Reviews of productions based in Toronto – theatre includes traditional definitions of theatre, as well as dance, opera, comedy, performance art, spoken word performances, and more. Productions may be in-person, or remote productions streamed online on the Internet.
Britta Johnson’s musical Life After brings a cast of incredible performers to the Toronto stage
Britta Johnson’s musical, Life After, co-produced by The Musical Stage Company, Yonge Street Theatricals and Canadian Stage, opened at the Berkeley Street Theatre on Thursday. It’s a strong production with powerful music and a really contemporary feel while at the same time giving a nod to traditional musicals.
My daughter Megan came with me. I love going to shows with her. I’m all about what I feel and think after a show. Meg knows why she feels and thinks it. Articulating the ‘why’ is my challenge. We both really enjoyed the show. The audience joined us in weeping, a lovely change for me, but it’s not all tears, there’s lots of laughter. Continue reading Review: Life After (Canadian Stage, The Musical Stage Company, and Yonge Street Theatricals)→
Toronto’s Factory Theatre opens its season with Anita Majumdar’s play The Fish Eyes Trilogy
Anita Majumdar is a force to be reckoned with in The Fish Eyes Trilogy, the one-person show she’s written, choreographed, and is performing at Factory Theatre. You’d need an oil tanker, not a fishing boat, to hold the amount of ferocity she brings to playing three teen girls (and a host of other minor characters) living in Port Moody. Told almost as much through dance as through voice, The Fish Eyes Trilogy probes into the tender places where racism and misogyny burrow into adolescent sexuality, with complex psychological repercussions.
Rebecca Northan unveils her new show Undercover at Toronto’s Tarragon Theatre
The opening night of Undercover at Tarragon Theatre was packed (as Rebecca Northan shows tend to be) and lively (ditto) with audience members keen to turn up and drink, mingle, and watch the proceedings as Northan – in what has become her signature play – scans the attendees for the evening’s perfect foil. In a new twist, Undercover adds a number of characters and a number of possible endings to the mix. It’s a bit of a mixed bag, as improv often is, and the result didn’t really, well, kill.
The Aliens, by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, arrives on the Toronto stage
On the surface, The Aliens (currently on stage at Coal Mine Theatre) doesn’t seem to have a lot going on. There’s not much of a plot, not a lot of action, and not a lot of dialogue. But like a skillful artist can do with just a few lines on paper, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker creates a rich emotional world with seemingly little. Continue reading Review: The Aliens (Coal Mine Theatre)→
d’bi young anitafrika takes Toronto by storm with her new show Lukumi: A Dub Opera
As an admirer of d’bi young anitafrika‘s solo work for some time, I was excited to arrive at Tarragon Extraspace for Lukumi: A Dub Opera and see a simmering, kinetic scene already underway, scored live by a small ensemble and featuring young (as Lukumi) engaged in a dance conversation with Daniel Ellis, who plays as a variety of characters. It set the tone for an extraordinary evening at the theatre.
Britta Johnson’s musical Life After brings a cast of incredible performers to the Toronto stage
Toronto’s Factory Theatre opens its season with Anita Majumdar’s play The Fish Eyes Trilogy
Rebecca Northan unveils her new show Undercover at Toronto’s Tarragon Theatre
The Aliens, by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, arrives on the Toronto stage
d’bi young anitafrika takes Toronto by storm with her new show Lukumi: A Dub Opera