Soulpepper Theatre in Toronto dazzles audiences with a mesmeric ghostly tale

The Dybbuk by S. Ansky is one of the most famous Yiddish plays in existence and the new production, an adaptation by Anton Piatigorsky, brings it to life with Soulpepper‘s trademark technical wizardry and attention to beauty. I’m being a bit funny using the term “brings it to life”, as the play is concerned with death, the afterlife, and the condition of the immortal soul. Continue reading Review: The Dybbuk (Soulpepper) →

God and The Indian explores the legacy of residential schools on the Toronto stage

There’s no way to undo the damage of the residential school system, but stories about them need to be shared, explored and honoured, as is done in Drew Hayden Taylor’s new play God And The Indian produced by Native Earth (in partnership with Firehall Arts Centre). It captures an evening between two people, Assistant Bishop George King and Johnny, a Cree woman who has recognized him from her youth in a residential school and followed him home. It’s fiction, but like all good art, it tells truth. Continue reading Review: God And The Indian (Native Earth Performing Arts/Firehall Arts Centre) →

Aromas explores the intersections between sexuality and spirituality on stage in Toronto

Aromas, currently onstage at the Alumnae Theatre, tells the life story of Katalin. Traumatized by a brutal beating as an adolescent, she later grows to realize her dream of being a professional skater in the ice dancing version of Swan Lake.

It’s also the story of Katalin’s alter ego Chanel, a sex worker in exotic dance and escorting who finds spirituality in sexuality. Continue reading Review: Aromas (Junes Company) →

Laura Salvas takes on cubicle culture and corporate soullnessness at Fraser Studios in Toronto

Laurie O’Brien (Laura Salvas) graduates York University with a Bachelor of Arts and enters the only job she is qualified for—data entry at “Beige Industries Inc”—in the new comedic look at cubicle culture, How a Cup of Coffee Got Me Fired playing at Fraser Studios. Laurie is eager to make a career for herself, though what she likes best about her workplace is the state-of-the-art coffee machine. The office environment soon turns toxic, and while Laurie blames the other members of her team, she is pretty poisonous herself. Continue reading Review: How a Cup of Coffee Got Me Fired (Laura Salvas) →

Infinity “marries complex science with family drama” takes the Toronto stage at Tarragon Theatre

In Infinity, a theoretical physicist loves his family but neglects them in pursuit of a Theory of Everything; his wife, a violinist and composer who never wanted their child in the first place, threatens to leave but never does; their daughter grows up to be a mathematician with intimacy issues. Currently onstage at Tarragon as a co-production with Volcano Theatre, Infinity maps the story of these three characters with emotion, a touch of humour, and insight into physics and the nature of time. Continue reading Review: Infinity (Tarragon Theatre and Volcano Theatre) →