Anne of Green Gables presented by the Victoria Operatic Society. Interview with Tara Britt and Molly Lydon. In celebration of Canada’s 150th birthday, the Victoria Operatic Society is once again staging the quintessential Canadian musical—Anne of Green Gables November 24-December 3, 2017. Director and choreographer Tara Britt has a long connection with VOS; her mentor Sylvia Hosie choreographed the 2001 VOS production of Anne. Britt says … [Read more...]
Anne of Green Gables presented by the Victoria Operatic Society. Interview with Tara Britt and Molly Lydon.
November 20, 2017 By Leave a Comment
The Madwoman of Chaillot at UVic Phoenix. Nov 9-25 2017. A review.
November 13, 2017 By Leave a Comment
The Madwoman of Chaillot at UVic Phoenix. Nov 9-25 2017. A review. The latest University of Victoria Phoenix Theatre production--Giraudoux’s The Madwoman of Chaillot November 9-25, 2017--is grandiose--huge in scale and extremely physical, playing on the edges with hints of the absurd, and yet, the dialogue sends shivers down the spine with its prescience and modernity. Giraudoux wrote the play during the Nazi occupation of France and did … [Read more...]
This is GOOD: A new initiative for Victoria’s creative workers
November 8, 2017 By Leave a Comment
This is GOOD: A new initiative for Victoria’s creative workers Media Release Picture a private coffee shop with a big rustic table and a warm-industrial feel, tucked away down a tree-lined courtyard on the edge of the Chinatown District and you start to get a sense of what it feels like to attend an event at GOOD. Offering workshops, intensives, classes, retreats, co-working sessions, and one-on-one creative consults alongside community … [Read more...]
Musical Memories Celebrating the Music of Broadway and Hollywood featuring Bob LeBlanc’s Variety Fare. October 27-November 22, 2017.
October 31, 2017 By 2 Comments
Musical Memories Celebrating the Music of Broadway and Hollywood featuring Bob LeBlanc’s Variety Fare. October 27-November 22, 2017. Bob LeBlanc is a musical wonder. An autodidact with an encyclopedic knowledge of Broadway show tunes (and Hollywood hit songs) who has never learned to read a note of music, he has, for years, shared his love of the genre with an ever-increasing audience. Originally from the East Coast where he presented … [Read more...]
Blue Bridge presents War of the Worlds October 30/31 2017. A preview.
October 26, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Blue Bridge presents War of the Worlds October 30/31 2017. A preview. At a time when “old media”—television, radio and print—is engaged in what some deem a to-the-death struggle with “new media”, Orson Welles’ adaptation of HG Wells’ classic science fiction tale War of the Worlds could not be more relevant, according to Brian Richmond, artistic director of Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre. The company is staging War of the Worlds on Hallowe’en … [Read more...]
Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson at the Chemainus Theatre Festival. A review.
October 25, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson at the Chemainus Theatre Festival. A review. From the depths of the human soul to the vastness of space, Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson—at the Chemainus Theatre Festival October 13-November 4, 2017—is a transcendent journey filled with passion and love. Henrietta Leavitt (Emma Slipp) deserves to be more well-known. She was at the forefront of ground-breaking research in early 20th century astronomy, … [Read more...]
The Rocky Horror Show, produced by Atomic Vaudeville, October 18-29, 2017. A review.
October 23, 2017 By Leave a Comment
The Rocky Horror Show, produced by Atomic Vaudeville, October 18-29, 2017. A review. The Rocky Horror Show, now in its fourth year (on until October 29th at the Metro Studio Theatre), has become an annual theatrical tradition in Victoria. For decades people made a point of travelling to the Roxy Theatre (then a movie house) to view the Rocky Horror Picture Show at midnight on Hallowe’en—many perhaps not even realizing that the musical … [Read more...]
Onegin by Amiel Gladstone and Veda Hille Belfry Theatre October 17-November 12 2017. A review.
October 20, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Onegin by Amiel Gladstone and Veda Hille Belfry Theatre October 17-November 12 2017. A review. As rich and luxurious as the plush red velvet curtains draping the stage, Onegin, book, music and lyrics by Amiel Gladstone and Veda Hille, based on Pushkin’s revered novel-in-verse and Tchaikovsky’s opera, is a marvel of complexity—replete with glorious costumes (Jacqueline Firkins and Alaia Hamer), inspired gypsy-jazz-Eastern European choreography … [Read more...]
Red Death by Launch Pad Theatre at Craigdarroch Castle October 17-31, 2017. A review.
October 18, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Red Death by Launch Pad Theatre at Craigdarroch Castle October 17-31, 2017. A review. Those cool cats at The Castle are hiding a grim secret. Try as they might to pretend everything is “groovy”, all is not well. Doom hangs in the air and seeps into nooks and crevices. Diana Nielsen and Christina Patterson. Photo: Derek Ford The wild and hyper lord of the manor, David Radford glad hands invited guests. Disco tunes fill the air with familiar … [Read more...]
A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline by Little Bowes Street Collective October 21-29, 2017. A preview.
October 17, 2017 By Leave a Comment
A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline by Little Bowes Street Collective October 21-29, 2017. A preview. One of Victoria’s newest theatre companies, Little Bowes’ Street Collective brings A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline to the Teechamitsa Theatre at Royal Bay Secondary October 20/21 and to the CCPA Performance Hall October 27/28/29. I spoke with co-founders Melissa Young (director of the show) and Alison MacDonald (who performs the role of Patsy … [Read more...]
