This Small But Mighty Productions musical murder mystery opens with Derek and his 6 lovers – five women and one man – gathered together in his secluded suburban home. They are there by invitation, but no one knows from whom. Derek is attempting to explain himself when he collapses and dies. Two cops arrive and […]
Nightwood Theatre defines itself as a feminist theatre company whose mandate includes providing an ‘essential home for the creation of extraordinary theatre by women.’ These two pieces, currently on stage at Buddies in Bad Times, certainly hit that mandate. Quiver Written and performed by Anna Chatterton, Quiver is a story about a mother and her […]
Dead End (Theatre Lab) This light-hearted one-act from playwright Jonny Sun and director Michael Orlando is the perfect Halloween-themed diversion in Toronto’s current sea of self-serious theatre. Sun traps bantering high school pals Christian Smith and Chris Wilson* in a dead end hallway as they flee the zombie horde that’s taken over their school, inviting […]
This month we were treated to two pieces that weren’t really musical theatre, nor were they strictly concerts. They were cabarets, I guess, but they were really stage-bound musical explorations of people and place by musicians who make theatre and theatre people who make music. Ryan G. Hinds’ Say Grace Sidelined for 6 months after […]
I have only 4 rules when it comes to great theatre: – make it coherent – make it honest – make it mean something – limit blackout set changes That’s it. That’s all I ask. The following three companies refuse to adhere to this final point with their current productions and it’s perhaps telling that […]
Conceived and created by The Independent Aunties, Gertrude and Alice is currently onstage at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre. Written and performed by Anna Chatterton (as Alice B. Toklas) and Evalyn Parry (as Gertrude Stein), in collaboration with dramaturg and director Karin Randoja, the script also incorporates texts written by Stein and Toklas themselves. The […]
M’dea Undone (Tapestry Opera) This world premiere one-act opera from Tapestry is smart and character-driven with a cleverly modern libretto by Marjorie Chan and superb performances from its 7-person cast, including Jacqueline Woodley as a refreshingly savvy and complex Dahlia and the brilliant Lauren Segal in the title role of the scorned wife of aspirational […]
Tom at the Farm (Buddies in Bad Times) This gorgeous and disturbing piece of personal theatre from Canadian playwright Michel Marc Bouchard is one of the first truly great productions I’ve seen this year. Making its English language debut through Linda Gaboriau’s poetic and honest translation, Tom at the Farm is staged with searing insight […]