Excalibur

Obsession, dir. Curry Barker Obsession is the debut feature from director Curry Barker, which follows Bear (Michael Johnston), an awkward teenager desperately in love with his friend Nikki (Inde Navarrette). When he is given a mystical chance to make one wish come true, he decides to make Nikki fall head-over-heels in love with him, unaware of the horrific consequences that will arise. A twisted tale of entitlement and regret, Obsession is eager to let audiences sit with the discomfort it offers.

On May 3, young writers took the stage at Ben McNally Books to commemorate the release of the print anthology, INKspire: Rising Voices. INKspire is a nonprofit dedicated to fostering writing skills in youth from underrepresented backgrounds through a variety of initiatives, including their flagship Writer Fellowship program. Open to writers ages 18 to 24 that identify as female or non-binary, the free, year-long program provides participants with firsthand experience in writing and publishing.

With Pride Month drawing to a close, members of the Canadian 2SLGBTQIA+ community were able to celebrate their identities while out and proud. However, others across the world are forced to leave home as a result of anti-2SLGBTQIA+ persecution. In the pursuit of living authentically, many come to Canada but newcomers may still face other intersectional barriers upon their arrival.

On June 23, York held a virtual Budget Information Session. Lasting just under an hour, the meeting was moderated by Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies Dr. Alice MacLachlan, with speakers including Interim President and Vice-Chancellor Lisa Philipps, Interim Provost and Vice-President Academic Laina Bay-Cheng, and Vice-President Finance and Administration Narin Kishinchandani.

The world’s largest sports tournament is here again! And for the first time in history, some of the pitches are on Canadian soil, as we host alongside the United States and Mexico. The excitement is palpable across all three countries, with the most recent World Cup held in North America being over 3 decades ago in the US. If you go downtown, the streets are covered with World Cup-themed decor.

For decades, the government of Ontario has been providing financial aid to post-secondary students through its Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP). Funding has included grants, which do not need to be repaid, as well as loans, which need to be repaid. On Feb. 12, the government announced that, starting in Fall 2026, Ontario students “will be eligible to receive a maximum of 25 per cent of their OSAP funding as grants and a minimum of 75 per cent as loans.

During the afternoon of April 18, Toronto youth mingled, snacked, and learned ways to engage with democratic processes at SpeakEasy, a free educational coffee party organized by RISE Toronto. Attendees circulated between stations of gamified activities on topics like Canadian voting requirements, detecting misinformation in news headlines, and how to contact different levels of government representatives.

Did you ever expect to go to a show where you control the actor as if he were a video game character? What about playing a board game that involves creating a utopic society within a theatre performance? This niche of theatre is being studied at York by fourth-year PhD candidate Derek Manderson, who recently shared some of his insights with Excalibur. Commercially, incorporating participation and gaming elements into theatre offers significant financial gain for the industry.

The future of theatre looks bright in the hands of the cast and crew of Theatre@York’s The Children’s Hour. Jamie Robinson, associate professor at AMPD, stated that the play is a student-run endeavour, with faculty members advising but not directing. According to Robinson, the students also played a role in selecting the content of the show.

Collective Views: A Symposium of Photography in Toronto was a two-day photography collaborative event hosted by the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) and the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO). Spanning from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Mar. 10, and 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Mar. 11, the symposium featured a variety of Indigenous, queer, and feminist voices, exploring several stages of photography in Toronto.