Elora Dixon is a vibrant, middle-aged lawyer and disability-rights activist who has never walked a step in her life. A neuromuscular disease left her with a curved spine and a reliance on around-the-clock care. Nonetheless, she is an inexorable force when chance pits her against the notorious Julian Summer, who is in town promoting his internationally bestselling book. Julian is a fervent supporter of euthanasia, and Elora is the counter-argument—a living rebuke to parents who want the option of euthanizing a disabled newborn. So it comes as a shock, especially to Elora, when the two find themselves acutely attracted to one another. Will she learn to negotiate her feelings and her convictions, or will Julian’s beliefs begin to colour her own?

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

"One of Canada’s most thoughtful playwrights, Thompson excels in creating poetic, exciting onologues for her characters and The Thrill has a number of them: speeches that make us sit up, listen and consider even the most mundane situation or detail in a fresh way." —Jon Kaplan, NOW Magazine