Founded in 2014, PLAYINGwithCRAYONS is a creative platform dedicated to bold storytelling for stage, screen, and digital platforms. We create work that highlights diverse but shared human experiences, rooted in authenticity and lived experience.
Our goal is to tell stories that are culturally relevant, engaging, and unafraid to challenge, while always carrying heart, grit, and compassion.
Where It Began: Secrets of a Black Boy
PLAYINGwithCRAYONS' Secrets of a Black Boy premiered in 2009 at the Danforth Music Hall to sold-out audiences and a Dora nomination. The play sparked powerful dialogue around themes like race, police harassment, fatherhood, and relationships.
The show's impact was immediate—youth matinee performances led to three city-wide TDSB school tours, where excerpts and monologues reached inner-city students across Toronto.
International Recognition
Since then, Secrets has toured internationally, playing to full houses at festivals and theatres including:
Act Now New Voices
Brooklyn
National Black Theatre Festival Voices
Winston-Salem
D.C Black Theatre Festival
Single Carrot Theatre
Baltimore
Single Carrot Theatre
Baltimore