I’m picky when it comes to holiday traditions- the market is too crowded, turkey is dry, and I really think George Bailey needs to learn to control his temper. But I very quickly attached to the tradition of the Shaw Festival’s Christmas Carol + festive musical two-show day. Throw in a stroll down Niagara-on-the-Lake’s picturesque […]
Shrek the Musical (Young People’s Theatre) Young People’s Theatre’s production of Shrek the Musical is lean, green, and utterly joyful. It’s one of the biggest productions in the company’s 60-year history and that investment pays off with a strong ensemble, William Layton’s vibrant set design, and an overall high standard of production that could easily […]
I try to review the full Stratford season every year and, with very few exceptions, have done so with great consistency since 2010 (I missed the 2022 late openers and I think a Henry VIII at some point?). This year I’m supposed to be on maternity leave but the thought of missing out completely just […]
Having fallen in love with the human special effect that is a large ensemble tap number (or, perhaps rather more accurately, observed the audience’s love for them), Shaw Festival Artistic Director Tim Carroll has cornered himself into a very specific style and era of musical theatre programming. While there’s plenty to love about said style […]
I’ve technically put the theatre review side of this site on hiatus while I take maternity leave but the prospect of completely missing out on Toronto Fringe made me too sad so I made myself a one-day sample platter of shows taking place in and around the new festival hub at Soulpepper’s distillery district venue. […]
Some uncomfortably personal context: I just had a kid. Attempting to be realistic about the amount of time this website takes to run, I was planning to start maternity leave right around now and cut theatre reviewing from our coverage entirely for the rest of the year. But, when my son arrived two months early, […]
The Grand Theatre in London, Ontario never fails to impress. While I’d love to see them use their secondary stage a bit more to really challenge their audiences with intimate counter-programming, their mainstage blockbusters at the beautiful Spriet theatre reflect diversity of tone and style within the “must sell well” demands of maintaining such a […]
I’ve been on Shifting Ground’s case since their debut, lecturing the ambitious and capable young company about their programming. The company’s early work, though proficient, felt too mature, like the company was simply doing their favourite shows with their friends rather than programming to their strengths. That all changed with The 25th Annual Putnum County […]