If you like art that falls on the experimental and boundary-pushing side of things, then you should definitely make your way to Rhubarb.

Canada’s longest-running new works festival (now in its 41st year!) will transform Buddies in Bad Times Theatre (12 Alexander St.) into a hotbed of experimentation as artists venture into new and uncharted territories in theatre, dance, music, and performance art. There are multiple performances every night and no two nights are ever alike, so you know you’re in for a memorable time. 

Rhubarb kicks off this Thursday, February 12, and runs through February 22. Evening passes are $20 and rush tickets are PWYC.  

Here are a few of the performances you’ll find at this year’s festival:

Scary Stories People of Colour Tell in the Dark

February 12-15 at 8 p.m.

Told through the lenses of drag and the Black, Latinx, and Asian diasporas, this reimagining of a classic horror anthology Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, asks how the things that scare us can bring us closer to our memories, our bodies, and each other.

The Parasite

February 12-15 at 8 p.m.

Performers Jay Northcott and Alisha Van Wieren use masks, burlesque, fringe, pompoms, and more as they explore what it means for their queer bodies to create, gestate, and nurture.

Wiigwaasaatig

February 15 at 10 p.m. 

This performance pairs the poetry of artist and sex educator Arielle Twist with the tension-filled soundscapes of Toronto’s Ziibiwan, creating a confluence of words, sound, and memory.

Spiral Life

February 19-22 at 8 p.m.

Spiral Life follows a young Deaf woman as she faces communication barriers, rejection, and her own mortality while visiting her mother in hospice care. The performance will be in ASL with English interpretation. 

Frida

February 20 at 10 p.m.

Performer Violeta Luna channels Mexican painter Frida Kahlo as a manifestation of the women who question and push beyond the status quo, inviting the audience to witness or take part.