blogTO | Posts by Graeme

blogTO | Posts by Graeme http://www.blogto.com/ Toronto blog Copyright 2008 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 06:31:21 PDT http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Thursday Theatre Review: The Crackwalker When it first premiered at Theatre Passe Muraille 28 years ago, Judith Thompson's The Crackwalker was a kind of lighning rod for Canadian drama. Not only did it mark the arrival of a major new theatrical voice, but it signalled a new maturity among Canadian playwrights. Grit and brutal honesty had arrived.

Staged and Confused's production of The Crackwalker, also at Theatre Passe Muraille, is a worthy tribute to the significance of that first production. But it fails to generate any relevance of its own or achieve the resonance of its forebearer. Legacy, as it turns out, can be a tricky burden to bear.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/09/thursday_theatre_review_the_crackwalker http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/09/thursday_theatre_review_the_crackwalker Theatre Thu, 25 Sep 2008 12:21:04 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-09-25T12:21:04 Thursday Theatre Review: Norway.Today Up until this Tuesday, I knew exactly three things about Norway. 1) Vikings come from there. 2) My friend Magnus lives there. Sadly, he is not a Viking. 3) It has fjords. And presumably Fords, although that's far less interesting from a tourism perspective.

But thanks to Theatre Smash's superb production of Norway.Today, I know a fourth thing about the Scandinavian nation: it is home to a 2000 feet-high cliff called the Preikestolen. Not only is it a scenic wonder, it's also an ideal place for the histrionically-inclined to off themselves. And, as it turns out, the backdrop for a very interesting piece of theatre.

More...

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/09/thursday_theatre_review_norwaytoday http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/09/thursday_theatre_review_norwaytoday Theatre Thu, 11 Sep 2008 12:01:20 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-09-11T12:01:20 Thursday Theatre Review: Waiting for Godot Waiting for Godot is the theatrical equivalent of a mine field. Full of starving grizzly bears. Surrounded by a shark-infested moat. On fire.

It is a play where nothing actually happens. Two guys show up and wait for another guy to arrive. But behind this facade of inactivity lies a vast chasm of existential ambiguity. Sixty years after it was written, nobody is really sure what it's actually about. In fact, the play resists explanation so strongly, any attempt to pin down Beckett's intent seems doomed to failure.

So when I read that Remain in Light Theatre's production of Godot featured a World War II setting and the music of Joy Division, I thought: Uh oh. This might be trouble. And it was. But only a little. Almost in spite of itself, Remain in Light has managed to mount an impressive production of Beckett's classic.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/08/thursday_theatre_review_waiting_for_godot http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/08/thursday_theatre_review_waiting_for_godot Theatre Thu, 28 Aug 2008 14:42:42 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-08-28T14:42:42 Thursday Theatre Review: Summerworks If you haven't been checking out the Summerworks Theatre Festival, let me ask you this: what the heck have you been doing? Standing around in the rain? Putting a lot of effort into a summer romance that, let's be honest, isn't going to work out? Seriously, people. Go check it out. Great theatre, music, dance, art...and you have four days left to take it all in.

Ever your faithful servants, we have been hitting the tarmac and sniffing out the best bets. Continue reading for reviews of Dust, Flux, If We Were Birds, Kid Cosmic, Pelee, Rendevous With Home, and The Performance Gallery.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/08/thursday_theatre_review_summerworks http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/08/thursday_theatre_review_summerworks Theatre Thu, 14 Aug 2008 12:32:32 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-08-14T12:32:32 Summerworks Cometh Ah, the summer of 2008. If the rain doesn't wash you away, then you're liable to be swamped by theatre. Hot on the heels of the 11 day performance binge of the Toronto Fringe comes the Summerworks Theatre Festival. Think of it as a smaller, more refined version of the Fringe. Unlike its larger cousin, Summerworks is juried. The festival evaluates each show, and only the best applicants get in. So while it lacks the brash irreverance of the Fringe, Summerworks always provides a high-quality product.

