Theatre

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, guess who the star is?By Justin Haigh

To call the touring production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ‘family friendly’ would be inaccurate. The show, imported by Mirvish Productions and now playing at Toronto’s Canon Theatre, is very kid friendly, but parents hoping for an equally engaging theatrical experience may be disappointed.

The story of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is certainly not the problem. The production stays reasonably true to the whimsical and fanciful tale crafted for the 1968 film by Roald Dahl (who in turn adapted it from a children’s book by ‘James Bond’ author Ian Flemming). There are tweaks here and there, but the basics remain the same.

Widower and inventor Caractacus Potts’ life is turned on its head when he buys and refurbishes an old wreck of a racing car for Jeremy and Jemima, his two free-spirited children, only to discover the car, named Chitty Chitty Bang Bang after it’s rhythmic engine purr, has a mind of its own and a few unexpected tricks up its sleeve. Potts’ personal life also gets a tune-up after several contentious chance encounters with Truly Scrumptious, the sightly daughter of a wealthy candy magnate, lead to a blossoming romance. Things don’t stay idyllic for long thanks to Baron Bomburst, the villainous and toy-obsessed monarch of the small and oppressive European state of Vulgaria. Desiring the magnificent car for his own collection, the Baron sends two bumbling spies to snatch it away from Potts and his family. The spies fail to nab Chitty, but do kidnap Potts’ eccentric father, believing that he is the inventor of the car, thus leaving it to Potts, his children, Truly, and of course Chitty, to rescue Potts’ father from the Baron’s castle.

One of the coolest things about Leaky Heaven is their connection to East Vancouver, specifically to the Strathcona and Grandview neighbourhoods. This connection was in full evidence at the third edition of Blink at a packed Russian Hall on December 13th.

At times, Vancouver can feel like a rootless city: it’s a place people come to, not a place people come from. It is also an over-planned and over-managed environment where spontaneity and organic expression are not encouraged (but being in bed by 10:00 pm is). There are some glorious exceptions and Leaky Heaven is one of them. No matter how wacky the concept, their shows have a sense of being rooted in a specific artistic community, creating work at a specific time. If someone asked me to show them something that represented Vancouver as a unique, cultural centre, Leaky Heaven would be at the top of my list.

By Nicolette Little

For Brief Encounters 11, Vancouver’s The Tomorrow Collective has again paired artists from vastly differing backgrounds, given them two weeks to create and rehearse a work of their own, and set the stage for the resulting creations at the eastside’s Anza Club. This year’s curious pairings include: lighting designer Itai Erdal with urban dancer Natasha Powell; experimental musician Gabriel Mindel Saloman with dance artist Jennifer Mascall; musician and composer Steve Charles with martial artist John Camp; dancer Wen Wei Wang with filmmaker Pia Massie; comedian Alicia Tobin with fashion designer Rich Nguyen, and; drummer Joy Mullun with and theatre artist Heather Lindsay.