Bad Dog’s Roses & Thorns returns for four October Fridays at Comedy Bar Bloor
Bad Dog Theatre Company promotional artwork for Roses & Thorns, which plays four Fridays at Comedy Bar Bloor in October 2026.
Photo credit: Bad Dog Theatre Company
Bad Dog Theatre’s Roses & Thorns is back for four Friday performances in October at Comedy Bar Bloor, beginning Oct 9, 2026 and continuing Oct 16, 2026, Oct 23, 2026 and Oct 30, 2026. All four shows begin at 7 p.m.
Roses & Thorns dates to a January 2020 Bad Dog run. In a contemporaneous interview, Liz Johnston, Nadine Djoury and Ann Pornel described developing the format together. Comedy Bar and Bad Dog’s main Roses & Thorns page currently credit the same trio as the show’s original creators, while a separate Bad Dog event page for the Oct. 9 performance credits Johnston and Paloma Núñez.
Roses & Thorns builds its scenes from audience contributions. In the original format, people were invited to share a “rose,” a “thorn” or a “bud” — something positive, something difficult or something they were looking forward to — and the improvisers used those stories as the starting point for the show. The current listing similarly describes an unscripted comedy drawn from the highs and lows of the audience’s day.
Current listings from Bad Dog and Comedy Bar both name Johnston, Paloma Núñez, Sarah Hillier, Djoury, Pornel and Jess Bryson in the ensemble. Bad Dog also lists Ken Hall and credits Alia Rasul as producer. Johnston and Djoury are Second City Mainstage alumni, while Hillier is a Canadian Comedy Award-winning improviser. Núñez, who describes herself as American-Canadian, grew up in Sudbury and built her performing career in Toronto.
Comedy Bar lists tickets at $23 in advance and $25 at the door. Pay-what-you-can reservations are also available through the venue by phone or email. Comedy Bar Bloor is at 945 Bloor St. W. in Toronto.
