In a really pretty strong Stratford season, these mostly good productions fell to the middle of the pack because other things were better, not because they were bad at all. These were Stratford’s mixed bag productions of the year- some polarizing (Bakkhai), some just generally medium (Romeo & Juliet) and the best recommendation I can […]
The thing to understand about the so-so list for The Shaw Festival this year is that they’re all pretty good productions; they mostly didn’t make the cut to be must-sees on account of the expectations game. All the over-promoted stuff of the year is on this list, the things that promised to be (had the […]
I promise everything gets better from here. Please keep in mind that I refuse to pull punches so you can believe me when I tell you you really should see the other stuff. Warning: brutality ahead. Twelfth Night I consider Twelfth Night to be Shakespeare’s most perfect text. That’s not to say it’s my favourite […]
Though little stood too far above the pack this year at the Shaw Festival (“so-so” really carried the season over there), it’s remarkable that there’s only one show I think you ought to skip if you can. 1837: The Farmers’ Revolt This dully written and even more dully directed Canadian history play is a true […]
Late Night, tell-it-how-it-is radio — a premise with the potential for shocking, humorous and meaningful dialogue, but Eric Bogosian’s play lacks depth and originality, with this production feeling in turns forced and unnatural. Barry has risen to fame due to the success of his listener phone-in show, and we join him along with his production […]
I’m a big fan of Antony Raymond whom I consider one of the city’s rising star playwrights. He creates rich unique characters with clear voices. As tensions and emotions inevitably build throughout his plays, the characters are primed to clash with each other. That said, the plot of his latest play, Apartment 301, feels undeveloped […]
Read All Our SummerWorks Reviews HERE The Only Good Indian (B+) It’s difficult to grade this solo show from Pandemic Theatre because half its runtime is just a “long table” discussion that will surely be completely different every day (the one I attended was heady and somewhat confrontational though smartly moderated by Donna-Michelle St. Bernard) […]
Jessica, a play written by Patrick Vermillion, showing at the IRT Theater brings science fiction and artificial intelligence to the stage. But an overly ambition script falls short in execution as too many plot points must be explained in unnecessarily complicated detail, such as the minutia of implausible technological advancements As a result, it is […]