All posts by S. Bear Bergman

S. Bear Bergman has great faith in the power of theatre to make change, and has been putting his money where his mouth is on that one for some time. A writer, performer, and lecturer, Bear works full time as an artist and cultural worker and loves to see as much live performance as possible – making this a fantastic gig for him.

Review (Kid+1): Odysseo (Cavalia)

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Cavalia’s “spectacular” equine fantasy show runs in Toronto until May 10th, 2015.

Cavalia’s Odysseo is all spectacle. It’s a giant expansive stage, and it needs to be—72 horses and 45 humans will perform on it over the course of the show. The humans include acrobats, aerialists on both silks and rings, a carousel that descends from the sky, and stunt riders.

In case that’s not enough for you, the landscape will change and ripple, go from spring to drought to icy winter, and show scenes from across the world. Near the end, rain actually floods the stage. For what it’s worth, the kid loved this show, and I have never, ever, seen him clap so enthusiastically.

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Feature: Rhubarb Festival (Buddies In Bad Times)

Rhubarb Festival at Toronto’s Buddies in Bad Times builds community through the arts

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The Department of Canadian Heritage has recently asserted – foolishly, I believe – that the Rhubarb Festival at Buddies in Bad Times does not build community through the arts. Balderdash, I say, and also fiddlesticks and hornswoggle and a lot of other ejaculations of incredulity that I started using only once I had a small child. Rhubarb Festival is, if nothing else, a tremendous feat of community engagement in experimental performance work and with the artistic process. It is a delightful example of what happens when you let a variety of artists across and between disciplines just… do their thing. Continue reading Feature: Rhubarb Festival (Buddies In Bad Times) →

Review: Small Axe (Project Humanity and The Theatre Centre)

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Andrew Kushnir’s Small Axe Rocks Our World

Playwright Moss Hart is reputed to have said “If you want to send a message, call Western Union.” His stance, and that echoed later by film directors of such note as Frank Capra, is that theatre might entertain or explore but that work with a message to impart is destined to be boring. With Small Axe, a coproduction of The Theatre Centre and Project Humanity, Andrew Kushnir has proven Hart decisively, irrevocably wrong. What’s more, he does so using a collection of theatrical elements that often spell disaster, but which apparently (to no one’s surprise more than mine) can in the right hands be combined to make a deeply affecting theatrical experience.

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Review: The Heart of Robin Hood (Mirvish)

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Broadway-bound The Heart of Robin Hood, a new musical play, delights Toronto

In the history of myth and legend, many, many things have been done to Robin Hood. Some of them have enriched and enlivened the old tale, and some…well, never mind. Good news, fans of the fairy tale: The Heart of Robin Hood at the Royal Alexandra Theatre is everything you had no idea you wished for in a retelling. It’s not a traditional Robin Hood, but it is a good old traditional romp of a story – and that’s grand too – mixed with acrobatics, aerial stunts, some extraordinary fight choreography, and a generally fresh and fantastical idiom. It’s almost too much fun.

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Review (Kid +1): Cinderella (Ross Petty)

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Cinderella Makes Kids Cheer, Adults Groan

Though it was my family’s first time to the panto, largely because we’re Jewish, it wasn’t difficult to get Kid (nearly 5) on the right page to appreciate the wackiness, hijinks, and audience participation that the classic Christmas pantomime demands. “Just think of it like a Purimspiel,” I told him.

“I can shout?” he asked.

Well, yes. Also, I explained: things will be ridiculous, and there will be crossdressing and assorted hijinks, and lots of funny jokes. Evil will attempt to take over but good will win out, as it should be, and whenever the villain comes on stage you can boo and hiss as loud as you can. You can even wear a silly costume if you like, I told him (though I put my foot down at another turn as Darth Papa. That cloak is too warm).

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