Mirvish opens the first Canadian production of the hit musical Dear Evan Hansen in Toronto

Last night, Mirvish opened the first international production of Dear Evan Hansen, the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical with music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (the writing duo behind the songs in the films La La Land and The Greatest Showman) and book by playwright Steven Levenson. The show became a runaway hit and this new production, featuring a Canadian cast, is now playing at Toronto’s Royal Alexandra Theatre. Continue reading Review: Dear Evan Hansen (Mirvish) →

Toronto-based choreographer Riley Sims and singer Blunt Chunks collaborate on a new dance show

Amorous Playlist is a multi-disciplinary performance by Social Growl Dance and Blunt Chunks currently being presented by Citadel + Compagnie.  The show is a collaboration between two emerging Toronto based artists – artistic director and choreographer Riley Sims and solo singer, Blunt Chunks which explores themes of love, lust, and heartbreak. It’s an informal concert-like experience, which, for me, felt a little too casual and lacking coherence. Continue reading Review: Amorous Playlist (Social Growl Dance/Citadel + Compagnie) →

A story from the dark side of Canada’s past told in a new ensemble-driven historical drama, onstage at Toronto’s Factory Theatre

At a time when our media is flooded with news reports on atrocities, political scandals, and war from our nation’s allies, it is easy to forget that Canada has a grim history of its own. The Woods are Dark and Deep is a reminder of what we must atone for, and how the actions of past generations linger today,

Set during World War I, this new play is based on the seldom-acknowledged internment camps that ran during wartime.  Deemed enemies of the state, immigrants from countries Canada was at war against were treated as suspect and interned in labor camps.

Continue reading Review: The Woods are Dark and Deep (Pulse Theatre) →

A play on stage in Toronto examines the struggle for women’s education in the 19th century

With Blue Stockings, Stage Centre Productions has brought to stage a compelling, albeit straightforward, examination on the struggle for women’s education in the 19th century.

I’ll admit that I was unaware of how recently post secondary degrees became available to women in western history. We’re all pretty well informed of the Suffragette movement but the Bluestocking movement (which has its origins all the way back to the 18th century) was something I was unaware of until I saw Stage Centre’s latest production. Continue reading Review: Blue Stockings (Stage Centre Productions) →

The Little Prince gets a contemporary update in a new family play now on stage in Toronto

A few minutes into the The Little Prince: Reimagined all you can hear is the rustle of paper being folded. Almost everyone in the audience is making a paper airplane. Most people are carefully following Richard Lam’s tutorial from the stage; some are winging it, following some half-remembered instructions from childhood. Kids in the audience seem to be following their adult’s lead.

When the rustling dies down and the chatter picks up Lam invites us to throw the planes at him. It’s a delightful start to a charming play. Continue reading Review: The Little Prince: Reimagined (Puzzle Piece) →