A powerful all-female cast and artful use of the Odyssey Studio make for a great interpretation of the Brothers Karamazov
My mom and I went to see the all-female cast of Brothers Karamazov Saturday evening at the Odyssey Studio at 636 Pape Avenue. Once we located the venue and settled into our seats we realized that we had no idea of what was to come. (I have zero background in the works of Mr. Dostoevski, save that I’ve heard he’s kind of a big deal – don’t shoot me! Ask anyone else associated with theatre or literature and they will provide a deeper understanding than my meagre Wikipedia browsing here.) This excellent production of Brothers Karamazov thoroughly impressed us both and we would recommend it without hesitation to anyone – classical theatre aficionado or not.
Last Thursday I took my friend Rose to see Toronto Youth Theatre’s production of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Try as we might, we couldn’t get into the spirit of the show. It was packed with enthusiasm and energy (including nervous whispering backstage and roaring screams after the show finished) but the combination of lackluster sets and costumes coupled with the dated writing left us a bit disappointed.
Being fortunate enough to write for Mooney On Theatre, I see a lot of plays. Sometimes I go as guests of other reviewers, sometimes to review myself. Often, I see more than one show per week. And before Mooney I considered myself an avid theatre-goer, never passing up an opportunity to watch dance, opera, drama or musical.
I have never left a show and felt like I did following the Factory Theatre’s spring headliner Night. I sat on a blue velvet couch just outside the entrance and cried. I was so touched by the story, and more importantly, how elegantly it was told, that I was literally overcome. Continue reading Review: Night (Human Cargo and Factory Theatre)→
Zero Hour by Jim Brochu, directed by Piper Laurie, Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company
by Ryan Kerr
I was first introduced to Zero Mostel when I was a wee lad. The Sesame Street Book of Opposites with Zero Mostel both intrigued and terrified me. Here was a grown middle-aged man, on one page elated, and on the facing page agonized. It’s possible I would have better appreciated his work had I retitled it Sesame Street Book of EXTREMES with Zero Mostel. Looking back, I think my little brain was first introduced to the notion of “drama” in those pages. No wonder I grew up to be such a theatre enthusiast!
I was afraid Zero Hour, written and performed by Jim Brochu would be a nostalgic, fictionalized expansion of this book of funny faces and absurdities. I had never seen Zero play Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof nor had I any grasp of his illustrious career.
