I spent some time in Donegal thanks to the Toronto Irish Players’ production of Frank McGuinness’s play Factory Girls at the Alumnae Theatre. It’s the first play by Frank McGuinness that I’ve seen and also the first production by the Toronto Irish Players. Both are now on my see again list.
Factory Girls follows 5 women working in the inspection department of a shirt factory in Donegal in the ‘70s. The factory is old, the economy is crap, the manager is new, the union rep is old which means there’s lots of built-in tension and conflict.
People have been blown away by this show, raving about it. When I was leaving the theatre I could hear people all around me saying how amazing they thought it was. I felt like maybe I was missing something. I thought the show was interesting, and there were some very cool things about it, but amazing is not the word that leapt to mind.
Benny and guest are the lucky winners of a pair of tickets to see tomorrow night’s production of Hush!
Hush will be playing at the Tarragon Theatre, Tuesday through Sunday until March 21st. Tickets are $19- $32 and can be purchased online at The Tarragon Theatre Box Office. For your chance to win a pair of free tickets check back Monday for Toronto theatre contest details. In the meantime, if you would like to get more information about Hush and how to get tickets to the show, please visit The Tarragon Theatre.
Workshops are great; I think of them as theatre that you get to participate in. In this one, participants (myself included) performed by working with scripts in a professional studio.
The minute you walk into the building you’re in this show. The theatre has been transformed into a synagogue (including announcements of community achievements and weddings on the hallway bulletin board) and the show is a Charedi (Ultra Orthodox) wedding. The audience are guests at the wedding (okay, paying guests, but guests nonetheless).
Congrats to Benny Min!