Toronto is one of the greatest theatrical cities in the world and this winter I’ve seen a smattering of productions that prove that across style, medium, budget, and venue. Here’s a sampling of some of the standout eclectic work from recent weeks: The Student Show: A friend of mine invited me this past weekend to York […]
“I hope you all stick around after,” she says with a gleam in her eye, “it’s been a long week. And we’re going to party.” Chloe Charles is addressing a packed house on the upper floor of the El Mocambo on the Saturday of Canadian Music Week. She is halfway through a jubilant set, one […]
Tarragon’s current Extra Space offering is a sure-thing. They’re a Canadian playwright’s theatre and Hannah Moscovitch is a wonderfully talented, totally accessible, widely produced, generally beloved Canadian playwright who just happens to be Tarragon’s current playwright-in-residence, so a double bill of her newest one-acts is not only a smart decision artistically, it’s one perfectly in-brand […]
The first thing you need to know about my relationship with Martin Sherman’s astounding play Bent is that it was one of the last things I saw performed before I created My Theatre (then a standalone website, now a branch of this one). In June 2009 I saw a truly brilliant production at Ryerson’s Abrams […]
Veda Hille & Bill Richardson’s original song cycle Do You Want What I Have Got? A Craigslist Cantata (playing until March 3rd at Toronto’s Factory Theatre) is a hilarious and inventive journey through the craziness of our internet culture. Using real Craigslist postings for fodder, the piece is absolutely nuts but also relatable in a completely […]
I don’t like electronic music. You can call it house, electronica, dance, synth, trance, or whatever else you want. The point is, it’s just never been something that appeals to me. As a result, when somebody brings up Daft Punk, the two things the pop up in my head are a cartoon music video with […]
Two of the best productions currently running on Toronto stages share the unique bond of being ballsy enough to tell a beloved play’s story from a different angle. A practice that’s inescapably commonplace on television and often even in film and literature, the spinoff is far from a regular occurrence in theatre. The most famous one is […]
I am not the person to talk about Necessary Angel’s current production of 4.48 Psychosis. Abstract, poetry-driven contemporary theatre is not my cup of tea to begin with, but more than anything I say I’m not the person for this task because 4.48 Psychosis is a deeply personal piece about a woman whom I never […]