Lion in the Streets, the surreal story of a murdered 9-year-old and the community where she lost her life, opened last weekend at the Glad Day Bookshop. Put on by the seven-member collective Theatre By Committee, the show has moments of extremely compelling drama but due to the bizarre nature of the script these often give way to moments of confusion for the audience.
This week we have a little bit of everything: comedy, drama, classic, contemporary. From hapless understudies to tarot readings to the devil himself, there’s a truly eclectic mix of wallet-friendly shows to cut your teeth on this week. Check ’em out under the cut: Continue reading Cheap Theatre in Toronto the Week of November 23rd
Armstrong’s War avoids the typical clichés, now playing on the Toronto stageWhen I first heard the premise of Armstrong’s War (Canadian Rep Theatre) — a 12 year old, paraplegic Pathfinder scout attempts to earn a badge by reading to a 21-year-old Afghanistan War veteran in a rehab hospital — I feared it would be Lifetime Original Movie-style saccharine, ending with hugs and tears and life lessons learned.
I shouldn’t have worried. The play comes with some serious pedigree (playwright Colleen Murphy is a Governor General’s award winner, and it’s directed by Ken Gass), and though it does feature some tears and maybe even a lesson, it’s more unflinching than saccharine, and leaves us with questions rather than comforts.
Continue reading Review: Armstrong’s War (Canadian Rep Theatre)
There are tons of new shows this week, from fallen angels to fleeing lovers, feminist conquerors and fuzzy puppets. We’ve selected a few that we’re particularly excited about this week in red text. Here are the weekly picks:
Sex Tape Project, a series of three plays in Toronto, explores intimacy and voyeurismVoyeurism: I dig it. My favourite Hitchcock film is Rear Window. It’s no stretch to imagine myself getting in trouble for seeing something I shouldn’t have through a pair of binoculars. fu-GEN Theatre’s Sex Tape Project appeals to that part of me that yearns to see private lives unfold behind distant windows. Continue reading Review: Sex Tape Project (fu-GEN Theatre)