In theatre, the stage is usually where the action happens — at least as far as the audience is concerned. But According to the Chorus, the 2023 play written by Arlene Hutton, flips the script. The show is set in the 1980s, in the dressing room of a Broadway show, and follows a turf war that develops between a group of chorus girls and their dressers.
Spanning eight months in ’84 and ’85, the story is set against the backdrop of the AIDS crisis, and offers a personal glimpse of what daily life was like for New York’s creative community at the time.
Despite some of its heavy subject matter, the show is energetic, fast-paced and above all, funny, giving viewers a taste of how frenetic backstage life actually is.
From October 8 to 18, Barbara Mah and Mary Jane Kreisel are bringing According to the Chorus to Edmonton audiences at the Walterdale Theatre. We talked to the directors about how the show uses its 1980s setting to speak to many of the conditions of contemporary life.
Edify: According to the Chorus is set backstage in a Broadway theatre in the ‘80s, but many of the themes in the show are resonant today. What made you want to put on the show in 2025?
Barbara Mah: I currently work as a director and choreographer, but I was a chorus dancer In the 1980s, when I started working in theatre. I was just caught by how much the show really does capture the feel of the era — young chorus girls so excited about what they’re doing, and at the same time, working against the backdrop of the AIDS crisis. The play also touches on things like domestic violence and eating disorders, which in the ’80s nobody really talked about.
Mary Jane Kreisel: I was attracted to the show because of the characters. They are really interesting, and they’re all distinct. The chorus girls are in a situation where they’re running into a turf battle with the dressers, and there’s a lot of interaction back and forth, which makes the show very, very fun.
Edify: Backstage is a high-energy, fast-paced environment, which must make for a dynamic stage performance. Could you talk a bit about the energy and the pacing of the production?
Mah: Chorus people are often crammed into a crowded dressing room or changing room, and while the play is written to make sure the ladies have time to change, a chorus person is usually stripping in the wings and getting on their next costume really quickly. The thing about this show that always makes me laugh is that they never explain what Broadway show the chorus girls are actually a part of. We’ve decided to put them in the zaniest costumes you could imagine. But it is impossible, based on the costumes, to figure out what play our cast is actually supposed to be dressing for. Our costume designer here at the Walterdale did a really good job of keeping the cast in really interesting costumes.
Edify: There’s so much invisible labour that goes into putting on any production — a lot of which happens behind the scenes. When the backstage becomes the performance space, that dynamic is inverted. It makes that invisible labour visible.
Mah: Yeah, absolutely. I think most people don’t have a clue that a lot of shows — especially with many costumes — have dressers backstage. We also see an appearance from the stage manager, who has to try to keep people from killing each other backstage (editor’s note: not literally).
Kreisel: The show also touches on this sort of gig economy. The chorus girls are on a long-running show right now, but when the show ends, they have to go on auditions and try to get another job.
Edify: How does the production thread all of these serious issues together with humour?
Mah: This is what their day-to-day lives were like. So for example, the issue of domestic violence: the swing — which is like an understudy that has to know a number of the ensemble parts — comes in with a black eye, and the girls don’t quite know what to do. They’re offering a place for her to stay, but you can tell from the dialog that this is an era where nobody really knew how to handle it. They acknowledge the conditions of the time period without making it the focus of the play.
Kreisel: The humour comes from the banter between the ladies. It’s a slice-of-life story. Part of the fun comes from the conflicts that arise — how they interact and what their characters are like. They all have very strong personalities; the banter — and the camaraderie — come from having worked together for a long time, almost like a family.
According to the Chorus runs from October 8 to 18, 2025 at the Walterdale Theatre.
This interview was edited for brevity and clarity.
