All posts by Istvan Dugalin

Apart from his (pathological?) obsession with airplane disasters, Istvan is a filmmaker and film enthusiast, but began his creative adventures in theatre. Starting out as an actor, he soon discovered a preference for life behind-the-scenes. He has experience in lighting design, stage management and production management, but his passion is writing and directing. With several short films and an indie feature under his belt, film has been his focus in recent years, but theatre has been calling him back. You see more of his critical writing at his film reflection blog: http://captiveviscera.wordpress.com/

Trompe-La-Mort, or Goriot in the 21st Century (Live Lobster Theatre) 2016 SummerWorks Review

Trompe la mortI like plays with ideas; they give my mind something to grapple with in the darkness of a theatre. While I like to think, when I’m at the theatre, I prefer to feel. I find it difficult to invest in characters and situations that are, principally, vessels for lecture and debate. Trompe-La-Mort, or Goriot in the 21st Century, currently playing at the Factory Theatre Studio as part of the SummerWorks Performance Festival, is a dramatization of ideas.  Continue reading Trompe-La-Mort, or Goriot in the 21st Century (Live Lobster Theatre) 2016 SummerWorks Review →

Review: Thank You For Being A Friend (Joseph Patrick)

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Thank You for Being a Friend blends The Golden Girls with puppets at the Al Green Theatre in Toronto

Picture it: late 80s, a small Ontario town, a ten year old boy is glued to the television, watching the antics of four elderly women living in Miami. Those four women were The Golden Girls, and that little boy…was me.

The Golden Girls was a highlight of my childhood and I miss those four ladies very much. Nostalgia aside, it really was quite a remarkable phenomenon to have appealed so strongly to such a wide demographic.

Thank You For Being A Friend, currently playing at the Al Green Theatre is intended, very specifically it seems, for people who fell in love with the hit show when it first aired. It plays like a medley of highlights from the show with puppets (by Andy Hayward) that bear an astonishing resemblance to the original cast.  Continue reading Review: Thank You For Being A Friend (Joseph Patrick) →

Review: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat (Lower Ossington Theatre)

Joseph1This Joseph is sure to delight, now playing at the Lower Ossington Theatre in Toronto

Guess who went to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat at Lower Ossington Theatre? This guy! Seems I never quite grew out of my love for this silly show; it still makes me giddy the way it did in my early 90s youth.  Continue reading Review: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat (Lower Ossington Theatre) →

Review: Bug (StudioBLR & Kid Switchblade)

bug 7Bug is a “gritty, atmospheric production” now playing in Toronto

The StudioBLR & Kid Switchblade production of Tracy Letts’ Bug is an intense, trippy experience. My love of this play is fierce, though this was my first live experience of it. (I’ve seen William Friedkin’s film more than a dozen times). When I took my seat at the back of the Super Wonder Gallery and saw that trashy motel room set, out came the goosebumps! And those goosebumps stayed with me the whole time.  Continue reading Review: Bug (StudioBLR & Kid Switchblade) →