DIAL M FOR MURDER: NOT JUST PHONED IN
There’s zero thematic ambition here. Still, you’ve got to admire craft, and there’s plenty of that in director Jillian Keiley’s production of Dial M for Murder. The script is, nominally, a thriller as opposed to a murder mystery: in a thriller, we know who the villain...
THE BAKING SHOW SHOW: THE PLAY – WHAT HAPPENED IN THE KITCHEN?
Playwright Faly Mevamanana needed more help. Her script, The Baking Show Show: The Play was developed through Ruby Slippers Theatre’s Advance Theatre Production Program. Presumably, there was input from several artists. Two dramaturges are credited. But I don’t see...
EVERYTHING HAS DISAPPEARED: PAKIKIRAMDAM! BRING IT ON!
Everything Has Disappeared is so original. I enjoyed it so much. Because, for starters, Hazel Venzon. I haven’t seen her onstage in years. Venzon’s Instagram bio might explain why: “Producer Director @unit productions sometimes I will act in plays or movies...
THE GOLDEN ANNIVERSARIES: A QUESTIONABLE INVESTMENT
Playwright Mark Crawford’s The Golden Anniversaries is not meanspirited, but it is boring and shallow. It’s Glen and Sandy Golden’s fiftieth anniversary but, about a week ago, Sandy kicked Glen out of the house and declared their marriage over. Now Glen is...
THE REPLACEMENT WIFE: COLOURING OUTSIDE THE LINES
It’s exhilarating to see somebody colouring outside the lines for a change. Aaron Bushkowsky’s new play, The Replacement Wife, is a reality-bending comedy about marriage, death, and the fickle nature of love. Its pieces didn’t come together for me in a substantial way...
YOU’RE JUST A PLACE THAT I KNOW: BUT NOT WELL, APPARENTLY
In the theatrical concert You’re Just a Place That I Know, singer/songwriter Adrian Glynn McMorran sets out to tell the story of his grandparents’ flight from Ukraine, post-WWII, to Montreal. But he doesn’t really know that story, so the core of this piece is hollow....
PARADISUM: NOT QUITE PARADISE
There’s an enormous amount of technical skill on display in Paradisum, which is a circus show from the Hungarian company Recirquel. But the level of artistry is inconsistent and that’s a problem: because circus is enjoying a huge renaissance these days, there are...
ANNIE: NOT EVERYTHING I WANTED FOR CHRISTMAS
Annie is the Gateway’s Christmas show, so let’s say this pudding is tasty sometimes, but also pretty lumpy. Stylistically, director Josh Epstein’s production is inconsistent — and that’s partly because, stylistically, Annie is a tricky musical. Based on the comic...
LOUISA MAY ALCOTT’S LITTLE WOMEN: SURRENDER
For some reason, probably general curmudgeonliness, I tried to resist Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. I failed. Yes, the story is sentimental, but it’s about the importance of familial and romantic love — of kindness, honesty, and openheartedness. In this age, which...
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