Slings & Arrows - Season 1

Seven years after suffering a mental breakdown during a performance of "Hamlet" at the New Burbage Festival, Geoffrey Tennant is struggling to make ends meet, managing the dilapidated Theatre Sans Argent. Oliver Welles, still the artistic director at the festival, is mounting his tenth identical production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream", and is worried that he has lost his creative edge. Richard Smith-Jones, general manager of the festival, attempts to save the funding as their sponsor, Lenstrex, goes through a change of management. The new Lenstrex liaison, Holly Day, seems interested in the festival…and in Richard.

Richard finds himself overwhelmed trying to keep the festival running smoothly in the wake of Oliver's death. Kate ditches rehearsals to audition for a commercial and runs into Hollywood action star Jack Crew, who has been hired to play Hamlet. Ellen begins a relationship with Sloan, a young deliveryman. Geoffrey questions his sanity when Oliver begins to speak to him from "the other side". Despite his delivery of a scathing speech at Oliver's funeral, the board of directors offers the job of Artistic Director to Geoffrey, on a temporary basis. Anna asks Geoffrey to help carry out Oliver's final request.

Having been named interim creative director of the festival, Geoffrey wisely cedes directing the festival's new production of Hamlet to a visiting director, but is distressed when the board chooses his long-time nemesis Darren Nichols. Richard and Holly go to Toronto for an evening of "real theater". Kate and visiting movie star Jack get closer. Geoffrey manages to alienate everyone when he is interviewed by a theatre critic, then gets drunk and challenges Darren to a sword duel.

In jail after his escapade at Ellen's party, Geoffrey is visited by the ghost of Oliver, who counsels him on the danger of trying to ignore his past feelings for Ellen. Holly and Richard work on their merchandising scheme‒a Shakespeare-themed village of retail stores. Geoffrey is forced to fire Darren as director, to the relief of the cast.

With Geoffrey directing the production of Hamlet, Richard and Holly fear that his success may doom their plan to redirect corporate resources to the Shakespeare Village. Oliver's ghost frees Ellen's pet chameleon and, viola, Ophelia is recast.

It's opening night for "Hamlet" and, though Jack has shown promise, insidious words from Richard send him running. Ellen and Geoffrey finally talk about the breakdown and the events leading up to it.