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"What people need is work that speaks to what they’re going through and experiencing, and what people are trying to puzzle out," says Hogg. "Why do I feel this way? Who am I? What am I doing with my life? These are the same questions we’ve been asking since the Greeks and the ancient Africans. Those questions are huge — and music can help answer them.”
iPhoto caption: Crow's associate artistic director Paolo Santalucia and artistic director Chris Abraham.
For the leadership at Crow’s Theatre, investing in local talent is crucial
“We want a sustainable future, where Toronto is a theatre city, a destination,” says artistic director Chris Abraham. “There is tremendous potential for that. But in order to be a big international theatre city, we have to take big swings.”
"What people need is work that speaks to what they’re going through and experiencing, and what people are trying to puzzle out," says Hogg. "Why do I feel this way? Who am I? What am I doing with my life? These are the same questions we’ve been asking since the Greeks and the ancient Africans. Those questions are huge — and music can help answer them.”
iPhoto caption: Crow's associate artistic director Paolo Santalucia and artistic director Chris Abraham.
For the leadership at Crow’s Theatre, investing in local talent is crucial
“We want a sustainable future, where Toronto is a theatre city, a destination,” says artistic director Chris Abraham. “There is tremendous potential for that. But in order to be a big international theatre city, we have to take big swings.”
Speaking in Draft: Rachel Forbes
Rachel Forbes’ wide-ranging career has set this artist in a league of her own. The award-winning set and costume designer’s work has appeared across the country in productions by the Shaw Festival, Buddies in Bad Times, Obsidian Theatre, Neptune Theatre, Centaur Theatre, and more.
iPhoto caption: Photo courtesy of Cirque du Soleil.
REVIEW: Cirque du Soleil is back in town, an echo of circuses past
It should say something about the Cirque du Soleil brand that even a show like ECHO — unclear in concept and messy around the edges — is a great time for audience members of all ages.
Reviews
iPhoto caption: Photo courtesy of Cirque du Soleil.
REVIEW: Cirque du Soleil is back in town, an echo of circuses past
It should say something about the Cirque du Soleil brand that even a show like ECHO — unclear in concept and messy around the edges — is a great time for audience members of all ages.
iPhoto caption: Photo courtesy of Canadian Opera Company.
REVIEW: A new take on Don Pasquale re-imagines its lead as a cat-loving crank
If you love cats, you’ll like Barbe & Doucet’s production of Don Pasquale.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Dahlia Katz
REVIEW: Studio 180 Theatre’s Four Minutes Twelve Seconds stirs one moment and puzzles the next
As the script ties itself in narrative knots, Megan Follows never loses sight of the dramatic situation’s overwhelming nature; it’s as if her character is fending off a panic attack at every moment, grabbing onto any scrap of hope she can.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Dahlia Katz.
REVIEW: Beautiful Scars is a rousing, heartfelt new musical on the life of Tom Wilson
In Beautiful Scars, Hamilton’s hometown hero shares his life story, using the ever-magnetic Sheldon Elter as a mouthpiece.
iPhoto caption: Photo by Dahlia Katz.
Soulpepper and Outside the March effectively drown Uncle Walt’s highly manicured public image in acetone, leaving the audience with a grotesque portrait that feels at once comically exaggerated and painfully accurate.
iPhoto caption: Video still courtesy of the Grand Theatre.
REVIEW: In One Step At A Time, Andrew Prashad unpacks disability through tap dance
Prashad’s play is undeniably impactful and advocates for the spina bifida community with great passion and joy.
Spotlight
iPhoto caption: Philip Akin at home. Photo by Dahlia Katz.
“I don't know why it is being placed on Black people to change minds,” says Akin. “I ain't here to pick your intellectual cotton.”
iPhoto caption: "There are some actors for whom the delight of being funny just fills up every part of what they do, and Maev Beaty is one of those actors," says director Chris Abraham. Photo by Dahlia Katz.
“I’ve really realized that those minutes that I spend on stage are minutes of my life,” says Beaty. “We're not up there to present good, clean work — we’re up there to try and catch some truth for the listener that is shared in real time. You can't do that if you're just presenting your good homework; you have to live.”
“I don’t believe in this world. I don’t see how we can pull ourselves back from the brink. Human beings are greedy, and not mindful, and the only way I can think about making the world better is by getting rid of a lot of it.”
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Artist Perspectives
iPhoto caption: Rose Napoli appears as Margaret in her play Mad Madge. Photo by Dahlia Katz.
Rose Napoli reflects on Mad Madge, rom-coms, and the undeniable power of Patrick Swayze.
iPhoto caption: Image by Haley Sarfeld.
Every play is fantastic: A small-city theatre critic’s manifesto
My top priority as a critic will be to furnish every marketing team with as many easily quotable compliments as possible. I'll do this dutifully and without ambivalence.
In many ways, theatre artists and magicians have the same job. We push the bounds of a live experience to startle audiences into confronting their realities. We aim to tell stories that linger. For a magician, there’s no such thing as “it can’t be done.” It can always be done, one way or another.
iPhoto caption: Urjo Kareda was an Estonian-born Canadian theatre and music critic, dramaturg, and stage director. He died in 2001.
A sign outside Urjo Kareda's office read, "no whining." A framed letter inside said "Fuck you, Mr. Kareda."
The good and the bad (and everything in between)
If we’re not building a theatre that can hold the contradictions of our time, let alone the contradictions that make humans human, we probably shouldn’t be making theatre.
An open letter to lighting designers
At a time when theatres are struggling to get their pre-pandemic audiences back, it’s shocking that strobe lights are still featured in many productions. They might seem like a splashy yet innocuous design choice, but they are at best a barrier for potential audience members — and, at worst, they have painful consequences.