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Posts Filed Under: Review

Plainly Stunning

In Penny Plain, Ronnie Burkett celebrates 25 years of puppetry with a beautiful performance in an ugly world.

By Carly Maga

Penny Plain and her reliable companion, Geoffrey. Puppets by Ronnie Burkett / Theatre of Marionettes. Photo by Trudy Lee.

Pain, Art, and Other People

The Canadian premiere of Christopher Shinn's Other People is another story about unhappy young people in the 90s that operates on the notion that the better it is, the worse you feel.

By Carly Maga

Petra (Tatiana Maslany) argues about love, art, and pain with an unnamed character (Mike McPhaden). Photo by Mercedes Grundy.
1 Comment

Thank You, Come Again

Ins Choi's Kim's Convenience makes a graceful move from Fringe favourite to Soulpepper headliner. Now, all the world's a stage.

By Carly Maga

Paul Sun-Hyung Lee is funny, scary, and heartbreaking as Appa in Kim's Convenience. Just look at that face. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

A Few Too Many Cooks in the Kitchen

Toronto gets another serving of playwright Roland Schimmelpfennig in Tarragon Theatre's The Golden Dragon, a story of miscommunication between generations and cultures that's more sour than sweet.

By Carly Maga

David Fox inspects the incisor of Anusree Roy, while David Yee, Tony Nappo, and Lili Francks look on. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

A Dragon Tattoo, and So Much More

Canadian theatremaker Robert LePage takes Toronto audiences on a visual, personal journey through modern-day Shanghai in The Blue Dragon.

By Carly Maga

Marie Michaud and Henri Chassé as Claire and Pierre, two Canadians seeking a new life in China. Photo by Yannick Macdonald

Not a Walk in the Park

Optic Heart's Crush takes audiences into the barren landscape of an Ontario trailer park, with events you wouldn't believe—if they weren't based on real life.

By Carly Maga

Courtney Lyons (Sandra), Julian DeZotti (Martin), and Ryan Kelly (Ronny) turn the four walls of their trailers into one heck of a triangle.

Jesus Chrysler Needs a Sparkplug

Praxis Theatre's latest production tells the important but mostly unknown story of radical theatremakers in the 1930s, but gets lost in romanticism and a unique set design.

By Carly Maga

Nate (Jeffrey Wetsch) gets the spark going for Jim (Margaret Evans) in Jesus Chrysler. Photo by Will O'Hare.
1 Comment

This Isn’t Child’s Play

The Children's Republic tackles tough subjects with some young faces.

By Carly Maga

Amy Rutherford, Peter Hutt, Mark Correia, Katie Frances Cohen, Emma Burke-Kleinman, and Elliot Larson in The Children's Republic. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

King is King

VideoCabaret's The Life and Times of Mackenzie King is a black-box experience, exploding with colourful costumes and technical tricks, that presents Canadian history saturated in satire.

By Carly Maga

The cast of The Life and Times of Mackenzie King. Photo by Michael Cooper.
2 Comments

Ride the Cyclone Brings Musical Theatre to New Heights

Back in Toronto after a hit run at 2010's SummerWorks Festival, this roller coaster of a show proves it can ride along with the pros.

By Carly Maga

The cast of Ride the Cyclone dances their way through disaster. Photo by Fairen Berchard.

Imprints Leaves a Mark

Theatre Gargantua showcases physicality, visual tricks, and hereditary horrors in its new production.

By Carly Maga

Stephanie Belding and and Michael Spence in Theatre Gargantua's world premiere of IMPRINTS. Photo by Michael Cooper.
2 Comments

Arrezted Development

Factory Theatre stages a rare but uneven production of Tomson Highway's The Rez Sisters.

By Carly Maga

(L to R) Pamela Sinha, Cara Gee, Jean Yoon, Billy Merasty, Jani Lauzon, Djennie Laguerre, Michaela Washburn & Kyra Harper. Photo by Jeremy Mimnagh.

Testing the Boundaries

As the first of three co-productions between Canadian Stage and The Company Theatre, The Test puts both the actors and the audience to, well, the test.

By Carly Maga

Philip Riccio as Franzeck and Eric Peterson as Simon have their Daddy issues put to The Test. Photo by Guntar Kravis.

Plenty of Skeletons in Ghosts

Henrik Ibsen's controversial classic gets a bleak translation at Soulpepper, so dark it sometimes gets murky.

By Carly Maga

Michelle Monteith as Regine, Nancy Palk as Mrs. Alving, and Gregory Prest as Oswald Alving in are caught up in some messy family ties. Photo by Sian Richards.

We’re Still Not Completely Sold

HARDSELL 2.0 is a totally revamped version of Rick Miller's 2009 show exploring the pervasiveness of marketing and advertising. Unfortunately, this pitch still has a few holes.

By Carly Maga

Rick Miler splits himself into the righteous optimist and the outspoken cynic in HARDSELL 2.o. Photo by Michael Cooper.

Praise Jesus

Rick Miller continues his solo show three-peat with Bigger Than Jesus, a show worthy of resurrection.

By Carly Maga

Rick Miller - a Savior for the digital age. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

The Not-So-Merry Maids

An ambitious season opener, artistic director of Buddies in Bad Times Theatre Brendan Healy barely misses a spot in this queer theatre classic.

By Carly Maga

If good help is hard to find, a good mistress is even worse. Diane D'Aquila (Solange) and Ron Kennell (Claire) in The Maids. Photo by Jeremy Mimnaugh.

A Real Trage-D’oh!

Rick Miller's international hit MacHomer is back in Toronto, and even after all these years, there still wasn't a boo-urns in the house.

By Carly Maga

This villain's got a hunger for doughnuts, beer, and power. Rick Miller as the titular MacHomer.

Peter and the Wolf Grow Up

Adolescence is tricky, and Theatre Rusticle's adult interpretation of the Russian fable Peter and the Wolf has its share of growing pains.

By Carly Maga

Matthew Romantini (Peter) and David Smukler (his Grandfather) capture William Yong (The Wolf).

David Fox Worth Every Penny in The Price

A Canadian theatrical icon adds value to a classic American playwright's rarely produced work.

By Carly Maga

Michael Hanrahan and David Fox in The Price at Soulpepper. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.