Great Music & Theatre from U of A and Grant MacEwan U...

Photo Credit: Lindsey Tran,
@understudystudio_

I ticked off one of my bucket list shows this past week! I'm a self-avowed Sondheim lover and thanks to Grant MacEwan University's production of Sunday in the Park with George, I finally got to see a show that has long been on my list. I'm so glad I caught it (it closes today so you might not be able to if you are just reading this now). The music is very-Sondheim and I caught bits that reminded me of Into the Woods and Company, and it is not easy, but this cast did it very well. Lead by Eli Yaschuk as George (George Seurat, the French painter) and Rain Matkin as Dot (his fictionalized model and lover), the young cast of students in the BFA program deliver the show with commitment, enthusiasm and skill. Yaschuk and Matkin are both terrific, anchoring the show musically and emotionally. I hope we see more of them on our city's stages in year to come. And the entire cast delivered my favourite song, Sunday, beautifully.

Photo Credit: Lindsey Tran, @understudystudio_

It's interesting how forward thinking the show was. It seemed like it was meant for this modern age of projections. The lighting, set, costume, and projection designers (Travis Hatt, Ross Nichol, Deanna Finnman, Matt Shuurman) did a phenomenal job of bringing the art to life. After seeing the show I went and rewatched the Tony performance from the original production, which had wowed me at the time I first saw it, and was struck by how much more active projections add to the piece. 

I hope to catch a few more of the MacEwan University shows in the future. We are blessed with so much theatre in Edmonton, we sometimes forget that MacEwan and U of A both have incredible programs offering terrific shows with the future of Edmonton theatre on their stages. 

Speaking of U of A, I also caught a wonderful musical performance by the University of Alberta Music Department featuring their Concert Band and Symphonic Wind Ensemble. The performance was called The Old Sod, and was presented on St. Patrick's Day at the Winspear. It also featured dancers from the Edmonton Ceilidh Dance Academy. It was a terrific way to spend St. Patrick's Day and enjoy some wonderful pieces of music. 

Happy World Theatre Day!

Okay, for me, pretty much every day of the year could be Theatre Day, being that I work at one, volunteer at several and I watch a heck of a lot of it.  But for those of you who are more moderate in your approach to theatre, today is THE day! Luckily, there are a lot of shows you can see right here in Edmonton this weekend!

Shows that close this weekend:

Vigilante at the Citadel Theatre.  This rock opera with an edge is being presented in the Maclab Theatre.  It's a show ideally suited to the thrust theatre space and re-imagines the story of the Black Donnellys, an Irish immigrant family who were brutally murdered.  It's also the latest work from Catalyst Theatre (Nevermore, Frankenstein, Hunchback), and has the same level of excellence in concept and execution, and a very talented 8 person cast who can sing some amazing celtic and rock inspired musical theatre.  We've had people respond so well to it that they've come back and seen the show three times! It only runs until Sunday, March 29th, so I recommend catching it quick.  For those on a budget, there are still a few $30 seats left and because they use the thrust space so well, there really are no bad seats.

First Time Last Time  at Shadow Theatre. A new take on the romantic comedy what turns the premise on it's side as it pairs two commitment shy people who go to outrageous lengths to maintain a non-relationship/ relationship.  I wrote about it more here.  It is at the Varscona Theatre  until Sunday, March 29th.

Shows that opened this week:

Arcadia at the Citadel Theatre. This is currently my new favourite play.  Other than when I am directing a show, I rarely want to see a play more than twice.  With this Tom Stoppard work I am so excited to be seeing it for the third time on Sunday (and I am trying to figure out if I can justify going again on Closing).  It's complicated and simple at the same time.  A mystery and a romance and full of sparring academics and the quest for truth and knowledge.  It takes place in two times 200 years apart in the same English manor.  Though separated by time, the parallels between the two stories are fascinating and Stoppard has managed to intertwine them with humour.  There's some heady content, but there's also many moments of deliciousness for the audience when they know more than the characters do. This opened last night and runs to April 12th.

