If you thought you knew what theatre is, step into something different. What Brings You In — a new genre-blurring creation by violinist and storyteller Leslie Ting — launches at Theatre Passe Muraille from October 17–25, 2025, offering audiences an intimate, immersive dive into sound, self and story.
In this unusual live concert-theatre hybrid, Ting invites you to listen, truly listen — and by doing so, become part of the performance. “Your listening is the transformative act,” the production’s tagline reminds us. Theatre Passe Muraille The stage is stripped of expectations: a violin, percussion, electronics and sound design collapse the divide between performer and audience, introspection and spectacle.
What to Expect
Set in the Mainspace at Theatre Passe Muraille (16 Ryerson Ave, Toronto), what’s distinctive about What Brings You In is how it starts with the performer’s life — Ting left a career in optometry to embrace music — and loops the audience into the journey through immersive design, movement and multimedia. The performance is just 75 minutes, no intermission, but invites you to linger in the questions it raises: What brought you in? What are you listening for?
Ting is joined by percussionist Germaine Liu, with compositions by Linda Catlin Smith, Rose Bolton, Julia Mermelstein and Ting herself, and sound design by Matt Smith. Whether you attend in person (with a relaxed environment, blind-friendly and audio described options) or online (through an interactive web-app) you’re not simply spectators — you’re ear-opened participants.
Why It Matters
In a season rich with new-work at Theatre Passe Muraille, this piece stands out: it rejects the usual narrative arc and instead embraces an act of listening. In a world drowning in visual noise, What Brings You In slows the pulse. The production asks for presence, attention and stillness — a kind of radical act, really. As Ting has suggested, the performance isn’t about perfection, but honesty.
Tickets & How to Go
Single in-person tickets follow the theatre’s pay-what-you-can-afford model: $15 | $40 | $65. Online tickets: $15. Book at passemuraille.ca or call box office at 416-504-7529. Given the intimate format and multi-media experience, now is the time to reserve a seat.
If you’re searching for a theatre night that asks you to hold the torch of attention, to be more than a viewer — this is it. What Brings You In doesn’t just ask what’s happening on stage; it invites you to ask what’s happening inside you.
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