While I’ve always admire the talent and dedication that go into producing a large-scale musical, and I can respect the musical’s place as a mainstream art form, I must confess that it just isn’t my thing. I walked in to The Music Man a skeptic. But I came out a fan.
The Music Man, Christopher Van Hagen as Winthrop Paroo and members of the company; Photo: David Hou
I’ll get this out of the way first. I’m a big musical theatre nut. When I showed up at Wood Hall to catch the Victoria Fringe premiere of Les Ms., I knew I wasn’t alone in that. A good-sized number of fringe-goers were there to see this send-up of the Broadway/West End classic, performed by Nelson-based performers Robyn Lamb and Lisel Forst.
Jayson McDonald wowed audiences at last year’s Fringe with his hit Giant Invisible Robot. By the time I decided to go see it, the shows were sold out. This year, I made sure Boat Load was one of the first I checked out. I made a wise choice because he has another hit on his hands.
Boat Load, exciting and new, come aboard we're expecting you.
The Play: The Skinny Presents: Adventures In X-Ray Theatre, written and performed by Vancouver-based Jackie Blackmore, Michael John Unger and Darren Williams. They did not wear pants throughout their show - unlike the panel of reviewers you are about to meet.
A war. The sacrifice of a mother’s first born. The murder of a son protecting his sister. A love in exile. The disgrace of a noble general. Titus Andronicus starts off with enough conflict and blood in the first scene to have you checking for daggers in your own back.
What's for dinner? Titus Andronicus: Jennifer Lines, Russell Roberts, Julien Galipeau, Bob Frazer; Photo: David Blue
In Metamorphoses Theatre Company's production of Chicago playwright Mary Zimmerman's Metamorphoses (based on Ovid’s myths of the same name), the ten actors constantly circle into and out of pool of waist-high water - a backyard children's pool edged with stairs and a faux-stone "deck" that functions as the stage.
Pomona (Michelle Kim) caught in a moment of doubt. Photo: Alan Katowitz
Why Not Theatre’s I’m So Close It’s Not Even Funny is an exceptional piece of theatre but it’s difficult to write about as a whole because it contains so many different parts and pieces and so many different styles and ideas. The experienced company consisting of Katrina Bugaj, Troels Hagen Findsen and Ravi Jain created the piece and perform it with vigor, ease and delight.
I'm So Close It's Not Even Funny: what time is it again?
(never underestimate) The Power, presented by One Reed Theatre and directed by Paul Thompson, is constructed from a series of monologues/vignettes created by writer-performers, Evan Webber, Frank Cox-O’Connel and Megan Flynn. An exploration of how three different characters were effected by and perceived the August 2003 Blackout (never underestimate) The Power, is set on Toronto’s Queen Street West on the day the power went out.
Frieda has Alzheimer’s or some similar memory-impairment – her nephew, Matthew, is a drug-addicted beggar who is probably homeless – they meet every Friday in a park, or they’re supposed to but Matthew has stopped showing up or maybe never showed up (it’s not quite clear) – he makes these arrangements by phone –
