First-Metis-Man-of-Odesa-review
Liliia Smichenko
Liliia is a writer from Ukraine based in Toronto where she graduated from Humber College's journalism program. With a focus on arts and entertainment, she finished her internship at Florence University of the Arts in Italy. Her work has been published in places like smART Magazine, Humber Literary Review, and Blending Magazine. She is passionate about creative writing, books, and theatre, and loves when all those things come together.
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iPhoto caption: The cast of 'Playground' at the 2025 Toronto Fringe Festival. Photo by Colleen Yates.
2025 Toronto Fringe Festival wraps with record revenue for artists
“Artists are taking home more than half-a-million dollars, and many have sold out their first shows as professional creators,” wrote Toronto Fringe executive director Rachel Kennedy in a press release. “We are proud of our staff, volunteers, and artists for this accomplishment.”
iPhoto caption: Sébastien Heins, Georgia Findlay, Isaiah Kolundzic, and Kiana Woo in The 39 Steps. Photo by Raph Nogal.
Kiana Woo clowns around in full-circle moment with Guild Festival Theatre
For Woo, coming back to the Guild for the first time in four years — after working at Shaw, Soulpepper, the Citadel Theatre, and Théâtre Français de Toronto — feels like a homecoming.
iPhoto caption: "My Narrator" photo courtesy of the Lighthouse Festival.
Lighthouse Festival unearths rarely performed Norm Foster one-acts
“There’s not much time for character development, like there would be in a long play,” says Norm Foster of one-acts. “You have to… make it satisfying, and to have it come around to a plausible ending. It can’t just be a skit… So, it’s actually a little tougher to write.”
iPhoto caption: Marie Farsi for Intermission Magazine. Photo by Dahlia Katz.
“I’ve learned how truth is revealed in translation, and I feel like that’s my job as a director,” says Farsi. “I have to translate the piece from the page to the stage, and all the meanings that can be derived from that process of translation.”
iPhoto caption: The company of 'The Comedy of Errors.' Photo by JVL Photography.
Let’s-a go: Embedded with the Fools’ Comedy of Errors
While I was preparing for the summer heat by shopping for lighter clothes, Kate Smith, artistic director of a Company of Fools, was getting ready for their next show. She called me while I was in the Rideau Centre and pitched an idea: “Would you have any interest in being an embedded critic?”
iPhoto caption: Banner provided by Theatre Aquarius.
Theatre Aquarius’ NCNM selects three new musicals for 2025-26 development
“The Danish Guest, The Blue Castle, and My Beef with Beef each bring such distinct worlds to life — from Victorian London to early-1900s Muskoka to a modern kitchen haunted by a ghost cow," wrote artistic director Mary Francis Moore in a press release.
REVIEW: First Métis Man of Odesa at Punctuate! Theatre/Theatre Centre
First Métis Man of Odesa captures how the fates of two people are entwined into global events larger than life, and how one cannot exist without the other.
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