Finster Finds

Last night I took my youngest son to see the Broadway Across Canada Production of Mary Poppins .  It was quite delightful.  The stage show is very different from the movie (at least what I remember of it), but it captures the essence of it and this production definitely went for creating the magical.  One of the most joyful things for me about it was being there with Gibson and seeing it through his eyes. From the moment the set started moving he was whispering " How'd they do that?" and " It's like magic!". He looked for the strings in the flying parts and told me when he saw they but seemed more delighted with that than when he couldn't see them and underscored it with " It's still cool, Mom!". Watching him ( and feeling him - that chair was bouncing! ) dance in his seat during Step In Time was pure fun! I loved it when he recognized that it was 'lucky' when Mr. banks shook Bert's hand ( a big O-shaped mouth and a grab at...

This past weekend my mother turned 70 years old.  It is hard to believe it when you look at her, but she is.  She does not seem like a typical 70 year old, at least not what we stereotypically think of when we think of someone that age.  She is active in the community, in our family and in the country overall (she's into politics, to put it lightly).  I hope I inherit those qualities that have kept her so young! To celebrate this occasion, my siblings and I put on a little party for her.  All the immediate family was there and many of her friends came out to celebrate with us.  We had food aplenty and drinks and photos to share and crafts for the kids.  My mother was delighted and had a wonderful time visiting with her friends and family.  It was a lovely way to spend the day and I was very pleased to see her so happy! I know many people will say that they have The Best Mom in the world - but I know that I do. I try to emulate her whe...

I bought my Festival Pass for Freewill Players over a month ago, however I was unable to use it until this week.  On Wednesday I bundled up and watched Julius Caesar and last night I took in The Tempest .  I don't always make it to both shows of the Festival, but I had never seen (or read) either of the shows this year so I really wanted to.  The focus this year seemed to be on spectacle and that choice served both pieces well.  I loved discovering the plays onstage and live and this was a true test for myself and for the productions.  I enjoyed both, but was a bit distanced from each for different reasons. Julius Caesar  was wrapped up in it's struggle with ambition vs. ideals and the world of politics. It felt like more of an idea play than an action play (even though there is action).  This is not a criticism, merely an observation.  It was and is interesting to think about whether you can do something wrong for the right reasons....

Monday evening I was delighted to attend the launch for Skirts Afire - HerArts Festival at The Carrot on 118th Avenue.  The brainchild of local actor and playwright Annette Loiselle and a group of equally accomplished women in the Edmonton Arts scene, Skirts Afire, is an upcoming theatre/arts festival that focuses on stories told by and for (but not limited to) women. Certainly looking around the room on Monday night I could see why this was a focus topic.  It was a great collection of female artists and art supporters in the space, come to find out what this was all about. it was a great event and we were treated to a visual art display, some poetry, a short reading from The Passion of Mary, as well as the musical talents of Andrea House. The inaugural festival is set for March 7-10, 2013 and will be held in various locations on the Ave.  They group hopes to incorporate a variety of art mediums, including theatre, visual art, dance, and music. Still in the planning s...

Nine closed last night to another Sold Out house.  I watched it for the 5th time during the 10 show run (7 times including Previews) more than any other show I have directed outside the ones I also wrote.  I think I could have watched it even more if I had had the time to do so. One of the things which made that possible was the absolute commitment to being present from the entire cast. Last night I held my breath with the rest of the audience and laughed as though I were seeing things for the first time.  It was a wonderful show. We followed the run with a final performance of A Call From the Vatican which Cory requested because he had never seen it (his preference - he wanted to rely on his imagination through the number during the run). It was great fun to sit next to Cory as he reacted to Erika's brilliant interpretation of the number.  I think what she did was even more than he imagined! It was a wonderful way to see the number through new eyes! Then we str...

There are only 3 more shows of Nine left.  I love the show, but I am the Director, don't take my word for it.  Take instead the word of the people who have come to see it - we have been overwhelmed with positive feedback from our audiences - and the three reviews we have received.  Two are posted in the previous post and I will get Vue Weekly's up as soon as it is online.  Vue's Review is absolutely glowing - I scoured for negative comments - there are none - it's all kudos.  People (strangers to me) have sent me messages saying they loved it so much they are coming back to see it twice! So blessed to receive this positive feedback. Anyhow, so if you are my friend, or if you just like good musicals, please buy your tickets in advance.  We have sold out 3 of the 7 shows so far and have had good sized houses for the other 4.  Apparently Tix on the Square says the tickets have been selling fast this week.  Do not miss the best show on in ...

We are halfway through the run of Nine and it has been a blessed experience.  This gang is such a good group to work with, not just the cast, but the crew and the Production Team - everyone is lovely.  There are a few who verge on crazy, but it's a good spirited crazy and it makes for more fun.  I am enjoying the kudos.  I have gotten quite a few emails and messages from people about how much they like the show.  Some of them complete strangers! It is gratifying to know that you are putting something out there that people respond to.  I don't want to have people leave thinking they didn't get what they deserved as an audience member. The reviews we have received have been extremely ego flattering - there's one in the St. Albert Gazette and one on Sound and Noise online.  I expect we will have one in Vue Weekly sometime this week and the Journal had both a photog. at media call and media comps on Opening Night so I'm waiting to see if anything sh...

Dramaworks is upon us!  Hooray!  I am taking the One Weekend, One Play course with Vern Thiessen.  I had to wrangle some creative childcare to make it happen, but happening it is.  We started last night and continued today and we still have two more days to work on our plays.  The first evening was a refresher, but a welcome one.  Too often we only think of the abstract artistic part of writing - the ideas and themes and poetry of it all - and we forget the crafting and the nuts and bolts of it.  Thursday evening we reviewed and learned some techniques for that aspect.  This was very good for me.  I often have 'things I want to write about' but I have a hard time figuring out the best structure to tell the story, so a mechanics lesson was well received! Today we applied those techniques to the plays we had percolating in our brains.  We had to pitch three of them and then choose one to go with.  I finally started working on Pit...

Tonight Nine opened.  It was a fabulous night. I was so pleased with the show and the reception the fabulous audience gave it.  We were Sold Out (at least on paper - there were a couple of empty seats in the house so I guess we had a few no-shows).  I laughed and I cried and it was lovely.  The audience treated us to a standing ovation which is always so gratifying and a wonderful surprise. After the show was the traditional Opening Night Reception and it was great fun talking to my Walterdale friends and the cast and crew.  I realized that I know so many lovely, lovely people and I feel blessed. I will not be back to the theatre until Friday night for archive photos so it will feel weird tomorrow night to know they are all onstage and I am not even in the building.  They know their stuff and they do it all wonderfully, but I will miss not being there.  I came home to kudos on FB from friends and strangers.  A perfect evening. * Nine marks...