Author Archive
Review: Cream of Comedy (Tim Sims Encouragement Fund)
I’ve really got to get out more and laugh! It was great to see so many people out on a Monday night enjoying the creative talents of people who put themselves out there just to give us some brief satisfaction in our lives! “Stand-up” Comedy has got to be the hardest skill imaginable! After all, what more pressure can one have than a room full of blank-faced ordinary people waiting to be entertained?
The annual Cream of Comedy gala event, presented by The Tim Sims Encouragement Fund and held at The Second City, was established by Lindsay Leese in 1995, and supports and promotes promising comedic performers in the early stages of their careers. The comedians not only get exposure but the winners receive the prestigious Tim Sims award along with a $5000 cash prize.
Review: Like the First Time (One Little Goat Theatre Company)
Winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1934 for his groundbreaking work in theatre by challenging its conventions in breaking “The Fourth Wall,” Luigi Pirandello not only influenced the likes of Samuel Beckett and Edward Albee, but current aspiring playwrights and poets like the talented Adam Seelig.
Based on the original play by Italian dramatist Luigi Pirandello (Come Prima Meglio Di Prima-Like Before, Better than Before), Like the First Time, written and directed by the already accomplished Adam Seelig and produced by his company One Little Goat, is a play with a contemporary theme and a stellar ensemble of actors.
Review: Funk Fo Yo Feet 2011 (Fantastic Poppers)
I anticipated staying only a few hours. Instead I stayed the entire day. Thanks to Funk Fo Yo Feet, produced by siblings Lloyd Jackson and Boogaloo Storm since 2002, with their company Fantastic Poppers, this annual event is now in its 9th season. Not only do the Jackson brothers bring this often not celebrated dance to the Toronto scene, but they also have been offering aspiring pop and lockers studio space to freestyle or take workshops from master Poppers and Lockers.
As I make my way through the brightly lit, large space of Trinity St. Paul Church Centre, the day begins informally, with dancers warming up solo or free-styling in circles for the day’s competition in which various lock and pop dancers will battle one another. They stretch, move, socialize, high-five, and cheer each other on. Pop and Lock dance , styles which came out of the West Coast movement, though both considered funk, are technically two very different styles of dance – however, equally engaging and fascinating to watch! Read the rest of this entry »
Review: Gavin’s Menage (Cirque du Sogay)
Performing to a full house at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre in Toronto, Gavin Crawford left the crowd cheering by the final act. With his hysterical original one-man show, Gavin’s Ménage blends various characters together ranging from celebrities to politicians to a Pride “virgin.”
This fast-paced satirical comedy is written with wit and keen observation, and executed with charm, detail and energy. Read the rest of this entry »
Review: Celebrating Greta-Mozartiana, & Other Dances & In the Upper Room (The National Ballet of Canada)
Gracious and graceful Greta gives gratifying performance at the National Ballet in Toronto
As a child, seeing a live ballet performance presented by The National Ballet of Canada seemed like a distant dream. I remember seeing clips of prima ballerina’s dancing on the Bravo channel and marvelling at their extraordinary grace, strength and stamina. At times, I would comically try to mimic their pirouettes and jetes, to no avail of course.
It was then that I vowed that once I hit adulthood, I would see as many live performances as possible; and it is now a great honour that I have the privilege to celebrate this spectacular show.
Honouring Greta Hodgkinson’s 20 years as a distinguished principal dancer for the National Ballet of Canada, Celebrating Greta- Mozartiana, & Other Dances and In the Upper Room offers three distinct programs, combining contemporary and classical ballet with brilliance and virtuosity. Read the rest of this entry »
Review: Chocolate Woman Dreams the Milky Way (Chocolate Woman Collective)
By Adelina Fabiano
A chocolate tapestry from the past falls on a Toronto Stage
In Chocolate Woman Dreams the Milky Way, produced by Chocolate Woman Collective, first formed in 2007 by a group of senior Aboriginal artists and scholars to research and create this show, principal actor and playwright Monique Mojica deeply explores her ancestral roots in Panama’s Kuna culture.