And there's a lot of product to choose from. With 42 shows, eight nights of live music and a "performance gallery" at the Gladstone Hotel, the variety can be a little daunting. Continue reading for a few of my early picks.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/08/summerworks_cometh http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/08/summerworks_cometh Theatre Thu, 07 Aug 2008 09:37:37 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-08-07T09:37:37 Thursday Theatre Review: The Christian Republican Fundraiser in Dayton Tennessee Well, another Fringe Festival has come and gone. But like every year, there are a few shows that will go on to bigger things. In 1999, there was the Drowsy Chaperone. In 2002, Job: The Hip Hop Musical got all the buzz. Last year gave us the Gladstone Variations and An Inconvenient Musical.

And in 2008, we have The Christian Republican Fundraiser in Dayton Tennessee. I reviewed this show during the Fringe and loved it. But since Christian Republican Fundraiser is playing next week as part of Diesel Playhouse's "Best of the Fringe", I thought I'd tell you a bit more about what makes this show so good.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/07/thursday_theatre_review_the_christian_republican_fundraiser_in_dayton_tennessee http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/07/thursday_theatre_review_the_christian_republican_fundraiser_in_dayton_tennessee Theatre Thu, 17 Jul 2008 11:39:45 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-07-17T11:39:45 Fringe 2008 - Day 10 I was talking with my good friend yesterday, a veteran of many a Fringe performance. I asked him: with 150+ shows and 29 venue, is it possible to see everything?

"No. But you can try."

Indeed. And try we might, with only two days to go.

Continue reading for reviews of Lupe: Undone, Einstein's Wife, Putz, Blastback Babyzap, and You Mean Now?.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/07/fringe_2008_day_10 http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/07/fringe_2008_day_10 Theatre Sat, 12 Jul 2008 11:39:39 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-07-12T11:39:39 Fringe 2008 - Day 9 Well, it's crunch time now folks. Only three days left to see dozens of innovative and occasionally bizarre shows at the 2008 Fringe.

And while you're out there desperately cramming as much theatre into 72 hours as you can, remember to show the Fringe volunteers a little love. It's hard work, but there wouldn't be a festival without them.

Continue reading for reviews of How To Build and Empire, Sarah Hennessey Time, Middle of the End, Viva Vivi!, and Kaliban.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/07/fringe_2008_day_9 http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/07/fringe_2008_day_9 Theatre Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:30:34 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-07-11T11:30:34 Fringe 2008 - Day 7 Not even a torrential downpour could stop Tuesday's Fringe festivities. It almost stopped me, but I persevered and saw some quality theatre in soaking wet shorts. Remember, Fringers- only five days left in the 2008 Toronto Fringe. Get out there and see some shows. But bring an umbrella. Or a raft.

Continue reading for reviews of The Barbecue King, Telegrams from the new Canadian cinema, The Tricky Part, Acis and Galatea, Teaching the Fringe, Trust, A Girl Named Ralph, and The Further Adventures of Antoine Feval.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/07/fringe_2008_day_7 http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/07/fringe_2008_day_7 Theatre Wed, 09 Jul 2008 10:21:48 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-07-09T10:21:48 Thursday Theatre Review: Bad Dog Improv Summit I'm going to try something a bit different in the ol' TTR this week. As I'm trying to conserve my limited critical resources for the two-week theatre orgy called The Fringe, today will be a combination 'review' and 'feature'. What I like to call a 'freview', or occasionally a 'reveature'.

Moving forward.

Everyone loves a summit. If by 'everyone', you mean scowling diplomats and folks really into the reduction of nuclear weapon stockpiles. But Toronto's Bad Dog Theatre has come up with an event with much broader appeal- instead of arguing about the number of ICBMs in Poland, the Bad Dog Improv Summit is all about funny.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/06/thursday_theatre_review_bad_dog_improv_summit http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/06/thursday_theatre_review_bad_dog_improv_summit Theatre Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:10:29 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-06-26T14:10:29 Thursday Theatre Review: Black Watch The National Theatre of Scotland is approximately 3300 Km from Toronto. Under normal circumstances, seeing a show there would involve a lot of money, time, jetlag, and hangovers, as the last time I was in Scotland I somehow ended up drinking the volume of a small bathtub every day.

