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.
Something From Nothing is delightful kid friendly theatre that played during Toronto’s Ashkenaz Festival
Phoebe Gilliman’s children’s classic Something From Nothing, is – in the best possible way – a short and sweet story about a child’s relationship with his grandfather. The fine folks at Cascade Theatre have expanded it into a longer story with music, dance, and quite a bit of Yiddish as well (and mice. Lots of mice). It’s charming and full of fun.
There is a fashion recently, in solo performance, for shows that I can only describe as “I have an offbeat relative” – a pregnant brother, a gay father, and in Bitter Medicine, a schizophrenic brother. SummerWorks has often done well with these shows, but this one, based on a graphic memoir, fell entirely flat for me. Neither storytelling nor proper acting, by the end I wasn’t sure why I was listening to this relatively factual recitation of a man’s experience with (as it turns out) two schizophrenic brothers.
Having watched arguments rage about whether Chelsea Manning did right or wrong in releasing classified army information, and further arguments about whether she’s entitled to her own gender and name, I came to Unknown Soldier at SummerWorks curious. I wasn’t sure what Jonathan Seinen, better known as an actor, would choose to pull out of the tonnage of media coverage and rumor and grainy photography, but I was so pleasantly surprised by his work in this. Unknown Soldier is outstanding. Continue reading Unknown Soldier (lemonTree Creations) 2014 SummerWorks Review→
Plays can be about nearly anything and, like pizza toppings, sometimes the most unexpected combinations turn out to be the most satisfactory. ROW, playing this year at SummerWorks, is about residential schools, kept boys, dominance and submission, pride, and history – and it is a stunner.
Roller Derby Saved My Soul gives it all away in the title, a bit – it’s a story of a girl who discovers roller derby and finds herself. Ho hum. Be warned, though – don’t underestimate this Toronto Fringe Festival show. As I left Tarragon Extraspace late tonight, I left anything but ho hum – I found it thoroughly delightful.
