Great Canadian Theatre, Ottawa

The Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC) is a professional theatre company based in Ottawa. It was founded in 1975 by a group of professors and graduate students from Carleton University.

Initially, the GCTC staged performances at the university and later at the Old Firehall, now known as the Ottawa South Community Centre. In 2007, the company moved to the newly constructed Greenberg Theatre Centre in the Hintonburg community. This innovative complex consists of a 262-seat theatre, a residential tower, a bar and coffee shop, and an art gallery, all designed with environmental responsibility in mind.

The GCTC has a clear mission: to cultivate, produce, and promote exceptional theatre that encourages exploration of Canadian life and the country's position in the world. They are dedicated to supporting the creation of new Canadian works through a play development program. Every season, they commission emerging and established playwrights and facilitate workshops for new plays.

Over the years, GCTC has premiered more than sixty plays, including Sandinista (1982), a collaborative production inspired by the Nicaraguan revolution. In the 1994-95 season, they presented an entire lineup of new plays, and in the 1997-98 season, their productions exclusively featured works by or about women.

Recognitions have come GCTC's way as well. In November 2001, the company received the award for best production from the Capital Critics Circle for their play Kilt. The company's archives are housed at the L.W. Conolly Theatre Archives of the University of Guelph, Ontario.