Nijinsky explores mental illness through dance at The National Ballet of Canada in Toronto

He was best known as one of the greatest male dancers of the early 20^th Century and in the latest production by The National Ballet of Canada (NBC), we can see why. His name was Vaslav Nijinsky, a risk-taker performer and choreographer who pushed the boundaries in his time becoming one of the world’s first successful male dancers. He pushed the creative envelope and became a trailblazer in his time. His life was incredibly fascinating and the depiction of his life in NBC’s Nijinsky, was just as intriguing and exciting to watch.

Continue reading Review: Nijinsky (The National Ballet of Canada) →

Three personal stories intertwine in Fishskin Trousers on stage at the Theatre Passe Muraille in Toronto

Fishskin Trousers is a play told in three stories by three different people in three different time periods. Walking into Theatre Passe Muraille’s backspace felt like we were docking on a waterfront as the sound of lapping waves and haunting cello notes set the mood. A carpet of fishskin is moored to the edge of the stage and three chairs sit in a diagonal line inviting the storytellers in to share their tales.

Enter Mab, Ben and Mog. Mab is a servant at Orford Castle in 1173. Ben is an Australian radar scientist on assignment at the Ness in 1973. Mog is a teacher who returns to her home on the Ness in 2003 to make a very important life decision. Continue reading Review: Fishskin Trousers (Cart/Horse Theatre) →

Rope, a twist on the standard whodunit murder mystery, is on stage at the Gibson House Museum in Toronto

Rope is a murder mystery which skips a few steps. We already know whodunnit: two overgrown schoolboys who’ve read a little too much Nietzsche and decided to attempt the perfect murder.

Having done the deed, they throw a small dinner party, with unwitting guests — including the victim’s father — nibbling on canapés served atop the makeshift casket. The sheer decadence thrills Brandon (Leete Stetson) to no end; his conspirator, James (Nicholas Arnold), has long since lost his nerve, and cannot cope with the consequence of his actions, nor the macabre party.

The mystery, then, isn’t “who did it”, but “will they get away with it”. Have Brandon and James committed the perfect murder, or are we watching it all slowly unravel?

Continue reading Review: Rope (Bygone Theatre) →

Human Furniture explores an average couple’s  hidden kink proclivities at Toronto’s Storefront Theatre

Human Furniture (Red One Collective/Triangle Pi Productions) examines the secret life that a seemingly “regular” suburban couple lives behind closed doors. It’s a life of kinky sexual preferences and activities. Throw a few uninvited guests into the mix and you have yourself a farce of epic proportions. Human Furniture is currently playing at the Storefront Theatre.

Written and directed by Claire Burns, Human Furniture takes a close look at the delicate balancing act of managing a conventional life, one with a nine to five job and a home in the suburbs with a sexually adventurous one full of BDSM. The play centres around a sex party that is to occur that evening and, as is the case with any classic farce, things don’t go according to plan. Continue reading Review: Human Furniture (Red One Theatre Collective/Triangle Pi Productions) →