A Dream Play at Studio Theatre.  This is a Strindberg piece and the U of A has cast all 5 women in the graduating BFA class as the only female character in the piece.  I haven't seen it yet, but I am hoping to book tickets soon, as they have reconfigured the Timm's seating so that there are far fewer seats than usual and as a result they already have some Sold Out performances. It looks like a challenging piece and I trust that the U of A has done their usual solid work.

Sondheim on Sondheim at MacEwan University. For those who love musicals and more specifically Sondheim this would be a great show to catch.  It's in the Theatre Lab space so tickets are tight for it as well, but it would likely be a great show to catch if you love Into the Woods or Sweeney Todd. It closes next Thursday, April 2nd (probably due to the Easter weekend) so don't get complacent and figure on seeing it next weekend! It was also directed by Kate Ryan who was wonderful earlier this year singing with Susan Gilmour in a Sondheim Cabaret at the Citadel, so you can be assured that it's been well steered.

These are just a few you could see.  I am sure there are others you could check out.  Tix on the Square is great for seeing what's out there.  Make this your World Theatre Day and see a show!

A Wild Bus Ride, An Evening of Sondheim, and A Very Sexy Audition... Just another #yegtheatre weekend!

If you look at the weekend I just have, you can get a pretty good idea of the variety of theatre opportunities that Edmonton gets to experience all the time.  It's why I like living here. 

Friday night, Gibson and I took in Promise Productions' Birdie on the Wrong Bus, about the perfectionist Birdie who, after a first with her sister, hops on the wrong bus and takes a wild ride around the city.  Over the course of the ride she meets a variety of people who tell her about the city and she sees parts of the city she never knew existed.  Gibson and I had a terrific conversation on the way home about all the places Birdie went and we made plans to go check out the ones that we hadn't seen before. Gibson's favorite character was Birdie's Philllip-Phillips-obsessed older sister played by Lana Michelle Hughes and his favorite part was the sing-a-long section. He was concerned that at some points no one was driving the bus, but relaxed when I said we just had to use our imagination. It was overall a great night out for the two of us and while it would have been a little young for Oliver, it was perfect for Gibson. 

Saturday night, we took in a phenomenal night of Sondheim as performed by Kate Ryan, Susan Gilmour and Liz Han in It Takes Two.  I had bought these tickets way back in September and was glad to finally see the show!  It was simply wonderful.  Sondheim is one of my favorites and he's tricky, but these ladies were up to the challenge.  A friend of mine called it a masterclass in interpreting a song. Not only did they have fine voice, but it was funny and sad and they crafted an evening that made you feel that you got your money's worth, but still left you wanting more! It was in The Club at the Citadel and it felt perfectly placed there.  I hope that they might be able to remount this cabaret as it was a real treat and I think that any musical theatre lover would be in heaven! 

And then last night, it was off to see Venus in Fur at the Citadel. I had been to the dress rehearsal, but I was looking forward to seeing it again and to bringing Mark along. AM also joined us for the night.  I remain totally in love with the script and this production.  What I love is how the humour allows you to see the audition situation and the shifts in power back and forth from director to actor without pushing you into a place of outrage. You can think about those things - afterward - but the play doesn't let the power politics get in the way of seeing the show. Alana Hawley as Vanda is brilliant and Jamie Cavanagh the perfect foil for her.  I love how it twists and turns on a dime and the changes to the ending from dress to performance were spot-on.  It's funny how something didn't seem wrong before, but the new choices seem so much more right!  You can still catch Venus in Fur until February 8th and I highly recommend! 

Anyhow, what a weekend.  Ahead for me is another theatre filled week with the opening of Playing With Fire: The Theo Fleury Story, teaching an Audition Workshop, and catching some of the Canoe Festival! What a great city we live in!