Canadian Stage will continue to bring Toronto groundbreaking and imaginative contemporary theatre with its just announced 2011-12 season. Yesterday, General and Artistic Director Matthew Jocelyn explained that he hopes to continue to”define and realize a new position for Canadian Stage,” working with what he describes as “original, bold, and fearless” artists, bringing the audience on “enchanting, unexpected, and thrilling theatrical voyages.”
Having read Mira’s profile of Seriouly! Dramatically Improvised Stories in Mooney on Theatre I was looking forward to seeing the show. Like Mira I just associated improv with comedy and found the idea of of dramatic improv appealing.
When receiving accreditation to cover Rhubarb, I was told “Please note: because the work is experimental/new we ask that critics not review the work, but enter in a conversation about themes and forms etc.”
As much as that instruction seems difficult to put into practice, it didn’t surprise me. I’ve been to many Rhubarbs (I even performed in one once), so I’m well aware that this isn’t conventional theatre with conventional aspects to “review.” Most of these shows are more “performance art” than “theatre.”
Based on a collection of short stories, Tales of the South Pacific,written by James A. Michener immediately after World War II, South Pacific originally debuted on Broadway in 1949. The show is a staple of the American musical theatre canon and features recognizable songs like “Some Enchanted Evening” and “Bali Ha’i”.
Mirvish is presenting the Edinburgh Festival Theatre’s new production of the musical, The Secret Garden by Marsha Norman and Lucy Simon at Toronto’s Royal Alexandra Theatre through March 20, 2011.
The play is based on the novel, The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. First published in 1911, the novel has become an enduring classic in children’s literature.
The Secret Garden tells the story of a young British girl, Mary Lennox, who is orphaned after her parents die of a cholera epidemic in India and sent to live in the large, gloomy estate of her uncle Archibald Craven in Yorkshire.
