What better night to kick off the Canadian premiere of The Toxic Avenger than on Halloween?

The eco-monster musical comedy, based on the 1984 Lloyd Kaufman classic cult film, plays at The Danforth Music Hall with a homegrown cast. I had a chance to attend one of the preview shows this week.

The Toxic Avenger storyline is pretty simple to follow: Geek Boy (Melvin Ferd the Third) gets taunted by high school thugs, who dump him into a vat of radioactive toxic waste, after which he emerges as an uber-strong mutant freak (Toxie), bent on winning the heart of the high school hottie and ridding the town of the eco-unfriendly New Jersey mayor.

Toronto's first ever FOOL launches today--the Festival of Oral Literatures. A quick look at the schedule promises four days of amazing story-telling with performers like local dub artist d'bi.young, Yukon-born Ivan E. Coyote, and Brazilian story-teller Regina Machado. The fest kicks off with a set of six house concerts tonight and tomorrow.

Madama Butterfly is a relatively modern opera, set in Nagasaki in 1890. A deep tragedy of deception and betrayal, a young Geisha is married off to an American; and though deeply devoted to him, the American has no intention of being a husband to the girl.

Abandoned by husband and shunned by her people, Madama Butterfly is 'stuck by a pin, and mounted on a board.' Unable to overcome her dishonour, she is forced to commit jigai. This compelling story is one of the best I've seen on the COC stage, and we've got a pair of tickets to pass on to one lucky reader.

Daniel Karasik, 22 years old. Casa Loma.

Two of Daniel Karasik's plays are being produced this autumn. One of them is coming up at the Tarragon Theatre in early October while the other production is in November...in Potsdam, Germany.

Daniel was born and raised in Vaughan, which, according to its official civic tagline, is 'The City Above Toronto'.

'The Zoo Story', Edward Albee's 1959 masterpiece, is set on a park bench in a bustling city. I've seen it a number of times over the years...but never on an actual bench in an actual park. That is, until last Friday.

Red One Theatre's free, traveling production of the play is wrapping up this weekend with performances at De Grassi Street Park tonight and at the south end of Glen Stewart Park on Friday and Saturday at 7pm.

8 Girls without Boyfriends is playing tonight through this weekend at the Bread & Circus.

For Torontonians who slept through Fringe, napped through Summerworks, and dreamed through 'Dream in High Park', this may be our last shot of theatrical redemption before September breaks.

Without further ado, here are my 8 reasons to go and check it out...