THEATRE PREVIEW

SEPTEMBER 2026 | Volume 267

 

BIG STUFF

A COMEDIC MEDITATION ON THE THINGS WE CARRY 
A Baram and Snieckus Production

Fresh from a sold-out run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and winning the International Fringe Encore Series Edinburgh Prize, Canadian comedy duo Matt Baram and Naomi Snieckus bring Big Stuff to the Arts Club Theatre Company's Olympic Village Stage at the BMO Theatre Centre October 14–November 1, 2026.

Directed by co-creator Kat Sandler, Baram and Snieckus light up the stage and invite you to explore life's Big Stuff. Using their singular brand of improvised storytelling, shaped by time at the Second City and comedy clubs worldwide, they debate the sentimental power of the objects our loved ones leave behind. She wants to keep everything. He wants to throw it all away. This two-hander transforms questions of clutter, memory and loss into a fast-moving comedy about relationships, grief and what we choose to carry with us. Their comedic chemistry and razor-sharp repartee will have you laughing as you decide who's right.

"Big Stuff has that wonderful ability to make us laugh at something incredibly recognizable while gently opening the door to much bigger questions about love, memory and loss," said Ashlie Corcoran, Arts Club's Artistic Director. "Matt and Naomi are extraordinary comedy partners, and the intimacy of the Olympic Village Stage feels like an ideal setting for audiences to experience their warmth, wit and remarkable chemistry. We're especially thrilled to welcome them home to Canada following such an exciting response in Edinburgh."

"Vancouver holds a really special place in my heart," said Snieckus. "I lived and worked here for several years as a young artist, plus, the company/podcast that I founded which supports women and non-binary artists, Firecracker Department, has a vibrant chapter out here. So, getting to come back with a show that means this much to us, feels a little like coming home."

Baram added, "And as an Edmonton-born prairie boy, I'm always excited to head west. We've just come back from performing Big Stuff in Scotland, and one of the most moving things was discovering how universal these very personal stories about love, loss and the things we hold onto really are. We can't wait to share the show with Canadian audiences again and especially to bring it to the West Coast."

Big Stuff has been called "hilarious and heartbreakingly human" (The Globe and Mail) and "a fast-paced, funny and profound look at relationships and grief" (Next Magazine). Multi-award-winning Canadian playwright and director Kat Sandler is currently the Showrunner for Crave's adaptation of her play Yaga, featuring Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix), Sheila McCarthy (Women Talking), and Hudson Williams (Heated Rivalry).

The production begins previews at the Olympic Village Stage at the BMO Theatre Centre on October 14, opens on October 16 and runs until November 1. A Talkback Tuesday performance will take place on Tuesday, October 27, at 7 PM. Sunday, November 1, at 2 PM is a VocalEye performance.

Tickets are available through the Arts Club Box Office with prices starting at $29. Purchase tickets online or through the Box Office at 604.687.1644.

ABOUT MATT BARAM AND NAOMI SNIECKUS
Baram &Snieckus are the award-winning comedy duo of Matt Baram (Umbrella Academy, Cross) and Naomi Snieckus (Mr.D, The Handmaid's Tale), longtime collaborators, Second City alumni and real-life married couple who have spent decades creating together. Their work spans theatre, improvisation, television and podcasting, including the acclaimed improv formats Impromptu Splendor (The Live Improvised Play), The Carnegie Hall Show (The Improvised Variety Show) and The Script Tease Project (an improvised play based on two pages written by a legendary playwright). They toured internationally with their previous company The National Theatre of the World, collecting multiple Canadian Comedy Awards.

Baram &Snieckus would like to acknowledge the support of Canada Council for the Arts. Next up, they will return to Toronto for the World Premiere of their next creation,We Swear: A Show About Promises and Other Things We Meant at the Time at Crow's Theatre.

CAST
Matt Baram (Himself), Naomi Snieckus (Herself)

CREATIVE
Naomi Snieckus (Writer & Co-Creator), Matt Baram (Writer & Co-Creator), Kat Sandler (Director & Co-Creator), Michelle Tracey (Set Designer), Emilie Trimbee (Lighting Designer), Tim Lindsay (Sound Designer), Rebecca Northan (Improv Consultant), Ray Salverda (Touring Production Manager), Rachel Moore (Assistant Director), Joanne P.B. Smith (Stage Manager)
  
ABOUT THE ARTS CLUB THEATRE COMPANY
The Arts Club Theatre Company is situated on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish Peoples, in particular thexʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, and səlilwətaɬ Nations. We invite you to reflect on your relationship to these lands.

The Arts Club is one of the largest not-for-profit theatre organizations in the country and is the principal gathering place for the theatrical arts in British Columbia. Comprising three unique venues across Vancouver, the Arts Club welcomes more than a quarter million guests annually, tours provincially and nationally, and engages students and artists alike through educational and professional programs.

Above all, the Arts Club is dedicated to the advancement of local artists telling stories from around the globe and, in particular, those of our region. From this, we believe that culture expands, an understanding of differences is nurtured, and art bursts forth. The Arts Club was founded in 1964 and is currently led by Artistic Director Ashlie Corcoran and Executive Director Peter Cathie White.

artsclub.com
facebook.com/theArtsClub
instagram.com/TheArtsClub/
youtube.com/ArtsClubTheatreCompany

 

 

 

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