Dorianne is a graduate of the Theatre and Drama Studies joint program between University of Toronto, Erindale campus and Sheridan College. She writes short stories, plays and screenplays and was delighted to be accepted into the 2010 Diaspora Dialogues program and also to have her short story accepted into the 2011 edition of TOK: Writing The New Toronto collection. She is also a regularly contributing writer on http://www.sexlifecanada.ca. You can follow her on twitter @headonist if you like tweets about cats, sex, food, queer stuff and lefty politics.
It’s always exciting to see a show that’s a Canadian premiere. A Canadian premiere means it’s already successful in other countries, so is probably very good, and now we get to see it, ideally with Canadian artists providing the interpretation.
When receiving accreditation to cover Rhubarb, I was told “Please note: because the work is experimental/new we ask that critics not review the work, but enter in a conversation about themes and forms etc.”
As much as that instruction seems difficult to put into practice, it didn’t surprise me. I’ve been to many Rhubarbs (I even performed in one once), so I’m well aware that this isn’t conventional theatre with conventional aspects to “review.” Most of these shows are more “performance art” than “theatre.”
Theatre Brouhaha has an admirable mandate: to “combine the primacy of story with the rapid pace of the Information Age to create relevant theatre for the next generation of theatre audiences.”
I love work that is set in the contemporary world and where the content fully engages with the technology at our disposal, particularly the internet. The internet changed the world, it changed business and romance and socializing and marketing. There’s a wealth of issues to be explored so why are so many plays set in the past, or in a present that contrives to ignore the massive effect the internet has on our lives? Continue reading Review: LoveSexMoney (Theatre Brouhaha)→
Unfortunately I was not able to see any of The Mill shows before the final instalment, Part Four: Ash, although Mooneyontheatre was able to reviewPart One: Now We Are Brody. I’m a horror movie buff so the prospect of seeing a horror play was very exciting. I was assured that each piece was a stand-alone and I would be able to understand and enjoy seeing any of the plays without seeing the preceding ones. As part of this assurance I was told that they weren’t in any specific chronology. Continue reading Review: The Mill Part Four: Ash (Theatrefront)→
The first thing you see when you walk into The Bird at Buddies is a giant stuffed bird. The taxidermied wonder is perched on a coffee table on a set of an expansive living room in what looks like, and we later find out is a chic downtown condo building. While the city is never specified, all references feel very Toronto-esque.I had not read any material on the play before going in. I had no idea what it was about. I knew friends were going and I knew I liked playwright Sonja Mills and director Ruth Madoc-Jones, and that was good enough for me. I rather like to be surprised, so if I’m already sure I want to see it, why find out anything more? Continue reading Review: The Bird (Union Eight Theatre)→
