Teresa is sexy, seductive, and mentally challenged. Worshipped by her boyfriend, she turns tricks at $5, is addicted to Tim Hortons' doughnuts, lies without thinking, and overflows with endless kindness, but she continues to hold on to her limitless innocence. The Crackwalker captures the music, the dialect, and the unpretty realities of the inner city. First produced thirty years ago, Thompson's striking portrayal of the discarded class in Canada continues to move audiences today.

Ali Joy Richardson is a playwright, director, and producer. Originally from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, she has been Artistic Producer of Toronto’s Paprika Festival for young artists, was a director in residence with Canadian Stage’s RBC Emerging Artists Program, and a playwright in Nightwood Theatre’s Write from the Hip unit. She is a book writer and director with Education Arts Canada (creating touring musicals about mental health for preteens) and directed In Real Life (Nick Green & Kevin Wong) for Sheridan College’s Canadian Music Theatre Project. Ali has created multiple hit fringe shows including her solo show Roxy about an unorthodox motivational speaker/self-defence coach. She lives, bikes, and works in Toronto.

Judith Thompson's profile page

"Judith Thompson has captured the corrosive imagery and exploding rhythms of life in Kingston's lower depths, where spiked heels are dangerous weapons and salvation is driving a cab in Calgary. Thompson so clearly demonstrates an ability to expose the deepest roots of the theatrical experience… its language and humanity make the play a minor masterpiece."

Maclean's

"The Crackwalker's [characters] are mesmerizingly real. These people live with you."

Globe and Mail

"This play established a reputation for playwright Judith Thompson as a daring chronicler of the urban underclass."

Eye Weekly

"Exudes vitality."

Toronto Star