Collaborating with a diverse group of people from around the globe, such as visual artists (Oswaldo DeLeón Kantule, Erika Iserhoff), anthropologist (Brenda Farnell) and composer (Marden Paniza), Mojica integrates information and research from archives and seeks the expertise of Indigenous scholars. She reclaims and re-creates the struggle and beauty of the Indigenous culture through a dynamic and dramatic display of physical theatre.
Review: Fronteras Americanas (Soulpepper Theatre)
By Adelina Fabiano
Governor General Winner still reaches Toronto audiences
I realize I can’t speak for everyone, but I do have to say that playwright/actor Guillermo Verdecchia’s autobiographical play, Fronteras Americanas (American Borders), currently playing at Soulpepper Theatre, is something I can relate to. Some may feel that it is out-dated, however, the substance is there. It’s a story about feeling torn between two places, feeling nor here, nor there, a feeling I can still relate to even in my early thirties as a Canadian-born, first generation Italian-Canadian. Read the rest of this entry »
Review: The Atomic Weight of Happiness (Stand Up Dance)
By Adelina Fabiano
Whimsical and wonderful performance piece wins over a Toronto audience
Meagan O’Shea has been sharing and baring her soul with Toronto audiences for quite some time now. This charming, uniquely creative, intelligent solo performer once again engages us in her recent theatre/dance show called The Atomic Weight of Happiness.
Presented by O’Shea’s own company Stand Up Dance at the intimate studio space of Hub 14, The Atomic Weight of Happiness is an hour long narrative in which O’Shea challenges notions on global warming, emotional intelligence and her own inner and outer anatomy.
Melding audience interaction, modern dance, theatre, clever text and cinematic-like art direction, The Atomic Weight of Happiness, offers a memorable and original piece of dance theatre that is definitely worth exploring. Read the rest of this entry »
Review: 20/20 Vision (Kaeja d’Dance)
By Adelina Fabiano
Media and Movement Mesmerizes on the Toronto Stage in 20/20 Vision, presented by Kaeja d’Dance
Their limber bodies moved sporadically across the floor like a child spontaneously splashing paint against a wall; up, down, twisting, spiralling, circling, connecting, and evolving into a masterful display of expression.
Spearheaded by the talented and innovative husband and wife duo Allen and Karen Kaeja, 20/20 Vision, presented by Kaeja d’Dance, is an original, powerful and artful masterpiece. Celebrating their 20th anniversary as an established and successful dance company specializing in contact improvisation, they bring to their audience a freedom of expression where boundaries cease to exist.
Presented at the Enwave Theatre at the Harbourfront Centre as part of the NextStep dance series, 20/20 Vision is comprised of four distinct dance numbers. With its own emotional intensity, unique choreography, striking sound and lighting combinations, and multi-media effects, each scene ignites our imaginations, compelling our bodies to move with them, despite our inhibitions. Read the rest of this entry »
Review: Head à Tête (Theatre Direct)
By Adelina Fabiano 
Toronto children’s play Head à Tête delivers universal message
I count myself very lucky as in my profession (a school teacher) I get to see many theatre productions geared towards children. Whether I take my students to the show, or the production comes to us with touring groups, each show usually promises to offer some sort of educational or life lesson.
Head à Tête, is produced by Theatre Direct in the beautifully designed venue of Wychwood Barns. Written by pioneer children’s playwright David S. Craig and Robert Morgan, it is a heart-warming play and commentary about man’s tendencies towards conflict and greed versus our innate desire for compassion, hope, and friendship.
Although complex in theme and concept, Head à Tête manages to convey, in a simple and child-like way, the overwhelming problems and injustices confronting our world today. With powerful physical performances, and visually creative and engaging design, this play is truly a unique children’s play in both performance and creation. Read the rest of this entry »