Law Association are grateful to the following sponsors for their generous support of the 20h Annual Lawyer Play fundraiser:

Gold Sponsors

Nelligan O'Brien Payne LLP

Mann Lawyers

Silver Sponsors

Aptus Conflict Solutions Inc.

Borden Ladner Gervais LLP

Emond Harnden

McCay Duff LLP

On Stage Sponsors

Cameo Sponsor: Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP

Director Sponsor: Windswept Integrated Technologies

Costume Sponsor: Cavanagh LLP

Tech Sponsor: Smith Petrie Carr & Scott

Reception Host Sponsors

The Advocates Society (Thursday)

Hooper Litigation (Friday)

Caza Saikaley (Saturday)

Bronze Sponsors

Davidson Houle Allen LLP - Condominium Law

Deloitte

Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP

Gallagher Benefit Services Canada / Great West Life Canada

Grade A - IT Services

Kelly Santini

Low Murchison Radnoff LLP

Merovitz Potechin, LLP

Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP

Perley-Robertson Hill & McDougall LLP

Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne & Yazbeck LLP/s.r.l

Ridout & Maybee LLP

Sevigny Dupuis LLP

Stikeman Elliott

TD Commercial Banking

Teksavvy

TK Financial Group

We'd also like to extend a special thank you to Mitch Kitagawa (Kelly Santini LLP)! Mitch coordinated our Golden Can Challenge, encouraging firms from across the city to compete for biggest donations. We're excited to announce that Gowling WLG is this year's winner! Congratulations also to our second and third place teams - Kelly Santini and Soloway Wright!

We'd also like to thank again our wonderful on-site volunteers:

- Khalid Elgazzar & Friends
- Nirman’s Law
- Tierney Stauffer LLP
- Caza Saikaley LLP
- Lisa Sharp & Friends from the Family Bar

To contribute to this project, we'd ask that any submissions be less than 1000 words in length, and reflect on the positive impact the play has had for you, for the theatre, and for the legal community at large. We reserve the right to edit the submissions before posting them. Submissions will be compiled and shared on the Lawyer Play page of our website. Please send your contribution to info@ccla-abcc.ca.

We thank you for contributing, and look forward to reading the submissions!

• Kelly Santini LLP
• Soloway Wright
• Gowling WLG (returning champs!)
• Greenspon Granger Hill
• Burn Tucker Lachaîne LLP
• Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
• Bergeron Clifford

• Monday: Khalid Elgazzar & Friends
• Tuesday: Nirman’s Law
• Wednesday: Tierney Stauffer LLP
• Thursday: Caza Saikaley LLP
• Friday: Lisa Sharp & Friends from the Family Bar

The CCLA/GCTC 19th Annual Lawyer Play is fast approaching. Do you have your tickets yet? Though our Preview night is now sold out we still have tickets available for our Gala Performances on June 7, 8 and 9th.  

A thrilling triple bill of short one-act plays involving murder, theft and deception. Written by the world-renowned mystery author Agatha Christie and featuring a cast of more than 20 local lawyers, judges and community leaders.

We not only present a fantastic show, but will also have some of Ottawa’s finest caterers in house. Thursday evening, long-time GCTC supporters Thyme & Again will be catering the reception. Friday, we welcome Coconut Lagoon, with culinary specialties from South India created by award winning chef Joe Thottungal. Saturday’s caterers are still to be confirmed.

In addition, there will be beer, wine and spirits for sampling during the intermissions. Kichesippi Beer Co. will be sampling a selection of beers Thursday through Saturday. Top Shelf Distillers will be on site Thursday with their Mixologist, offering a custom designed cocktail. Also Thursday evening, we will be sampling Harwood Estate Winery wines. Friday evening will feature sampling of Maple Whisky from Kinsip House of Fine Spirits, and Saturday we will be offering tastes of North of 7 Distillery’s Rye Whisky. Both Friday and Saturday we will also have samples of sparking wine from Andrew Peller Ltd.

