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.
A Million Billion Pieces captures the intensity of young love in a complex worldYoung People’s Theatre presents the world premiere of A Million Billion Pieces, written by David James Brock and directed by Philip Akin. The play explores the intensity of teenage love, with the added stakes of a rare, terminal disease.
Continue reading Review: A Million Billion Pieces (Young People’s Theatre)
Peter Pan is a “musical, high-energy, fast-paced romp” now playing in TorontoWe all need surprises and imagination. That’s what Bad Hats adaptation of Peter Pan playing at the Michael Young Theatre in the Young Centre for Performing Arts delivers for any cynic who may be watching. This heartwarming family show is definitely an imaginative, fun night for everyone.
Latest Ross Petty show tackles Robin Hood and education, now on stage in TorontoAfter laughing through Lil’ Red Robin Hood as a family, we had tons to talk about on the way home. It’s a show that’s fun to relive, whether it’s going back to the catchy songs or asking about jokes we didn’t all get. While last year’s Ross Petty show, The Wizard of Oz, played at the Elgin Theatre like the 20 odd shows before it, this year’s Lil’ Red Robin Hood has moved upstairs to the Winter Garden Theatre. The upper venue, with the leaves hanging from the ceiling, is conveniently compatible with the “Sherway Gardens Forest” of Robin Hood.
Continue reading Review (Kid +1): Lil’ Red Robin Hood (Ross Petty Productions)
Play tackles the precarity and uncertainty of life and love in GazaTales of a City by the Sea (Canadian Friends of Sabeel) is a play about how life can exist in the midst of death, and how ordinary human activity goes on in the midst of great destruction. It is also the story of two extremely ill- fated lovers, Rami and Joumana, set in the world’s largest open air prison, Gaza. Continue reading Review: Tales of a City by the Sea (Canadian Friends of Sabeel)
Unique adaptation of A Christmas Carol makes use of immersive environment at Campbell HouseMost people who have grown up in our yuletide-obsessed culture know the story of A Christmas Carol, but as a Jewish chorister weary of performing in nonstop Christmas concerts every December, I’ve largely steered clear of it. My interest was piqued, however, by The Three Ships Collective/Soup Can Theatre’s promise of an immersive version that explores Toronto’s lovely, period-appropriate Campbell House.
As it turns out, Justin Haigh’s adaptation of Dickens’ classic, which leans more heavily on its human relationships and less on its religious aspects, helps to prove why the piece and its moral message are so enduring. Christmas or not, who hasn’t dreamed that the rich and powerful might suddenly see their way toward upholding their share of the social contract?
Continue reading Review: A Christmas Carol (The Three Ships Collective/Soup Can Theatre)