So, I owe the Luminato Festival a debt of thanks. Their importation of the NTS's Black Watch saved me a handful of cash and spared my liver the vagaries of a week in Glasgow. And as a happy bonus, it was a pretty damn amazing show to boot.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/06/thursday_theatre_review_black_watch http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/06/thursday_theatre_review_black_watch Theatre Thu, 12 Jun 2008 11:00:35 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-06-12T11:00:35 Thursday Theatre Review: Much Ado About Nothing I am not a religious man. Still, I have managed to pick up a few Judeo-Christian nuggets over the years. Here's one I think more or less sums up vast swathes of the New Testament:

Sharing is good.

And the best kind of sharing is when someone has a lot of something gives it to someone who has very little. Such is the philosophy embraced by DreamNorth Theatre Company, who for the second year is taking a Shakespearean play from relatively theatre rich Toronto, and exporting it to the theatre-poor Yukon. A neat idea, made all the better by the fact that their version of Much Ado About Nothing is very good. Thankfully, Toronto audiences still have a few days to catch this show at Fort York before it packs up and heads north.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/06/thursday_theatre_review_much_ado_about_nothing http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/06/thursday_theatre_review_much_ado_about_nothing Theatre Thu, 05 Jun 2008 10:25:53 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-06-05T10:25:53 Thursday Theatre Review: Breakfast Creating a new play isn't easy, especially when you eschew more mainstream conventions of story and character. Like, say, if you were to take an utterly mundane daily activity and explode it into an extraordinary moment of self discovery.

Such is the challenge of the Independent Aunties/ Theatre Centre co-pro Breakfast. Billed as a 'production in progress', it's not always a complete success as a piece of theatre. But it is an interesting and brave show, well worth checking out for those who like to walk a bit off the beaten theatrical path.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/05/thursday_theatre_review_breakfast http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/05/thursday_theatre_review_breakfast Theatre Thu, 29 May 2008 11:26:51 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-05-29T11:26:51 Thursday Theatre Review-on-a-Friday: The Eco Show Plays about 'ideas' are tempermental beasts. When a playwright hitches his wagon to some kind of a political or social concept, it often ends up as a very boring show. A play that really wants to tell you something about, say, poverty ends up forgetting about all those other things that audiences actually connect with- story, characters and relationships. A good piece of social or political drama starts with the basics and lets the conceptual implications flow upwards.

So, it was with some trepidation that I went to see Necessary Angel's production of The Eco Show, the latest offering from Toronto's theatrical wunderkind, Daniel Brooks. Based on the title alone, I thought I was in for an environmental screed, a kind of Al Gore meets Hamlet kind of affair. Turns out, Brooks has not only created a remarkably compelling family drama, but also committed one of the most spectacular theatrical fake-outs I have ever seen. But more on that later.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/05/thursday_theatre_reviewonafriday_the_eco_show http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/05/thursday_theatre_reviewonafriday_the_eco_show Theatre Fri, 16 May 2008 14:21:02 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-05-16T14:21:02 Theatre Review at Large: The December Man Despite all the hooplah about CanStage's recent financial woes, the company deserves praise for its 2007-08 season at the Berkeley Street Theatre. CanStage's three Berkeley shows- The Pillowman, Palace of the End, and The December Man- are all unflinchingly honest looks at humanity's darker places. Bold choices, particularly when Toronto's theatre industry struggles with declining attendance, stagnant funding at the grim prospect of a North American recession.

As the old saying goes, fortune does indeed favour the bold. The Berkeley season has been at least an artistic success, bringing a welcome level of relevance and emotional depth to Toronto audiences. It is perhaps fitting then that the final show of the season, The December Man, should embody this trend so fully. While The Pillowman reveled in an almost cartoonish brutality, and Palace of the End spoke with the urgency of today's headlines, The December Man takes a softer, simpler look at the lingering destruction of a horrible crime. It is a very moving show, a detailed and honest look at a family consumed by guilt and loss.

]]> http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/05/theatre_review_at_large_the_december_man http://www.blogto.com/theatre/2008/05/theatre_review_at_large_the_december_man Theatre Mon, 05 May 2008 11:16:02 PDT Theatre Graeme 2008-05-05T11:16:02