A Fear And Loathing-esque road trip journey is elevated and driven by powerful and heartfelt performances for a story about friendship, history, love, and regret. D. Halpern’s story starts off with a return to nostalgia through camcorder video tapes. Well edited and shot by designer Seamus Easton, the beginning montage evokes feelings of past […]
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 […]
The Musical Stage Company’s Uncovered series is a staple on Toronto stages. Each instalment of the theatre-y concert/concert-y theatre fundraiser famously reinterprets a different massive artist (or artists)’s songbook with the help of big name and up-and-coming talent. The central recipe still works: great singers (at least a couple each year who are too big […]
Dissonant Species (written by Michel Gordon Spence and Heather Marie Annis) sings a story about trying to understand. Trying to understand music, trying to understand sound, trying to understand people. Like a jumbled up music sheet with various timings and key changes and sounds with no set patterns. It is a piece that drums an […]
The trouble with adapting most children’s books is that they are very light on plot. Niagara’s Carousel Players’ two-person production of Where the Wild Things Are (originally adapted for the stage by TAG Theatre in Glasgow) suffers from this problem- it’s only 65 minutes long and still feels like they’re filling for time. What felt […]
Do not stop. Just go to see Laura Piccinin’s production of GO, a hike full of heart, comedy, and charm Full disclosure, I do not hike. As a city boy, my version of hiking is walking from Regent Park to Parkdale. However, even I can understand the appeal of hiking. The nature, the views, […]
The narrative road to Bremen Town may be uneven in places but an excellent performance by the ensemble and strong direction with funny dialogue make this a fun and at times emotionally deep road trip. The stage is beautifully framed by images that are reminiscent of a children’s fairy tale book (a thoughtful and […]
Critic Note: The performance reviewed was of the October 1st preview Content Warning: This review will contain mentions of child sexual abuse. To view more detailed content warnings of Blackbird please check out the show page on Talk Is Free Theatre’s website. Incredible performances and chemistry between Cyrus Lane (Ray) and Kirstyn Russelle […]