Meet Johnathan Church, Stratford Festival’s new artistic director

CTV’s Alexandra Holyk speaks with Stratford Festival’s incoming artistic director who already has some ideas waiting in the wings.

The Stratford Festival 2025 season is slowly winding down, but a new era is just beginning.

On Wednesday, the theatre company named Johnthan Church as its next artistic director, who will officially take over Nov. 1, 2026.

A dual U.K.-Canada citizen, Church directed dozens of productions overseas. He’s best known for his work with the Chichester Festival Theatre in England – a sister stage to the one in Stratford, Ont. There, he served as the artistic director from 2006 to 2015.

Church has also worked in Canada on several productions over the past two decades, including Singin’ in the Rain at Toronto’s Princess of Wales Theatre in 2022 and 42nd Street in 2023-24.

Church is currently serving as the Stratford Festival’s artistic director designate, as he ties up production in the U.K. and transitions into his new role.

Over the next year, Church will work alongside the company’s outgoing artistic director, Antoni Cimolino, who’s closing out a decades-long career both on stage and behind the scenes. Earlier this year, Cimolino announced the 2026 season would be his last.

“They are big shoes to fill, and Antoni’s been with the company for a long time,” Church said in an interview with CTV News. “I suppose I have to take the best of what Antoni can give me and bring the best of what I’ve learned and hope it’s enough.”

Church has his own ties to Stratford and southern Ontario – his mother was born in Toronto and he remembers visiting Canada often. However, his roots with the Stratford Festival run even deeper.

“My parents both worked for Tyrone Guthrie, who built this stage and delivered the early seasons, and they also worked for John Neville – one of the previous artistic directors,” said Church.

Church said he was also invited to the theatre by Cimolino in 2007.

“I’ve been coming ever since,” he said. “I mean, I’ve seen dozens of shows here.”

Church said some of his favourite productions include Caesar and Cleopatra and Shakespeare’s The Tempest, featuring Christopher Plummer as the lead.

“This year, I saw Forgiveness, which was the most wonderful piece of political theatre,” he added.

As for his leadership style, Church said he plans to draw from his past experience and wants to propel local productions to larger markets. However, he also said he wants to put a spotlight on what the Stratford Festival has already established.

“It’s about making sure that the breadth, the quality of the work is maintained and built upon,” he said.

He said he also wants to focus on maintaining the theatre’s American fanbase, and unifying theatre-goers on both sides of the border.

“Just because one person or one group of people in America are making decisions doesn’t mean that’s how all Americans feel,” said Church.

As Church prepares to transition into his new role, he said he’s already got some ideas waiting in the wings.

“It’ll be watch, learn, and start the amazing process of thinking about my first season,” he said.

Church’s first official season as artistic director will be in 2027. He has been signed to an initial five-year term at Stratford.

With files from CTV News Kitchener’s Hannah Schmidt