A Side of Dreams is a beautiful view into Metis cultural traditions of generational and ancestral healing. The evening begins with a wondrous and effective projection of a spider beginning to spin a web, through a suspended aerial hoop. The initial image and soundscape prepare the audience for the intimate and thoughtful performance to come. […]
Two major Toronto companies are telling cancer stories right now. Nightwood’s HER2 is an ensemble of women participating in a drug trial to treat a deadly form of breast cancer known as HER2. Collecting the 7 women in a single treatment room over the course of many weeks, playwright Maja Ardal’s story looks at the […]
One dysfunctional family. A murder that no one talks about. A small, black box containing the biggest secret of all. Brian Watkins’ new play Wyoming, currently playing at the Theatre for a New City, explores concepts and themes of love and loss that are inherently unremarkable, but that are weaved together beautifully to create a […]
The Broadway comedy Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, written by Christopher Durang and directed by Jessica Stone (based on the original Broadway direction of Nicholas Martin) is a fun modern romp peppered with Chekhov references and further seasoned with tomfoolery and nostalgia. Two siblings, Vanya (Martin Moran) and the adopted Sonia (Marcia […]
Read Thea’s Reviews and Lorenzo’s Reviews of the NSTF. Graham Clark Reads the Phonebook I loved comedian Graham Clark’s solo show at last summer’s Fringe Festival. So did everyone else, including Fringe head honcho Lucy Eveleigh. So Lucy invited him back for the Next Stage Festival. This, in theory, makes sense (especially considering they have […]
Big Shot “I wish life were more like an action movie.” This is the plea of our young narrator at the beginning of Big Shot with Surreal SoReal Theatre out of Montreal. This solo show, written and performed by Jon Lachlan Stewart, weaves the story of four strangers who meet on a subway car, in […]
Theatre is alive at host venue Factory Theatre as patrons showed little fear, braving the cold winds at the outdoor ticket booth – huddling closely but with great anticipation of the shows on the inside. Both shows I viewed my first night at the festival were relatable in that they dealt with relationships and loss, […]
The title was the first thing that caught my eye. If you browse the program notes of New Repertory Theatre’s latest production, Muckrakers, written by Zayd Dohrn, directed by Bridget Kathleen O’Leary, you’ll find many references to contemporary whistleblowers like Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning. We are prepped to think this show will be about […]