by Colin Thomas | Nov 27, 2021 | Review
Covid, climate change, and November are conspiring to deplete my capacity for joy. I know I’m not alone in my exhaustion and dread. So the East Van Panto comes as a sorely-needed gift this year, a celebration of life — of community and fun. Now in its ninth...
by Colin Thomas | Nov 21, 2021 | Review
I wasn’t bored by this two-and-a-half-hour production, which is saying something. But I wasn’t horrified either — and I should have been. In Martin McDonagh’s 2003 script, a writer named Katurian is being interrogated by “good cop” Tupolski and “bad cop” Ariel....
by Colin Thomas | Nov 14, 2021 | Review
I acknowledge that I’m saying this as a settler: in my opinion, Paddle Song, the play about Canadian Mohawk/English poet E. Pauline Johnson, isn’t very good. In my view, this nineteenth century woman who toured across Canada, the US, and the UK reciting her poems...
by Colin Thomas | Nov 13, 2021 | Review
There’s a force blowing off the stage in director Lois Anderson’s production of Emilia. It feels like a stiff, invigorating wind. In fact, it’s a combination of confidence and fury. Emilia, which was commissioned by London’s Globe Theatre, is a fantastical history...
by Colin Thomas | Nov 12, 2021 | Review
The premise is a cliché, but the execution is poetic and the insight genuine. I used to sit on screenwriting juries and I was surprised by how many of the stories dealt with feisty codgers escaping from long-term care facilities. There wasn’t much of a pay-off in...
by Colin Thomas | Nov 11, 2021 | Review
Out of respect for the death of Lee Maracle, the opening night of Paddle Song has been postponed from November 11 to November 12. I will now see it on Saturday night (November 13) and post my review on Sunday afternoon. Best, Colin
