Love is a Poverty You Can Sell (Soupcan Theatre) – 2010 Toronto Theatre Review

By Crystal Wood

I enjoyed Love is a Poverty You Can Sell until one of the actors got a concussion onstage.  Okay, I enjoyed it after he got a concussion too, but I felt guilty about it.

I guess that just goes to show how into the performance these guys get.  LIAPYCS is a cabaret-style show with a cast of 11 and a band of 10 (all squeezed into Bread & Circus’s small venue, if you can picture it.)  They recreate a nightclub act circa 1930’s Berlin, with musical numbers from shows like Cabaret, Threepenny Opera, and Sweeney Todd. The numbers are broken up by two emcees, one of whom received the head injury during an onstage fight.  (How are you doing, buddy?  You okay?)

The acts range from touching (“Lost in the Stars”) to dark (“What Keeps Mankind Alive”), along with some humour thrown in from the emcees.  The stand-out numbers for me were “Class” (a great song from Chicago) and “Streets of Berlin”, sung by a very elegant Madame Christian Jeffries.  I would have liked to add “A Little Priest” from Sweeney Todd to my list of favourites, but I think the small, bare stage hurt the overall effect as it’s a fairly complicated number.

I attended the performance on a Sunday afternoon, though most of the shows are at 10:15 pm.  I have a feeling this would have completed the experience, as it’s hard to get in the nightclub mood when the sun is beating 32 degrees down on your head.  Let me know if I’m right when you go see it at night.

Also, let me know if that guy’s head is okay!  Seriously, I’m a little worried.

Details:

– Venue 22, Bread and Circus, 299 Augusta Avenue

– Showtimes:

Mon, July 5 10:15 PM – 2222
Wed, July 7 10:15 PM – 2228
Thu, July 8 10:15 PM – 2232
Fri, July 9 10:15 PM – 2236
Sat, July 10 10:15 PM – 2240
Sun, July 11 2:30 PM – 2241

– All individual Fringe tickets are $10 ($5 for FringeKids) at the door (cash only). Tickets are available online at www.fringetoronto.com, by Phone at 416-966-1062, in person at The Randolph Centre for the Arts, 736 Bathurst Street (Advance tickets are $11 ($10+$1 convenience fee)

– Several money-saving passes are available if you plan to see at least 5 shows

Photo of Christian Jeffries

3 thoughts on “Love is a Poverty You Can Sell (Soupcan Theatre) – 2010 Toronto Theatre Review”

  1. Scott (the emcee who got the bump) is just fine!

    A bandaid and a little ice, and he was back to normal. Thank you for your concern though! I’ll be sure to tell Scott he had sympathy from the audience :)

  2. What’s a nightclub act without a little blood, eh?

    Aside from a bit of a tender bump, I am doing well, and am pumped for the remaining shows this week! Thank you very much for your concern Crystal. Gotta love live theatre…

Comments are closed.