by Colin Thomas | Feb 10, 2023 | Review
Not to take anything away from the actors or anybody else, the real stars of this premiere stage production of The Cull are director Mindy Parfitt and set designer Amir Ofek. Their treatment of Michelle Riml and Michael St. John Smith’s script elevates it...
by Colin Thomas | Feb 3, 2023 | Review
Exquisitely directed and designed, and responsively acted, An Undeveloped Sound is, nonetheless, thematically repetitive and therefor dull. Jonathon Young has set his new script in a call centre located in a crumbling, repurposed commercial outlet near an ocean. In my...
by Colin Thomas | Jan 31, 2023 | Review
THREE-ACT TEMPLATE ACT 1 Ordinary World We see hero’s (the protagonist’s) world as it exists before their adventure begins. The Ordinary World may contain an event called the Inciting Incident, which kicks the story into action. Call to Adventure In the Call to...
by Colin Thomas | Jan 20, 2023 | Review
Considering the emotional nature of the material — the internment of Japanese Canadians during World War II and the abuse of prisoners of war in Japanese prison camps — Forgiveness falls surprisingly flat. Playwright Hiro Kanagawa’s stage adaptation is drawn from Mark...
by Colin Thomas | Jan 14, 2023 | Review
I had almost forgotten what helpless laughter feels like. It’s good for the soul. In Little Willy, marionette master Ronnie Burkett is working a new premise, using many of the familiar faces from his “repertory company” of puppets and even doing one of his most …...
by Colin Thomas | Jan 8, 2023 | Review
On one level, I was seduced by the understatement of this production and the fine acting it contains. But, about halfway through watching Flowers of the Rarest, I wrote in my notebook, “I’m ready for some plot development” and, a bit later: “Besides plot, what is...
