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Clue
March 17, 2024
Dennis Garnhum Returns to the Grand with Camp Cult-Classic Reviewed by Eden Eidt Whodunnit? It was… a “killer” cast… with a kitschy comedy… at the Grand! Based on the 1985 film and the family-favourite Hasbro board game, Clue tells the familiar tale of a dark and stormy night at a secluded manor where six peculiar dinner party guests, all under aliases, are served blackmail and a unique weapon. When their blackmailer turns up dead in front of them, they must investigate to discover the answer to three questions… Whodunnit? With what? And where? Director Dennis Garnhum, former artistic director, returns to the Grand to adapt the nostalgic murder mystery with the Royal Manitoba Theatre Company for the Spriet stage. Garnhum’s expertise at creating captivating worlds with equally engaging characters is apparent through his past work (see last season’s production of Elf, or Cabaret in 2019)–and this show is no exception. The cast features Sharon Bajer as Mrs. Peacock, Petrina Bromley as Mrs. White, Rosie Callaghan as the Cop, Kamal Chioua as the Motorist, Beau Dixon as Colonel Mustard, Alex Furber as Mr. Boddy, Jesse Gervais as Wadsworth, Toby Hughes as Mr. Green, Reena Jolly as Miss Scarlet, Tracy Penner as the Cook, Derek Scott as Professor Plum, and Rosalie Tremblay as Yvette. Garnhum has gathered an ensemble of actors that commit to the slapstick and black comedy necessary to the spirit of the production. The actors effortlessly embody the characters we remember from playing the board game as a child, and from watching the Paramount film, but bring a fresh take to each. Not unlike Tim Curry, Gervais is the comedic powerhouse of the show and keeps the audience laughing as he leads the mayhem as the house’s butler, Wadsworth. Cartwheeling across the stage and sustaining every joke until the ...
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Mary's Musings
Entertain This Thought – Celebrating 20 Years!
February 2, 2024
So, 20 years ago (February 2004) Thomas Alderson and I went to New York City for the first time – we saw Gypsy with Bernadette Peters, Wicked with Kristen Chenoweth and Idina Menzel, and Thoroughly Modern Millie, which was supposed to be starring Sutton Foster (the main purpose of the trip!) but as luck would have it, she was off that night! We analyzed those shows so thoroughly that it got me interested in writing theatre reviews. So I’m celebrating 20 years of theatre reviews on Entertain This Thought. Now, exactly 20 years later, Thomas is back in New York City, a trip that he usually makes twice a year. I’ve been fortunate enough to accompany him several times over the past 20 years, and once Victor came along, too. He saw Sutton Foster in Once Upon a Mattress. He reports that Sutton gave a big nod to Carol Burnett who originated the role of Princess Winnifred, even doing a Carol-style yodel! I asked Thomas how many times he’s seen Sutton Foster in lead roles, after the ill-fated trip 20 years ago when we missed her. He sent me this list: Young Frankenstein, Shrek, Anything Goes, Sweet Charity, Violet, The Music Man (I saw this one with Thomas – she was Marion with Hugh Jackman as The Music Man 2022), and now, Once Upon a Mattress. Entertain This Thought – Celebrating 20 years of theatre reviews and more!
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