Meet Cody Berkeley, a renowned dance teacher and choreographer in the ballet and competition studio world. Originally from Dallas, Cody excelled on the competition circuit while growing up, and in his senior year was awarded a full scholarship to the University of the Arts in Philadelphia courtesy of the NYCDA College Scholarship Foundation. Since graduating with a BFA in Dance Performance, Cody has danced for Clairobscur Dance Company in LA, Dark Circles Contemporary Dance USA in Dallas, and toured with Step One Dance Company. Since focusing on teaching/choreographing, Cody has taught at Ellison Ballet School and currently leads Greenwich Ballet Academy’s contemporary program. He has received awards from Youth America Grand Prix and the University Ballet Competition for his choreography and coaching. Follow Cody @codyberkeleydance.
Read moreBlack Box Theatre Co.'s The Play That Goes Wrong gets the chaos right →
What’s just as entertaining as a play that’s impeccably polished? One that’s impeccably polished to fall apart. The-play-that-goes-wrongBlack Box Theatre Co.’s production of the international hit The Play That Goes Wrong, now at the Waterfront Theatre on Granville Island, is a wildly fun ride. Similar in concept to Noises Off, it gleefully lampoons a hapless theatre company staging a play, stumbling through forgotten lines, misplaced props, full-on set collapses, and more.
Read moreFresh take on Legally Blonde uplifts and empowers at Theatre Under the Stars →
Trends may come and go, but as Elle Woods wisely reminds us, “being true to yourself never goes out of style.” This enduring mantra is a key reason why Legally Blonde—the story of Elle’s unexpected journey to Harvard Law School—continues to strike a chord with audiences.
Read moreTheatre Under the Stars brings its own darkly inventive comedy to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory →
Theatre Under The Stars has long delighted Vancouver audiences with summer productions that transform beloved children’s stories into live musicals under the open sky. This year, the company brings Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to life in a production bursting with heart and standout talent.
Read moreArts Club cooks up a creative hit with a Waitress that's moving yet whimsical →
With Waitress, the Arts Club Theatre Company has whipped up something truly special as its season-closing musical. This production isn’t simply a replica of the acclaimed Broadway version; instead, under the direction of Ashlie Corcoran, it soars with its own voice, thanks to imaginative work from the creative team and a poignant performance by its star Rachel Drance.
Read moreBoys Dance Too podcast: Taylor Roper
Meet Taylor Roper—owner of House of Dance, a top competitive studio in Ontario, Canada. Taylor is a former dancer with Tokyo Disney Sea and Royal Caribbean, and in his youth, he was an elite competitive dancer. In our conversation, Taylor unpacks his experience growing up a boy dancer in the suburbs, his professional dance career, and what his life looks like now as a studio owner, including the challenges and wins. Follow Taylor on IG @taylor_roper and his studio @houseofdanceca.
Read moreLegendary songs move from screen to stage to create A Whole New World →
The merging of the iconic phrases “Once upon a time” and “Lights, camera, action!” embodies the concept of A Whole New World: A Concert of Movie Musicals’ Greatest Songs. Under the creative direction of Alan Corbishley, A Whole New World is a uniquely conceived concert of songs from beloved Disney films in the first act and Hollywood musicals in the second. The production kicked off its 17-city B.C. tour on May 17 and will continue to June 20.
Read moreBoys Dance Too podcast: E. Clayton Cornelious
Meet E. Clayton Cornelious—otherwise known as E. Clay! He’s been in 10 Broadway shows including A Chorus Line, The Music Man, The Lion King, Ain’t Too Proud, and Beautiful: The Carol King Musical. He was also in the televised Jersey Boys Live with Nick Jonas; in Rat Pack in London’s West End; and in national tours of Kinky Boots, Hairspray, and more; on TV in The Marvelous Mrs. Mazel; and he’s a 2-time Tony Award-nominated producer! Hear about his career journey doing some of the most iconic Broadway shows. Follow him on IG @eclaycorn and visit his website www.eclaycorn.com.
Read moreHenry VIII's queens bring down history and the house in defiantly catchy SIX →
Royalty has arrived in Vancouver and the Queen Elizabeth Theatre is an appropriately named venue to host some divine monarchs this week. The smash Broadway musical SIX is in town, care of Broadway Across Canada, and on opening night, the queens ate and left no crumbs. Directed by Lucy Moss and Jamie Armitage, SIX is a pop concert–style retelling of the stories of the six wives of Henry VIII. Each queen performs a song detailing her doomed relationship with Henry to get the audience on their side and be crowned the leader of the group. There’s plenty of tea to spill, from messy divorces to messy deaths that include beheading.
