Amphitruo: Wait for it …
For a long time, there is virtually nothing entertaining in this production of the comedy Amphitruo by the ancient Roman writer Plautus (254-184 BC). Then, in a kind of miracle, it gets very funny — and more or less stays that way. In the script, the god Jupiter lusts...
Vancouver Fringe online: BLINDSIDE
I watched this show online but, when it ended, I clapped anyway. Stephanie Morin Robert’s autobiographical solo is about growing up with a glass eye — and turning that perceived vulnerability into a superpower. Formally, Blindside is taut and inventive. Directing her...
Vancouver Fringe: SOMETHING IN THE WATER
Yay trans identity! Yay queer idenity! Yay polymorphous perversity! Yay … squid sex? Sure! Yay squid sex! In this playful solo show, which they wrote and perform, S.E. Grummett explores gender through a clown character named Grumms. Grumms uses Barbie and Ken as props...
Vancouver Fringe: HI, MY NAME IS JAI
When I heard that this autobiographical solo show was about the performer changing his first name, I thought, “So what?” But Hi, My Name is Jai is engaging for most of its 60 minutes because writer/performer Jai Djwa brings so much richness to it. Djwa’s dad was an...
Vancouver Fringe: IAGO VS. HAMLET
Especially in these tough times, I don’t want to give anybody a bad review, but Iago vs. Hamlet didn’t work for me. The premise of playwright Jayson McDonald’s two-hander is simple: in a mix-up, Iago and Hamlet have rented the same rehearsal space for an hour. After...
Beneath Springhill: excellent performance, dull material
When does a pile have no depth? When it’s a pile of clichés. I can understand why programming Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story might have looked like a good idea. This solo musical is based on the real-life experience of Maurice Ruddick, a Black Canadian...
Done/Undone: half done
For me, the two most personalized passages in Done/Undone, screenwriter Kate Besworth’s new film about the current relevancy — or irrelevancy — of Shakespeare’s work, are also the most successful. In Done/Undone, which was initially commissioned by Bard on the Beach...
Gather: Stories in Nature — room to grow
Maybe the best way to see these two short scripts is as seedlings. In Gather: Stories in Nature, Shayna Jones and Cameron Peal both perform solo plays they’ve written about their relationships to the earth. In a (mostly) productive decision, their work is being...
The Magic Hour: It really is
The Magic Hour opened me up and rearranged me. It was extraordinary. The Magic Hour offers an immersive experience that audience members go through one at a time — or in pairs if you need to. The idea is that you’re finishing a dog walk and re-entering your home...
Subscribe Free!
Sign up for the FRESH SHEET newsletter and get curated local, national, and international arts coverage — all sorts of arts — every week.
Contact
Drop a line to colinthomas@telus.net.
Support
FRESH SHEET, the reviews and FRESH SHEET, the newsletter are available free. But writing them is a full-time job and arts criticism is in peril. Please support FRESH SHEET by sending an e-transfer to colinthomas@telus.net or by becoming a patron on Patreon.
Website by Mighty Sparrow Design.