It’s a Wonderful Life: It’s a boring show
Adapter and director Peter Jorgensen gets a lot of things right in this musical version of It’s a Wonderful Life at the Gateway. The Arts Club has repeatedly trotted out Philip Grecian’s politically neutered stage adaptation of Frank Capra’s 1946 movie, but...
Holiday Baking Time: sweet treat for little ones
Holiday Baking Time is designed for little kids—I’d say three to six is the core audience—and the only evening shows are on Thursdays, which are billed as “pyjama nights”. So the audience is insanely cute. I particularly liked the little girl in the giraffe onesie who...
Little Dickens: The Daisy Theatre presents A Christmas Carol—is a long title for an excellent show
This is the sixth year running that Ronnie Burkett has done a Christmas show at The Cultch. Sometimes they’ve been blindingly good and sometimes they’ve been a little ragged around the edges—a bit repetitive or sloppy—but one thing never changes: in terms of sheer...
East Van Panto: The Wizard of Oz – Yes! Just yes!
I want to live there. East Van Panto: The Wizard of Oz is my new happy place. I’m going to see if I can just rent out one of the seats in the York Theatre for the duration of the run. This is the sixth year of Theatre Replacement’s East Van Panto, and this edition is...
Blind Date: all dates should include this much kindness
Watching Blind Dateis so much like falling in love that it feels a bit like the real thing is happening. The concept for the show is fantastic. Rebecca Northan had the idea nine years ago and the performance I saw on Wednesday night was number 712. In the hetero form...
Hir: rhymes with “here”, as in “here and now”
Taylor Mac’s Hir celebrates diversity while simultaneously exposing the underside of identity politics. And it’s a comedy, although its humour is dark—like blood-encrusted dark. A US Marine named Isaac comes home after three years of overseas duty. He’s been working...
Soul Samurai: enough with the backstory already
Before the show, a company member from Soul Samurai lets everybody know that there’s a crisis line that audience members can call if they find anything too upsetting. The script is so awful I very nearly dialed it up. And, in one significant way, this production makes...
Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley. Send your regrets.
Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley is going to do very well at the box office—but not because it’s good. Co-written by Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon, the play is a sequel to Jane Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice. With her husband, the dashing Darcy, Lizzy now...
Mortified: smells like teen girl spirit
This might seem like an odd thing to say but, to me, Mortified feels whole and perfect in the same way that a body can feel whole and perfect: it’s just that organic, sensual—and complicated. And, like being embodied, Mortified is more than a touch surreal. Playwright...
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