Secret Service rehearsal photos – Cooper Bilton, Robbie Towns, Lisa Norton, Stephen Sparks, Janelle Hanna, Josephine Ho, Jess Gordon, and David Leyshon.
Port Dover Maple Leaf
July 7, 2026
By Donna McMillan
FOLLOWING on the heels of Ephraim Ellis’ On the Air, which premiered at Lighthouse Festival in 2023, the playwright’s new play Secret Service will have its world premiere from July 8 to July 25 at Lighthouse Festival in PortDover. Promoted as being “packed with spies, lies and al dente drama,” Secret Service is directed by Lighthouse interim artistic director David Leyshon.
Mr. Leyshon said he was “thrilled” to direct Secret Service because his sense of humour lends itself to this play. He grew up with James Bond, Get Smart, and The Pink Panther, all of which take the spy genre and spoof it, often with tongue-in-cheek humour.
In Secret Service, “Ephraim is playing with the genre through a theatrical lens,” and puts it on stage with a Canadian filter. It has classic farce tropes with mistaken identities, espionage, chaos, and many hijinks, Mr. Leyshon said.
“This play starts with the character Nick,” Mr. Ellis, the playwright, said in a Lighthouse statement. “The idea of a James Bond-style secret agent having a really hard time pretending to be a low-status person, like a waiter, because he’s full of himself and used to being undercover as upper-class business executives and rich playboys was just so funny to me,” he said. As the action hero’s ego interferes with the capture of a villainous assassin, nothing goes as planned.
Mr. Leyshon said directing a world premiere is “freeing and exhilarating” for him as well as for the five actors, as there are no expectations of how the play should be done.
“Actors are bringing it to life for the first time,” he said and figuring out what the playwright intended. Having a cast of five opens up so many avenues to explore in comedy and farce, making it really exciting, he said. Mr. Ellis attended the first day of rehearsal and is expected at the theatre for opening night.
The buffoonery of this farcical secret agent action is set in one of Toronto’s swankiest fictional restaurants, Il Glorioso Buco, created by set designer Beckie Morris. Lighting director is Steve Lucas and Alex Amini is in charge of costumes. Stage manager is Josephine Ho and assistant stage manager is Jess Gordon.
Lisa Norton (as Maddy) is a Lighthouse veteran who also performed in On the Air. She has numerous acting credits as well as five seasons at Shaw Festival, and TV appearances in Murdoch Mysteries and Bomb Girls.
Robbie Towns (as Quentin) is making his debut at Lighthouse. He has many theatre credits, including multiple productions of Jersey Boys internationally and Much Ado About Nothing at Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan.
Janelle Hanna (as Viviana Scarlotta) is also making her Lighthouse debut. She has performed at Thousand Island Playhouse, Capitol Theatre in Port Hope, and Guild Festival Theatre.
Stephen Sparks (as Nick) regularly performs at Lighthouse, including in On The Air. Elsewhere, he has appeared across the country and has TV credits including Star Trek SNW, The Boys, and Murdoch Mysteries.
Cooper Bilton (as Harry) is also new to Lighthouse, with theatrical credits including Theatre on the Ridge, Second City Spotlight, and Upper Canada Playhouse.
Tickets for this world premiere are available at the Lighthouse box office on Main Street, at lighthousetheatre.com, or by calling 519-583-2221.