Read moreCTORA shows off triple-threat chops in gripping West Side Story →
From the whistles in the “Prologue” to the haunting final visual, CTORA’s West Side Story is a stunning production of the iconic Broadway musical. Telling a story about young love set amid an ethnically divisive street-gang war between the “American” Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks in 1950s New York, West Side Story continues to be relevant. Despite that, pulling it off is a huge challenge given the triple-threat skills, culturally appropriate casting, and expertise needed to fit all the pieces together.
Read moreSeventies-era touches bring high-spirited glam to Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat →
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, one of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s best-known rock musicals, is back in Vancouver—and Metro Theatre’s version has some fresh hues. Director Christopher King has enacted a creative 1970s TV variety-show framing device, and through this, the unapologetically quirky, over-the-top production looks and sounds fantastic, with all the silliness that the musical is beloved for.
Read moreEvery Day She Rose poses unsettling, unanswered questions about privilege
In Every Day She Rose, a play by Andrea Scott and Nick Green, has some very important things to say, and chances are, these messages may seem foreign to some theatregoers. That’s likely the point. The dynamic between a gay male and straight female who are best friends isn’t new territory in storytelling. But what’s far less common is a version that isn’t idealized—one shaped by the imbalance of privilege between the two, and the quiet tensions that can arise from it.
Read moreCTORA searches out enduring truths in West Side Story →
What’s the key to good storytelling? For CTORA, authenticity seems to be the driving force in its version of West Side Story. Inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the musical tells the tale of star-crossed young lovers Tony and Maria, against the backdrop of an ethnically divisive street-gang war between the “American” Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks in 1950s New York. The roles of Tony and Maria are as iconic as the show itself, immortalized in many Broadway stage and film versions. But CTORA’s stars Sayer Roberts and Cassandra Consiglio aren’t fazed. They’re leaning into authenticity.
Read morePowerhouse performances give fresh currency to 9 to 5: The Musical →
Royal City Musical Theatre has a great new look: instead of presenting its usual annual offering of a beloved classic Broadway musical, the company has tackled a contemporary show—9 to 5: The Musical. Under the choreography of the revered Valerie Easton and her codirection with Chris Adams, RCMT demonstrates its versatility and ample ability to stay relevant. 9 to 5 is a fun musical-theatre extravaganza with bold messages of female empowerment, workplace equality, and following one’s heart at any stage in life, set to a score by Dolly Parton herself.
Read moreResilience and ambition power Royal City Musical Theatre's 9 to 5 →
In Royal City Musical Theatre’s upcoming production of 9 to 5: The Musical, based on the 1980 film, Maia Beresford plays Doralee Rhodes—a character immortalized onscreen by Dolly Parton. Beresford has had ample inspiration to prepare for a role so synonymous with female empowerment. For starters, she watched her mom defy the odds while she was growing up.
Read moreArsenic and Old Lace serves up charm and dark humour with a splash of poison elderberry with a splash of poison elderberry wine →
Is murder something that runs in families? This certainly seems to be the case in Arsenic and Old Lace. Written by Joseph Kesselring, this play about a family with a bad habit of killing people was a huge hit when it opened on Broadway in 1941, before making it to the big screen in 1944. Now, over 80 years later, Metro Theatre’s production is a true delight, showing that this black comedy is still a hit with modern audiences.
Read moreKrystle Dos Santos's lifelong love of soul gives powerful voice to A History of Motown →
Twelve years ago, singer-songwriter Krystle Dos Santos embarked on a journey to discover the true inspiration of her love for soul music. Dos Santos had been passionate about soul from a young age, influenced by such icons as Aretha Franklin and Etta James. But having grown up in Edmonton, decades after the height of those soul icons, Dos Santos experienced imposter syndrome—questioning whether her voice was authentic enough to do justice to the genre.
Read moreGenre-defying Eurydice Fragments travels beyond binaries to another world →
There’s much to celebrate in Eurydice Fragments, an innovative tech-forward and gender-inclusive reimagining of the Eurydice and Orpheus myth.
Read moreThe Papa Penguin Play celebrates same-sex parents and their children in party-themed show
Vancouver playwright Dave Deveau truly knows what it means to build a family. Over the past six years, he and his partner Cameron Mackenzie have become fathers to two children, thanks to surrogacy arrangements with close family friends. But when the couple tried to include books in their bookshelf that would help their children see similar families in the pages, they realized there weren’t many.
Read moreSasha Velour speaks to "The Big Reveal: Why Drag Matters" at Phil Lind Initiative series →
“The new thing is definitely going to walk in with a scream—and that is me,” Sasha Velour asserted, when asked by RuPaul why she would deserve to win season nine of RuPaul’s Drag Race. She won. And the scream she mentioned? One could argue this was a foreshadowing of her advocacy for LGBTQ2SIA+ rights and drag and queer history education.
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