Patricia Cano slays Tomson Highway’s latest work, a cabaret-play hybrid that charts a typical afternoon in the life of a Métis post office worker in Northern Ontario. Featuring a full soundtrack’s worth of songs composed and played live onstage by himself on piano and Marcus Ali on saxophone, and sung entirely by Cano, The (Post) […]
A uniquely bizarre story, Side Show follows the life of conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton as they are saved from their tortured life performing as ‘freaks’ in a Texan sideshow and propelled into stardom as the hottest act on the opium circuit. The musical, which first premiered on Broadway in 1997, has a rather […]
It’s over-expansive and yet at its most expansive it’s simultaneously at its best. Disregard (or don’t) the critics who call the ending effusive mush or ’emotional blackmail’. The ending is the best part; it’s the only good part, in fact. A Pacifist’s Guide to the War on Cancer, now at the Dorfman, is a Serious […]
A powerful and poignant musical production from director Thom Southerland, who yet again manages to deliver an incredibly high calibre of fringe theatre. Ragtime boasts an accomplished score, intriguing story and cast and creatives who more than equal the quality of the source material. Tom Rogers and Toots Bucher’s set design is instantly striking, particularly […]
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 […]
A very accomplished production of a show that boasts an utterly enchanting score, Floyd Collins is sophisticated, intriguing and beautifully performed with some truly breath-taking moments. It is clear that every detail of this carefully produced musical has been considered meticulously, with the piece emanating waves of meaning and feeling. Instantly you know you are in safe […]