Wayne Leung (1981-2019)
Wayne was the Managing Editor of Mooney on Theatre from 2012 - 2019 and will be sorely missed. His death from an apparent heart attack was a loss not just to Mooney on Theatre, but also to the Toronto Theatre Community at large. You can read our publisher Megan Mooney's tribute to him here here.
Wayne was a writer, editor and corporate communications professional who was thrilled to be a part of the Mooney on Theatre team. Wayne loved theatre ever since his aunt brought him to a production of Les Misérables at the tender age of ten . . . despite the fact that, at that age, the show’s plot was practically indiscernible and the battle scenes scared the bejeezus out of him. Wayne’s current list of likes ran the gamut from opera, ballet and Shakespeare to Broadway musicals, circus and Fringe theatre. Outside of the theatre Wayne’s interests included travel, technology and food.
Dancap presents the premiere of the North American Broadway Tour of Green Day’s American Idiot at the Toronto Centre for the Arts through January 15, 2012.
I came of age in the ‘90s as part of that disaffected sandwich generation between Gen X and the Millennials. Green Day was definitely a part of the soundtrack of my youth. Their 1994 breakout album Dookie was a monster and I remember watching the music videos for their string of hit songs on MuchMusic (back then, they still aired music videos).
Cirque du Soleil presents Quidam in Toronto at Ricoh Coliseum through December 30, 2011.
Okay, I’m a certified Cirque du Soleil mega-fan, I’ve followed the company closely for over thirteen years and I’ve seen 23 different Cirque shows on three continents. Having seen that much Cirque, it’s not surprising that I’ve found many of their most recent efforts a little lacklustre and sometimes downright disappointing. I can unequivocally say that Quidam is my all-time favourite Cirque du Soleil show. Continue reading Review: Quidam (Cirque du Soleil)→
When Angelwalk Theatre, announced that it would open its third season with a revue of off-Broadway songs, I admit I chuckled a bit at their modest sensibility. Angelwalk is a relatively new Toronto theatre company that focuses on producing intimate, small- and mid-scale musical theatre productions. Continue reading Review: Off Broadway On Stage (Angelwalk Theatre)→
Dancap presents the Canadian premiere of the Tony Award-winning musical Memphis at the Toronto Centre for the Arts through December 24, 2011.
The pre-Civil Rights Era in the deep south of the United States seems so far removed from our reality today in cosmopolitan, ethnically diverse Toronto. Memphis in the ‘50s was deeply racially divided and that segregation extended beyond separate bathrooms and public seating areas.
Canadian Stage presents the Canadian premiere of the Tony Award-winning play Red at Toronto’s St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts through December 17, 2011.
What is art? If an artist accepts a commission from a big, soulless corporation does it de-legitimize his art? Is he a sell-out? What if he’s being subversive by taking the job to “stick it to the man”? If art becomes too popular does it inherently lose some of its artistic merit? Continue reading Review: Red (Canadian Stage)→
