Wrapping up my Theatre week! NLT, Grant MacEwan and Foote in the Door!

 I'm not kidding when I say the last week was jam-packed with theatre. I saw five shows (two of which I already wrote about) in 7 days! I combined that with my usual Trivia adventures, a visit from my sister, and chauffeuring my husband to and from his cataract surgery. A busy, busy week with a wide variety of theatre!

Brianne Jang BB Collective Photography

I mentioned a visit from my sister. We had a terrific time this week, mostly talking (but she did come to trivia with us and help secure our second place finish). On Thursday, the two of us went for dinner on Whyte at the newly opened Town 82 which was a lovely spot with great food and atmosphere. And we talked. Then we set off for Northern Light Theatre’s How Patty and Joanne Won High Gold at the Grand Christmas Cup Winter Dance Competition. This show was simply delightful. About two women who are a little lonely who are participating in a Beginner Adult Tap Class for different reasons. After the instructor leaves her position, the rest of the class also departs leaving only Patty and Joanne. Patty (Jenny McKillop) is a tired mother of 5, seeking something for herself  in her busy life. For Joanne (Kendra Connor)  the tap class is her path to her love of musical theatre (she knows facts about classic musical theatre shows that she can list off at the drop of a hat), and memories of her now deceased parents. When they find themselves alone with no instructor they decide to create their own routine and enter the big Winter Dance Competition. Through the journey, they get to know each other and themselves better and create a magical tap number (Choreographer Jason Hardwick) that literally had me sobbing with joy! Perhaps I connected to this so strongly because, like Patty and Joanne, I too am at a point in my life where I am seeking something for me. I think many of us hit that point in our middle years and an artistic pursuit, no matter what your skill-level, can fill that. I have so many friends that have started taking up artistic hobbies that it made me really think about what is missing that art fills in our lives. I may not take up tap-dancing, but I know I have been seriously thinking about finally writing a novel! Look out world! If there's a Christmas Cup for novel writing I might be trying for it. Anyhow, this is a terrific little show. It's a tight 60 minutes that's funny and heart-warming, and certainly kicks off the Christmas season in a truly original way! Plus, it features the BEST Christmas song every written so there's that. No ghosts on this stage, but I'm good with that. The show runs until December 13th and there's plenty of different price points including Pay-What-You-Can and 2-For-1 Tickets. 

I also saw Grant MacEwan Theatre Program's Carrie. It has closed now but it was an excellently done show. However, it was not my kind of show. I think that there are certain people who love this show and shows like it. Based on the Stephen King book and movie it has a bit of a cult status. It was executed with great skill. Standouts were the actresses who played Carrie and her mother (I failed to grab a program and I can no longer find the online program - so if anyone knows who they were, feel free to comment). But the whole thing was pretty cool for concept and it was tight. I'm glad I saw it, even though it wasn't my kind of show, because there are some fabulous performers in the Grant MacEwan Theatre program! 

Finally, I saw Foote in the Door's Guys and Dolls. It has also closed as I saw it on it's closing weekend, but I had a great time. I went with friends from Amélie (ELOPE) and there were several members of the Amélie cast/team onstage and in the orchestra and production team. It was nice to see all them, as well as the Walterdale peeps! A very 'theatre-family' experience. Having done Guys and Dolls many, many years ago it was terrific to revisit it. My seat partner and I chair-danced and lip synced along to many of the songs and it was full of funny moments that we laughed at. It's easy to see why a company would produce this show. So many great songs and opportunities for humour and great dancing! This was a terrific ensemble and they put on a show that was a real audience pleaser! I'm glad I was able to fit it into my schedule! 

Getting in the Spirit of the Season with THEATRE! Castle Spectre and The Vinyl Cafe Kick it all off!

I've been super busy this week because I have my sister visiting from Ontario, but I did see a couple of show son the weekend that I think you should check out. 

The first was Castle Spectre, presented by Paper Crown Theatre at the Gateway Theatre. It's an adaptation of a gothic play from long ago. It's been edited for length and some characters have been trimmed to create a tighter piece more suitable for modern audiences. The story tells of a haunted castle with a history of treachery and a long lost daughter returns, not knowing who she really is. The story leans on gothic tropes, like ghosts and a mysterious prisoner in a dungeon, as well as an isolated heroine. There's a lot of humour, particularly from Father Philip (Andrew Mcready), Motley the fool (Christian Lundgren, who also plays the villian, Lord Osmond) and a delightfully Scottish housekeeper Alice (Samantha Beck). As the heroine Angela, Irene Poole has a lovely onstage presence and a beautiful voice. She sings duets with the ghost of her mother, Evelina, the equally talented Maggie Salopek. It's a lot of fun and worth checking out, particularly if you like stories of castles and long lost royal heirs and sword fighting! It's perfectly suitable for younger audiences, but only if they are able to handle the running time as it is a two act piece - so maybe not the really little ones.  It runs to November 30th at the Gateway Theatre and tickets can be purchased here. 

