Confessions of a Redheaded Coffeeshop Girl by Paper Plaid Productions was the show I was most excited to review at this year’s Toronto Fringe Festival. Apparently I wasn’t the only one since the very first performance opened to a sold-out house!
All posts by Sonia Borkar
Time Stands Still (Eclectic Theatre and Jason Murray) 2014 Toronto Fringe Review
Time Stands Still (at the Toronto Fringe Festival, produced by Eclectic Theatre and Jason Murray) was not what I expected, it had way more depth and balance. I thought it would be a show filled with war imagery that focused on the political situation in Iraq, but the beauty about this show is that it could have been set anywhere, talked about any war and told the stories of the countless innocent people with families and children who are mere victims in these situations. It’s also about the people who jeopardize their lives to cover these events hoping that the world will someday actually see and listen to the voices of the thousands of people far, far away for whom war is a way of life. Their only reality. Continue reading Time Stands Still (Eclectic Theatre and Jason Murray) 2014 Toronto Fringe Review
Announcement: Theatre Passe Muraille 2013/14 Season
From Press Release
Theatre Passe Muraille
2013/14 Season Announcement
On Monday April 8th, Artistic Director Andy McKim announced Theatre Passe Muraille’s 2013/14 season at the company’s annual fundraising gala event. The season presents a balanced approach of fresh new voices (Rob Kempson, Rosamund Small, Mitchell Cushman) and established theatrical powerhouses (Louise Pitre, George F. Walker, Linda Griffiths). It also features more than a dash of song and dance.
TPM has always valued a variety of artistic voices and forms. Richard Ouzounian of the Toronto Star said, “Under Andy McKim, Theatre Passe Muraille has become the most totally eclectic theatres in town, offering a home to every kind of work imaginable…it makes for an explosion of joy like nowhere else.” This year the company has gone all out, presenting a new musical, a cabaret, an off-site production, a remount, a new comic drama, a youth theatre production, and a new play with both dance and music. All this in a way that is uniquely TPM. Continue reading Announcement: Theatre Passe Muraille 2013/14 Season
Review: The Whipping Man (Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company/Obsidian Theatre)
The Whipping Man is educational, historical – and captivating – theatre, at Toronto Centre for the Arts
I watched Whipping Man on opening night at the Toronto Centre for the Arts accompanied by our founding editor Megan Mooney. Generally I don’t make the trek out to North York – or close enough – for a show. There’s plenty of great theatre I can watch in the downtown area but, considering that Megan really wanted to see this show, directed by her idol Philip Akin, I knew I would be in for a treat and I was!
When the show started I was sitting there with my notebook discreetly folded in one hand and a pen in the other. I didn’t write a single word for the first 45 minutes at least, since at intermission the page was blank and my hand was full of smudged ink. I decided not to bother with the notes. The show is so intense and sucks you in from the moment the lights go down. Continue reading Review: The Whipping Man (Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company/Obsidian Theatre)
Review: Rock (Paper Scissors Collective)
Humour that “kills” in Rock, playing at Toronto’s Storefront Theatre
I’ve been meaning to check out the Storefront Theatre on Bloor Street before it even opened. I walk by it everyday on my way to and from work and couldn’t wait for my little neighbourhood filled with artists, actors and musicians to have its very own theatre. This little gem located in the Bloor/Ossington neighbourhood is the kind of place you want to stick around for a drink after the show. It’s so cozy and inviting that if I didn’t have a ride waiting outside I would have definitely stayed for a post-show drink, something I rarely do.
The fact that I could watch Kat Sandler’s Rock there as my first experience was perfect. I saw LOVESEXMONEY last year and was pretty sure this show would have the same fun-filled spirit while exploring some pretty dark subject matter, but never not having fun! In fact, I was so positive about the show that I even took my friend who I lovingly call the “show jinx”. And, success…even she had a great time! Continue reading Review: Rock (Paper Scissors Collective)