Randolph Academy’s latest production, The Addams Family – The Musical, opened to a pretty packed house earlier this week, bringing the hijinks and horrors of everyone’s favourite morbid family to the Annex Theatre stage in Toronto. Randolph’s latest graduating class brings great energy in their portrayal of Gomez, Morticia, Wednesday, Pugsley, Fester, Lurch and the rest of the gang.
Continue reading Review: The Addams Family – The Musical (Randolph Academy)
Coming off the success of their previous production, Bonnie and Clyde, Echo Productions is back with Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, bringing their intense physical style to one of the classics of western literature.
Continue reading Review: Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (Echo Productions)
Just in time for the holiday seasons, Mirvish Productions, in true Mirvish fashion, have pulled out all the stops for their family-friendly musical production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella. This version of the classic rags-to-riches story comes with a few unique twists and a rather interesting socio-political commentary that tends to get overlooked when you’re mostly familiar with the Disney version.
Cinderella is sparkly, whimsical, and at times almost cloyingly saccharine; it’s everything you can expect and want from a big-stage production of this caliber. If there’s a little princess in your life, she’s sure to be enchanted by this.
Continue reading Review: Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Mirvish)
Written in the aftermath of the early-90s Irish film boom, Stones in His Pockets (now on stage at the Alumnae Theatre) is a big script in a little package, balancing broad parody of Irish stereotypes with a deeper tale about the colonial mentality, intergenerational poverty, and the Irish identity.
A film has come to town, and the locals are cast as extras, with two actors (Stephen Farrell & Mark Whelan) playing about 15-16 roles. After a local disaster brings all sorts of tensions to the surface, the people of the village begin to examine just what they’re selling to earn their 50 pounds a day.
Continue reading Review: Stones in His Pockets (Irish Stage Company)
The Second City Theatre is packed to brim with people. I wonder how they could squeeze in so many people, as more attendees slip around me. The theatre is roaring with the sound of people laughing, talking and ordering drinks. It’s organized chaos, if I’ve ever seen it. The noise dies down with the lights, and the stage is lit in frosty blue. The Second City troupe files on stage and starts to sing a catchy tune.
This song is more relatable than cheery. It’s about how winter is terrible and you’d be better off at home, which in retrospect is a bit of a mixed message. The singers warn you of the horrible seasonal dangers like blizzards, Seasonal Affective Disorder, and something known as the “Winter Man”. The beat is still stuck in my head, even if the words are a little too dramatic to repeat aloud.
Continue reading Review: Unwrapped (The Second City Toronto)