Photo: Nanc Price

I also saw The Vinyl Cafe at The Citadel. I'm a big fan of the CBC program, The Vinyl Cafe and have listened to a lot of them. I was both excited and apprehensive about seeing it because I love the show but I also wanted it to live up to my expectations. I needn't have been apprehensive, it was such a  lovely and fun show! It may not look or feel exactly how you imagine it (there's a wide distance between Stuart Maclean's voice and musical theatre), but the spirit and themes of the stories are spot-on. The bulk of the show is built around the classic story, "Dave Cooks the Turkey", but there are other bits and pieces from many of the recognizable favourites from the Vinyl Cafe. There will be moments that surprise you! The music is tuneful and fun and the entire cast is terrific. They are all wonderful singers and dancers committed to selling the story, so whether there's 2 or 3 or the full cast onstage, it's really well done! The central family of Dave, Morley, Stephanie and Sam were the emotional heart of the show, as they should be. I even teared up in the last number. I left the show feeling so good. It's a  wonderful holiday theatre adventure, and for me the theme of leaving behind petty disagreements to share in the joy of the season with your friends, family and neighbours is so very timely. The show has been held over a week and now runs to December 7th and tickets can be purchased here. 

I mentioned I've been busy - I also saw How Patty and Joann Won High Gold at the Grand Christmas Cup Winter Dance Competition  at Northern Light Theatre - which was hilarious and heartbreaking and I highly recommend, and about which I will write more about later; and Carrie presented by MacEwan University Theatre program, which while it is not my kind of musical, it was excellently done - I will write more later about this, as well. 

And now I am off to Guys and Dolls presented by Foote in the Door! It's been a very busy week!

Fringe #42 - Tuesday, August 22 - Getting all the Answers... and more WORD OF MOUTH recommendations!

I had a very mixed bag of shows today - the best kind of Fringe Day! I started the afternoon at a 1950s Graduation with the The Marvelous Wonderettes - Caps and Gowns! I hadn't seen any of the other shows from this series, but that was not necessary as the story and characters wee clearly defined! The music is terrific - a lovely blast from the past - with tight harmonies and solid voices! The show is humorous and flows nicely from song to song with jokes and funny situations in between. A great way to start the day! 

I went in a very different direction checking out The Mine. While taking place in almost exactly the same year as the previous one, this show is much darker as it dealt with three Soviet miners trapped underground in a cave-in. Each of the miners has different concerns and hopes and dreams and they share these over the long wait for rescue, while they also try to dig their way out. Tensions between them build and... well, I do not want to give spoilers! 

My last show of the day was Lady Porn presented by Whizgiggling Productions. This was a smart and sharp look behind the scenes at making of a 'feminist' porn film set. It's funny and intelligent, as it analyzes the good intentions of the safe set weighed against the wants of the financial backers. It makes you wonder if there is any such thing as a 'feminist' porn. I must admit of all the shows I've seen so far, this one has left me thinking the most. Not specifically about porn, but about good intentions in many situations which get over-ridden by expediency, money concerns and really a lack of desire to actually change even though that's what's been expressed. I'm obviously still thinking about it! 

WORD OF MOUTH - Tuesday, August 22nd

Tango in the Dark            Seawall            Old-ish            Morningside Road

Tales From the Hospital            Muse            90 Lies An Hour            Charade

Forest of Truth            Stigma, Pistil and Style            Multi Vs.            Lady Porn 

Puck Bunnies            Lesbihonest            Epidermis Circus

A few good shows in the road ahead...

It's a good problem to have - good for me, good for the city - a whole bunch of theatre to see!

This Friday I will finally get to see Jersey Boys with Broadway Across Canada. I've heard the show is awesome so I am looking forward to it. I have prepared myself to hear a lot of swearing and some great music!

I'm also very, very, very excited about Hadestown which starts this weekend at the Citadel. We've been working so hard on it, and hearing snippets of the live music and imagining what the mind-blowing cast we have will do with it (several are Broadway Alums and the ones I have seen previously in Canada are seriously amazing performers). Every day I peek in the theatre and the set looks incredible and I just can't wait. I'll be there on Opening but I am thinking I might not wait until then so I'm looking to see if I can go on Saturday or Sunday night. I will likely take Gibson as our current joint-obsession with Hamilton tells me he will probably really like the show.

Next week I am also taking in John Ware: Reimagined presented by Workshop West Playwright's Theatre. It's a new work, which always appeals to my playwright heart, and about a real Albertan historical figure and it promises to shed light on parts of our history many of us might not know much about.

After the Opening Night of Hadestown on Thursday, I will end the week with Jabberwocky at Theatre Network. It's the World Premiere of a new work by The Old Trout Puppet Workshop. I've previously seen Ignorance and Famous Puppet Death Scenes and really like their work, so I am looking forward to seeing a new work from them.

Other than that, I am trying to figure out how I can squeeze in Little Women: The Musical by Foote in the Door Productions. I'm hoping to shuffle a few meetings to make that work as there are a lot of great people working on that show. Hopefully I can get things sorted out fast because I understand they are selling really well and I might be out of luck for tickets if I don't figure it out quickly!

Anyhow, it's a good problem to have... so much theatre to see!