Since the bygone days of the Atari 2600; video games have offered us virtual realities in which to explore our most grandiose fantasies. From blasting intergalactic alien invaders to reliving the fantastical legends of the Heroes of Old - these magical, digital realms built from light and sound have given a safe refuge to discover who we are and who we hope to be.

“A NON CANONICAL MUSICAL ADVENTURE WITH POOKAMHURA: MISTRESS OF B-ROLL” sees three MMO players drawn together by the puckish rogue gnome Pookamhura. They are tasked to explore their identity in a virtual world of swords and fantasy and are challenged to answer the call to be a paladin, a sacred protector. Who will rise to their full potential, and who will fail?

The goal of this play is to challenge both its characters and its audience to explore what role they will play when they see injustice and bigotry visited upon their world. When the world needs you, will you be a paladin? - Chris Cracknell

In November 2024, just after the election in the United States, Chris Cracknell and I met at a Tim Hortons, and I pitched him my wild and crazy idea for a new musical. Spoiler alert: It had nothing to do with video games. Chris had written a number of songs over the years for several of my theatrical projects, and I was hoping that he would help me with this new one. But that isn’t what came out of the meeting. Instead, Chris gave me a CD with twenty songs that he had recorded. They were the soundtrack from his YouTube web series POOKAMHURA: MISTRESS OF B-ROLL. He had done eleven episodes at that point, and it explored his rogue gnome World of Warcraft character, encountering various folks while exploring the world of Azeroth.

I make my living these days driving autistic children for the Hamilton district school board, back and forth to school each day. I popped the disc in the van’s CD player, and the kids were enchanted by the music. That’s when I knew that this was the next project. Luckily we were confirmed into the Hamilton Fringe in February 2025, performing that July, at the Staircase Studio Theatre. And now here we are, more than a year later in July 2026, getting to remount our play, as part of the Alliance of Canadian Musicals satellite venue at Theatre Passe Muraille.

Chris’ musical offers a vibrant, interactive space where queer, trans, and gay players can express identity; through song, performance, and collaboration. It blends storytelling, community, and self-expression — core values in LGBTQ+ culture. Each of the gamer characters create avatars that reflect true selves or explore gender freely, all while engaging in inclusive narratives. The shared, creative world fosters belonging and celebrates diversity, making it a unique digital stage for queer joy, resilience, and connection across global communities.

We are an interesting bunch of people! Only Chris and I have ever performed in the Toronto Fringe Festival before, meaning that three members of the company are complete newbies to the festival. My gratitude to Mason Micevski for his brilliant choreography, and for being the vital outside eye in the final weeks of polishing the show. Other statistics that I found interesting about the company! Three out of six members of the company are Queer - LGBTQ+. Three out of six members of the company live with a permanent disability. Three out of six members of the company are autistic or neuro-divergent. And one of the six members of the company has never done a theatre production outside of high school. Meaning that they are not only newbies to the Fringe itself, but they are essentially getting on stage in a musical, for the first time in their lives! This has required a different approach to rehearsals, and to the inevitable demands that staging a play requires in order for it to be good.

The Toronto Fringe is definitely a high pressure experience. But I wouldn’t trade it for the world. We certainly have achieved the fact that we have the very longest title of any play in the festival this year. It is “non canonical”, meaning that if we have done our job properly, you don’t need to know anything about MMO video games, the lore of Azeroth, and the 11 episodes of Chris’s web series in order to enjoy the play.

Many thanks for coming to see our show. We literally couldn’t do it without you. It is my hope that seeing the show ,inspires you to be the change that this world so desperately needs. The message that this play contains I think is important, and I hope that you will take it to heart.

- Brian Morton