Tell Tale Harbour is a

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatre, theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, ...

with music and lyrics by

Alan Doyle Alan Thomas Doyle (born May 17, 1969) is a Canadian musician and founding member of the Canadian folk rock band Great Big Sea. Life and career Alan Doyle was born and raised in Petty Harbour–Maddox Cove, Petty Harbour, Newfoundland, in a Ro ...

and Bob Foster, and a book by Doyle, Adam Brazier, and Ed Riche. It is based on the 2013 Canadian comedy film '' The Grand Seduction'' by Ken Scott and

Michael Dowse Michael Dowse (born April 19, 1973) is a Canadian director. Life and career Born in London, Ontario, to Irish parents, he was trained as a film editor. His first full-length movie, ''FUBAR'' was shot on a digital camera with a tiny budget, but w ...

. The musical, like the film, follows a small town who work together to try to convince a visiting doctor to make their beloved harbour village his new home.

Premise

The musical is set in the fictional town of Tell Tale Harbour, a small harbour community in

Atlantic Canada Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (), is the list of regions of Canada, region of Eastern Canada comprising four provinces: New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. As of 2021, the landma ...

. The community is struggling until a frozen french fry facility is about to open up there, if the residents can manage to hire a full-time resident doctor. Led by the mischievous Frank, the residents of Tell Tale Harbour try to work together to lie, cheat, and con a visiting doctor to live and practice in their community.

Production history

In November 2021, it was announced that

would star in ''Tell Tale Harbour'', which he had co-created with Adam Brazier and Ed Riche. ''Tell Tale Harbour'' premiered at the

Charlottetown Festival The Charlottetown Festival is a seasonal Canadian musical theatre festival which has run from late May to mid-October every year since 1965. The Charlottetown Festival is hosted in Confederation Centre of the Arts every year. Named after its host c ...

in 2022. It played between June 14 and September 24, 2022, and performed to sell-out audiences. The production set a record for ticket sales at the

Confederation Centre of the Arts Confederation Centre of the Arts () is a cultural centre dedicated to the visual arts, visual and performing arts located in the city of Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada. History Construction of Confederation Centre, as it is commonly ...

, becoming the top selling show in the festival's history. The production was directed by

Jillian Keiley Jillian Keiley is a Canadian theater director. Early life and education Keiley was born in 1970 and raised in Goulds, a community just south of St. John's, in Newfoundland, Canada. She attended St. Kevin's High School and York University, com ...

and choreographed by Linda Garneau. Following the original production, David and Hannah Mirvish encouraged the show's creative team to expand and refine the musical. The reworked musical, which includes new songs, will return to the Charlottetown Festival with direction by Brian Hill and choreography by Robin Calvert. It will run between June 14 and August 29, 2025. Following this run, the musical will transfer to Toronto, where it will play at the

Royal Alexandra Theatre The Royal Alexandra Theatre, commonly known as the Royal Alex, is an historic performing arts theatre in Toronto, Ontario. The theatre is located at 260 King Street West, in the downtown Toronto Entertainment District. Owned and operated by Mir ...

between September 23 and November 2, 2025.

Cast and characters

Cast recording

A cast recording featuring the cast of the original 2022 production was released.

References

{{Reflist 2022 musicals Canadian musicals Culture of Prince Edward Island Musicals set in Canada Musicals based on films