Archives

Yee Haw – Y’All Be Havin’ Lotsa Fun! Note: This was reviewed at Playhouse II, Grand Bend.  Stacey Kay is now in the role formerly played by Kelly Holiff.  Now at King’s Wharf Theatre, Penetanguishene, September 13 to 30, 2018 and Drayton Festival Theatre, Drayton, October 5 to 14, 2018   It might feel like the […]

Romeo & Juliet set in 1957 New York    Romeo and Juliet is one of Shakespeare’s best known tragedies.  With that in mind, a creative team including the best in the business – Robbins, Laurents, Bernstein and Sondheim – turned the plot into a musical for the 1950s.  But, both Romeo and Juliet and West

Fun with Interactive Theatre     Note:  Extended to Dec. 2. If you like taking the kiddies to a panto where they yell out advice for the hero and boo the villain, then you’d better rush to see Rocky Horror Show at Stratford’s Avon Theatre.  But leave the kids at home.  This is an interactive adult-only

Classic Novel comes Alive on Stage    A black man is wrongly accused of rape and found guilty despite strong evidence he couldn’t have done it.  Sound familiar?  While it might have happened last week, it is from the classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird, set in 1935.  This story is currently being brought to

The Perils of Ponzi Pigeons A tale of deceit, cheating and greed. This fascinating plot is almost too good to be true.  And yet it is: in fact, the story of The Pigeon King is all true. This is the second time around for Blyth’s The Pigeon King.  The play was created over a year

Searching for an Honest Politician    In the midst of strange political times, we are reminded by Oscar Wilde that there is no such thing as an honest politician.  Even those who we believe to be above reproach have skeletons in their closets, just waiting to jump out.  Does the politician shove the skeleton back

Brilliant Acting in O’Neill Classic    Long Day’s Journey into Night is a study in anxiety and addiction with the accompanying delusion, denial and depression, wrapped up inside a dysfunctional family.  Set in 1912, the play is an almost-autobiographical story of Eugene O’Neill’s life.  An excellent production of it is now on stage at Stratford’s

But They Do Know the Territory   It’s 1912 in small town USA.  Salesmen are the lifeblood of the little communities:  They come in on trains, sell their wares, and move on to the next town.  As the train pulls into River City, the salesmen are talking about a shyster who is giving their profession

Dark and Depressing Musical  Grand Hotel, now on stage at the Shaw Festival, tells the foreboding stories of various guests staying at Berlin’s most luxurious hotel.  But the luxury is dimmed by their dark lives.  Set between the two world wars, Grand Hotel is based on the 1932 movie. You know it’s going to a

Amazing One-Woman Show has Lots of Laughs    Shirley is trapped in a midlife crisis.  Her husband Joe is predictable and stubborn.  “Marriage is like the Middle East,” she says, “There’s no solution.  You keep your head down and hope the cease-fire holds.”  The Liverpool housewife is so lonely she talks to the wall, and