Dana Ewachow is too shy to order a pizza over the phone, but has no problem writing on the internet. She keeps herself busy and artistically poor by writing news articles, rants, and fiction for the internet. As you may have noticed, she also writes theatre reviews. She enjoys sketch comedies, dark comedies, light comedies, and burlesque. When she isn’t writing, her odd hobbies include: martial arts, throwing hatchets, and trying to cook food that won’t send her to the hospital. Armed with questionable diplomas and a second degree blackbelt, she will surely take over the world.
Leroy Street Theatre presents a taboo and comedic look at family dysfunction in Toronto
The last time I had walked into Unit 102 Theatre, the set was the inside of a barn, covered in dust and bales of hay. Not a speck of dust was in sight when I walked back into Unit 102 to see Leroy Street Theatre’s The Goat, Or Who Is Sylvia? The barn was flipped into an impeccable living room.
The furniture and precise decoration gave off the impression that the homeowners were desperate to be featured in an interior design magazine. The set looked like it had been ripped out of the centre of Style at Home with minor details of family life, like a framed photo and a work table with work still in progress. I felt like I was sitting in the midst of perfectionists. After the show, I realized that Leroy Street Theatre must be full of perfectionists too, because I was blown away by the show.
Gambler Productions presents two unique shows, on stage in Toronto
I opened the front door to the snug Red Sandcastle Theatre and saw, to my surprise, a man dressed to the nines. He was in full blackjack-dealer garb, including a crisp white button-up and a bowtie. He welcomed me to the First Show Spectacular, waving his hands like I had just stepped into Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas strip. He took a playing card out a pile, snipped it in half, and handed it to me. I’d never had a headless Jack of Hearts as a ticket before. If anything, I was impressed with Gambler Productions‘ dedication to a theme.
First Show Spectacular is a one-hour production of two half-hour plays: The Waiting Room by Jen Farr and Your Path To Happiness by John Rowntree. The program states: “One play isn’t enough to contain our excitement, so there are two in tonight’s show.” Both plays are solo performances, written by their star actors.
Toronto’s Unit 102 Actors Co. presents an intimate production of John Steinbeck classic
The doorway of the Unit 102 theatre was jammed with guests when I arrived. We were all clustered together, eagerly waiting to pile into our seats for the production of Of Mice and Men. After a quick announcement, the doors were opened and the guests flooded inside. I sat in the second row and took in the view. I felt utterly transported. I had somehow traveled space and time, or jumped into the pages of a book, because I was no longer in Toronto. I was somewhere else entirely. Continue reading Review: Of Mice and Men (Unit 102 Actors Co.)→
Dead Roads, now playing in Toronto, is ” like a dream, disjointed and unreal.”
The only description given for Dead Roads (presented by The Dead Roads Collective) was: “Something strange is happening in small town Alberta.” That sentence could describe a quirky comedy or a riveting mystery, but the tone felt ominous as the lights of the Theatre Centre suddenly went down and the audience was plunged into darkness.
The theatre rumbled with a sound that sent the hairs rising at the back of my neck. It sounded like the roar of a great turbine or like a rocket ship about to take off. It sounded like a flying saucer lowering to lift an unsuspecting loner into a light beam before disappearing into the night. “Strange” was definitely the right description.
Leroy Street Theatre presents a taboo and comedic look at family dysfunction in Toronto
Gambler Productions presents two unique shows, on stage in Toronto
The doorway of the 
Dead Roads, now playing in Toronto, is ” like a dream, disjointed and unreal.”
The seats of the Jane Mallet Theatre of the