After 39 years, Antoni Cimolino prepares to take his final bow at Stratford

Stratford Festival review: Magic and restraint collide in Cimolino’s farewell Tempest

Much has been made of the 2026 season being Antoni Cimolino’s last at the Stratford Festival. After nearly 40 years in the industry, first as an actor and eventually as the Festival’s artistic director, it would be easy to let his departure overshadow his final production as director, a milestone that must be as bitter as it is sweet.

After 39 years, Antoni Cimolino prepares to take his final bow at Stratford

STRATFORD, ONTARIO, CANADA

After 39 years, Antoni Cimolino prepares to take his final bow at Stratford – 105.9 The Region

STRATFORD, ONTARIO, CANADA — Antoni Cimolino is ending his tenure at the helm of Canada’s most influential theatre institution on a reflective note. Perhaps unsurprisingly, his farewell season is rich with metaphor. Its name, “This Rough Magic,” is tied to a line from “The Tempest,” which was the last play written by Shakespeare alone. The magic, Cimolino explained, is the theatre itself. “I wanted to celebrate the power of theatre, and what it’…