I've written before about Tim Gosley, the acclaimed local puppeteer (mentor to Ingrid Hansen among others) and owner of Merlin's Sun Home Theatre. Now, you have a chance to see him in the show that helped him get hired by the Muppets! This Saturday and Sunday (March 31st, April 1st) BY DONATION at Merlin's Sun, come and celebrate Tim's 30+ year old show. It's been to Germany, Austria, the UK and across Canada. With special guest puppets: … [Read more...]
Light on Our Feet 4 – Annual Dance Extravaganza in Support of the Metro Studio
March 26, 2012 By 3 Comments
If you’ve ever been to a performance at Intrepid Theatre’s Metro Studio, you have probably seen the work of Holly Vivian, one of the organizers behind Light on Our Feet 4. Holly is the Metro’s technician. In this role, she’s met many people in the dance community, since the Metro is a very popular venue, particularly for studios’ end-of-year shows. She noticed, as she helped to put together lighting designs, that there was one critical … [Read more...]
An Improvised Film Noir, March 30 & 31st, Victoria BC
March 26, 2012 By 1 Comment
I've been waiting impatiently to share the details of An Improvised Film Noir with you. Long an aficionado of the genre, one winter I sat through a marathon of old movies doing research for a musical theatre project. If you love films like The Maltese Falcon, The Big Sleep, The Blue Dahlia, Black Widow, The Postman Always Rings Twice, you’ll not want to miss Paper Street Theatre’s homage to the genre. … [Read more...]
“In Transit” by VIRCS Enable Youth Theatre Program, April 14 2012
March 25, 2012 By 1 Comment
Have you ever lived in another country, or had the experience of being "the other"? I have - for six years in my twenties, I lived in France. The sense of trying so hard to belong, while never truly fitting in remains strongly planted in my memory. Canada is a multi-cultural country, but it is still a challenge for newcomers to integrate. How do young people and teenagers cope? The Victoria Refugee and Immigrant Centre Society (VIRCS) has … [Read more...]
March was “World Theatre Month” in Victoria BC!
March 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment
World Theatre Day is March 27th. I hereby declare, that in Victoria, March is World Theatre Month. I remember asking Janet Munsil, artistic director of Intrepid Theatre, why there was no celebration of World Theatre Day in Victoria, and she said that local theatre companies were too busy in March to organize an event. Now I know why. Thanks to the many productions, regular seasons, and … [Read more...]
“Seachange” at the CACGV Gallery
March 23, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Joyce Kline is an inter-disciplinary artist, faculty member at the Victoria College of Art, bonne vivante, and arts patron. For several days next week (March 27th - ends March 31st) she will install (with the help of her students) Seachange at the Community Arts Council of Greater Victoria Gallery, at Cedar Hill Recreation Centre. UPDATE: I went to see Seachange Thursday night and spent an enchanting hour scrutinizing this … [Read more...]
Fish Eyes by Anita Majumdar – Belfry Theatre SPARK Festival
March 23, 2012 By 5 Comments
I sit transfixed as Meena’s (Anita Majumdar) fast and furious footwork punctuates and underscores the dialogue of a phone call between her dance teacher Kalyani Aunty & India, in Majumdar’s coming-of-age- tale-with-a-difference Fish Eyes (currently part of the Belfry Theatre’s SPARK Festival). Image provided Multi-layered and witty, it addresses teen-age angst with a unique cross-cultural perspective, examining parental and familial … [Read more...]
Shane Koyczan – When I Was A Kid – Belfry SPARK Festival
March 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Stuffies litter the stage at the Belfry Theatre, scattered among musical instruments – a bass, cello, keyboard and guitar – belonging to The Short Story Long, back up band for celebrated wordsmith Shane Koyczan. We’re here at one of five sold-out shows during SPARK Festival, waiting in great anticipation for “the man” himself to appear. image provided by Belfry Theatre I was first introduced to Shane’s spoken word masterpiece “We Are More” … [Read more...]
Kitt and Jane – a review – SPARK Festival at the Belfry Theatre
March 16, 2012 By 4 Comments
Kitt and Jane host an interactive survival guide to the post-apocalyptic future. Ingrid Hansen and Rod Peter Jr are prolific Victoria-based performers and creation artists who defy categorization. At any given moment they may be writing a play, performing in a cabaret, designing costumes, composing a song, making shadow puppets or choreographing dance. In late 2010 Hansen’s company SNAFU Dance Theatre was selected for a Belfry Theatre … [Read more...]
Goodness – a review – SPARK Festival at the Belfry Theatre
March 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Goodness, written by Michael Redhill, and performed by Volcano Theatre, currently at the Belfry Theatre’s SPARK Festival, stands as the singular most important piece of theatre I’ve seen to date. Although now an avid theatre-goer, in my 30s and 40s my moral certitude, and belief system, led me to filter the arts through a black and white lens. I judged much to be “unwatchable” or “inappropriate”, searching instead for the “wholesome”; plays … [Read more...]
