January had a lot of theatre in it... At least the last two weeks...

I saw 9 shows in January... I was supposed to see 10 but when winter hit on the 26th I couldn't face driving and missed one (😞)... But 7 of those shows were in the last two weeks! I'd say it's a real challenge to produce theatre in the second half of January in Edmonton - so much competition!

Anyhow, I saw some good stuff, some silly stuff, some ok things... A lot of hard-working thoughtful artists.

I started the month with the Mayfield's Back to the 80's. We had really enjoyed the first 80's show they did a few years ago and while the music in this one was still very well done (and my favourite era) I didn't think this show had as strong a script. An enjoyable evening, but not much more than that.

However, I followed that up with The Humans at the Citadel. I was able to see it twice and was glad I could because it was so layered. I loved the naturalistic acting, the excellent writing, the connections between the actors, and the beautiful choreography of action in the multiple locations. I think it was probably some of the finest acting and direction I've seen so far this season. It's hard to not want to play up the moments and keep them oh-so-real, but that's where the power of this play is - it has to stay human.

Then onto some Shakespeare with Malachite Theatre's Twelfth Night. Shakespeare is always a bit of challenge for me because I am very familiar with most of the plays and this one more so because I have actually played Olivia before (It's funny, because even though that was 25+ years ago, I still remember the feeling of saying those words). I really liked how they created the world on the play inside the church - it felt very homey with the trees amidst the pews. My favourite scenes were with the Duke (Byron Trevor Martin) and Viola (Merran Carr-Wiggin) and the hockey stick duel between Viola and Andrew Aguecheek (Perry Gratton). I did want the show to move along a bit faster, and with a familiar piece like this, I am always in favour of a little judicious trimming of the script... I know, I know... not everyone agrees.

Then the marathon began:

- Onegin at Catalyst Theatre - a joyous musical feast which made the tragic Pushkin story celebratory and which invited the audience to really share in the experience! Definitely a highlight of this year's theatre season!
- Kill Your Television's Shakespeare's R & J at Theatre Network - Four incredibly gifted young actors told the story of Romeo and Juliet. There are only four of them (and a beautiful red curtain) and they're all men. This was excellently and creatively done. I did wonder if it said more in 1996 than it does today... but maybe that's a good thing because it says something about where we are now?
- Shadow Theatre's Slumberland Motel - My husband said, "I wanted to see more of Julian Arnold onstage, but this wasn't exactly what I had in mind." Not a criticism of the acting, but more a comment on Julian Arnold's lack of clothes for much of the show. A tale of two vacuum salesman and a mysterious woman in a crummy motel room. A but funny and a bit sad. I did think that the play didn't really start until the last 10 minutes of Act One, but once it got going it was charming.
- Cardiac Theatre's Listening Room - A post-apocalyptic world full of young people trying to figure out their purpose and challenge the rules of their world. I had serious flashes of The Maze Runner and Divergent and all those good dystopian young adult fiction works after seeing this and lots of questions about "what happened to the world?"

- Send in the Girls' Soiled Doves: A Burlesque with Boots On - Burlesque combined with stories of women from the old west. Favourite moments included a real stolen horse round-up and the ever-so-sassy Morgan Yamada pretty much anytime she was on-stage. It's always interesting to see how this group merges theatre and burlesque.

And then tonight I saw Love & Information - review here.

Next: the very busy February! 

Marathon - Three Days/Three Plays!

May is a great month for theatre in Edmonton!  The only challenge is getting to everything.  There's simply so much on the docket!

Thursday I started my theatre binge with Kill Your Television's production of The Crackwalker by Judith Thompson.  There are some shows I go to to just have fun and there are some shows I go to for a challenge. This was definitely one of those that challenged me.  The Crackwalker is a dark gritty piece about people on the fringes of society - the outcasts, the working poor, the uneducated, the addicted, the discarded.  It's a harsh look at a world that few of us even come close to seeing.  I'd read the play several years ago and even on the page it's a challenge. It's one of those pieces that is like watching a train wreck... you know that things are bad and going to get worse and all you can do is sit and watch and see it unfold before you.  The inevitability of it is frightening. This is a script, however, that answers no questions and provides no comfort.  That is hard to take and as I sought a message to take away I found I couldn't find one that made me particularly happy. 

On Friday night, I forgot I was old, and went to the Booty Call (11:30 p.m.) presentation of Contractions presented by Northern Light Theatre. It was a very interesting piece about corporate culture delivered with a fascinating contrast by Linda Grass and Nimet Kanji. Grass is delightfully robotic and Nimet as puzzled and disturbed as we are by the situation. The chemistry between the two women was excellent.  It felt very relevant as our culture is very focused on success in work and the idea of balance of personal life with work life.  At what length will you go to succeed professionally and what how much does your work value you as a person?  Very fascinating. I did wish that I had chosen to go to an earlier performance as I learned that staying up late is no longer something I do particularly well.  I wish I could, but truth be told, I had to stop seeing late shows at the Fringe a few years ago because I discovered I just couldn't do it.

Saturday I had a much more cheery outing with the Mayfield Dinner Theatre's presentation of Hairspray.  It was so much fun!  We saw Hairspray a few years ago when it toured through, and although I enjoyed it at the time, I preferred this one.  This production, directed by Tracey Flye, was engaging and fast-paced and had an intimacy that was really fresh.  The whole show is well sung with snappy dances and a sense of fun that bubbles up.  There were several outstanding performances that I want to mention: Stephanie Pitsiladis as Tracy Turnblad anchors the piece with powerhouse vocals and acting chops to match.  Though tiny, she is never small onstage.  Melanie Piatocha as Tracy's best friend Penny is also a delight.  She is terrifically funny and having seen her before in ingenue roles I was blown away by her comedic skills. Her romantic counterpart Seaweed, played by J. Cameron Barnett, is also a treat.  His voice is chocolaty smooth and his approach to Seaweed is sharp and fresh.  He owns it and the already high energy show jumps up whenever he's onstage. And I must give props to Aurianna Angelique as Motormouth Maybelle.  Her performance of I Know Where I've Been (along with the ensemble) literally brought tears to my eyes.  All in all the show was terrific.   It's a sure-fire fun night with a show that has some pretty important messaging about acceptance, but which never lectures!

The first two shows are now closed so you unfortunately can't catch them, however, Hairspray runs until June 15th so you can still make that one.

* I forgot to mention that I was lucky enough to attend all three with the lovely Catherine.  Truly a great theatre companion.  Mark also joined us for Hairspray and we had the pleasure of Trevor's company for The Crackwalker.  It is so wonderful to be able to share these theatre experiences with great people!