As always, the show features cameo performances from prominent community members. This year’s lineup is as follows:

Wednesday June 6: Catherine McKenney, Councillor - Ward 14

Thursday June 7: Honourable Hunter Tootoo, PC, MP, Jaques Emond & Lynn Harnden, Emond Harnden

Friday June 8: Honourable Mona Fortier, MP, Joy Noonan, Aptus Conflict Solutions

Saturday June 9: Madam Justice Heather Williams, Superior Court of Justice, Rita Celli, CBC

Our Gala Performances are June 7, 8 & 9 at 7:30 p m. Tickets are $110, with a $60 tax receipt.

Get your tickets today by calling our box office at 613-236-5196 or just pop by the corner of Wellington and Holland. You can also visit us online to purchase tickets and find out more about our cast and creative team.

Great Canadian Theatre Company and County of Carleton Law Association are grateful to the following sponsors for their generous support of the 19th Annual Lawyer Play fundraiser:

Gold Sponsors 

Nelligan O'Brien Payne LLP  

Silver Sponsors 

Aptus Conflict Solutions Inc.
Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
Emond Harnden
Logan Katz LLP/SRL
Mann Lawyers
McCay Duff LLP

On Stage Sponsors

Cameo Sponsor
Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP

Director Sponsor
Windswept Integrated Technologies

Set Design Sponsor
Optimum Talent

Sets & Props
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP

Tech Sponsor
Smith Petrie Carr & Scott 

Reception Host Sponsors

Jarislowsky, Fraser Limited (Thursday)
Hooper Litigation (Friday)
Tereposky & DeRose, LLP (Saturday) 

Bronze Sponsors

Callaghan Paralegal
Caza Saikaley
Davidson Houle Allen LLP - Condominium Law
Deloitte
Gallagher Benefit Services Canada
Grade A -  IT Services
Kelly Santini
Leystone Insurance & Financial / Great West Life
Low Murchison Radnoff LLP
Merovitz Potechin, LLP
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
Perley-Robertson Hill & McDougall LLP
Raven, Cameron, Ballantyne & Yazbeck LLP/s.r.l
Ridout & Maybee LLP
Sevigny Westdal LLP
Stikeman Elliott
TD Commercial Banking
Teksavvy
TK Financial Group

Rule of Three

by Agatha Christie
Directed by Eric Coates & Pamela Feghali
June 6, 7, 8 & 9

A collection of three one-act murder mysteries by the best-selling author of all time, Agatha Christie. Includes the light-hearted comedy Afternoon at the Seaside, in which a detective attempts to find a priceless emerald necklace and the culprit who stole it; The Rats, a dark and chilling tale in which a pair of adulterous lovers find themselves lured to a flat, trapped like rats and framed for murder; and finally, The Patient, a tense thriller in which a woman has been hospitalized after seemingly falling from her balcony.

• The GCTC/CCLA Lawyer Play is a fundraising project that supports the operations of Great Canadian Theatre Company and benefits a charity partner, which this year is Tungasuvvingat Inuit, an Inuit-specific service provider that provides social support, cultural activities, counselling, and crisis intervention as a one-stop resource centre to meet the rapidly growing, complex and evolving needs of Inuit in Ontario.
  
  
• Anyone in the legal profession, including articling students, paralegals, and judges are eligible to audition for the Lawyer Play. No acting experience required, just an open mind and a passion for theatre!
  
  
• Rehearsals begin in the spring and will run on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Sunday afternoons. Actors must be available when called throughout the rehearsal period.

REQUIREMENTS:

• You must be available for ALL nights of the play and a very busy rehearsal period, including most evenings during the two weeks leading up to the performances. You must be available for Tech Rehearsal the weekend before the performance dates.
• 
  Rehearsals begin in early March and continue until the performances, June 6, 7, 8 & 9.
• 
  ALL cast members are required to sell a minimum number of tickets (40) and seek sponsors for the Lawyer Play.
  

WHERE:

GCTC Studio Theatre 2nd floor of the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre
at 1233 Wellington St. West

WHEN:

Wednesday, January 24th: 6 pm - 9 pm
Thursday, January 25th: 6 pm - 9 pm
Saturday, January 27th: 1 pm - 4 pm

Tentative: Sunday - January 28th (Callbacks)

To book your audition date, contact GCTC at lawyerplay@gctc.ca

Please state in subject line "LP 2018 audition"

For important casting information, follow the link: Lawyer Play casting

You will be sent a script and further instructions, and asked to respond with your preferred role. Some male roles may be cross-cast with female roles or vice versa. A copy of a scene to prepare for your audition will be emailed to you with confirmation of your audition time.

All members of the CCLA, their staff, and courtroom staff are welcome to bring any children they have participating in this worthy initiative to the Courthouse at 161 Elgin St. at 10:00 AM (please look for a sign on the morning of November 1 indicating which room the event will be held in). CCLA members Sarah Willis of Gowling WLG and Falon Milligan of Perley-Robertson, Hill & McDougall will make a brief presentation to the children about the litigation process and then will argue a mock trial.

• the name of the organization;
• a little bit about the organization’s objectives and mandates;
• why the organization would be a good choice;
• and how the organization would intend to use the funds raised.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 613-670-8008.

Allison Russell
Lawyer Play Committee

Every morning for a week, dedicated members from Ottawa’s law firms & legal community spent time in the lobby of the courthouse to accept donations for the Ottawa Food Bank, this year they also made donations online. As well various offices in the Courthouse also set up their own individual collection points.

In addition to this, a number of law firms across the city were encouraged to do an internal “friendly firm competition” food drive as well! This year’s event truly went above and beyond.

Everyone’s diligence and participation paid off, as this year’s food drive brought in $16,674 and 1,119 lbs. of food!

This is a record breaking year for the Courthouse food bank drive!

Thank you to everyone who donated and to everyone who participated in the food drive for your continued commitment over the years. Your dedication means so much to the Ottawa Food Bank and is felt throughout our community as you help the Food Bank by providing for more than 41,500 people every month.

A brave Scottish general named Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become the King of Scotland. Driven by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish throne for himself. Consumed with guilt and paranoia, he commits more and more murders to protect himself from enmity and suspicion, and soon becomes a tyrannical ruler. 

• The GCTC/CCLA Lawyer Play is a fundraising project that supports the operations of Great Canadian Theatre Company and benefits a charity partner, which this year is Parents' Lifelines Eastern Ontario (PLEO), a family support organization for families with children and youth struggling with mental health and/or addiction challenges. 
  
  
• Anyone in the legal profession, including articling students, paralegals, and judges are eligible to audition for the Lawyer Play. No acting experience required, just an open mind and a passion for theatre! 
  
  
• Rehearsals begin in the spring and will run on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Sunday afternoons. Actors must be available when called throughout the rehearsal period.

REQUIREMENTS:

• You must be available for ALL nights of the play and a very busy rehearsal period, including most evenings during the 2 weeks leading up to the performances. You must be available for Tech Rehearsal the weekend before the performance dates. 
  
  
• ALL cast members are required to sell a minimum number of tickets (40) and seek sponsors for the Lawyer Play.  

WHERE:
GCTC Studio Theatre  2nd floor of the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre
at 1233 Wellington St. West 

WHEN:
Monday, January 16 - 6pm-9pm
Wednesday, January 18 - 6pm-9pm
Saturday, January 21 - 1pm-4pm 

To book your audition date, contact GCTC at artistliaison@gctc.ca
Please state in subject line "LP 2017 audition" 

For important casting information, follow the link: Lawyer Play casting

The script can be downloaded from this link.Some male roles may be cross cast with female roles or vice versa. If there is a role you prefer to play, please indicate so when you book your audition. A copy of a scene to prepare for your audition will be emailed to you with confirmation of your audition time.