If you’ve felt something different in the air this week in Vancouver, you’re right. Because there’s magic in the air, thanks to Broadway Across Canada’s production of The Illusionists – Live from Broadway, which opened on Tuesday night at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. This highly impressive show delivers dazzling tricks in a fun and personable way.
Read moreThe Full Light of Day is a delicious visual treat, but the story is bland
Jillian Fargey and Dean Paul Gibson in The Full Light of Day - photo by Don Lee
Electric Company Theatre’ latest work, The Full Light of Day, stretches the possibilities of theatrical storytelling, skillfully incorporating videography. The two-act play uses both live streaming, as well as pre-recorded video footage, to tell its story. Combined with stunning set, lighting, and costume designs, The Full Light of Day is quite a visual treat. With the use of Brian Lind’s movie-like sound design, the show indeed verges on creating a new art form – a theatre/film hybrid. Unfortunately, the show lacks a strong enough story to support its tremendous production values.
Read moreDisney's Beauty and the Beast rides on renewed energy and strong voices →
From the first rose-petal fall to the joyous finale, the Arts Club’s production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast glows with the story’s message of love and forgiveness, infused with fresh elements. Originally staged in 2005 by director Bill Millerd, this production has evolved to stay relevant to audiences.
Read moreA Charlie Brown Holiday Double Bill brings beloved Peanuts characters to life, complete with "ice skating" and a Christmas pageant →
Andrew Cownden (Charlie Brown), Arielle Ballance (Violet), and Emilie Leclerc (Lucy). Photo credit: Tim Matheson
Charlie Brown and his Peanuts gang are looking fabulous these days. Carousel Theatre for Young People’s A Charlie Brown Holiday Double Bill has brought Charlie and his crew to the stage of the Waterfront Theatre in a larger-than-life theatrical experience that kids and parents alike will enjoy.
Read moreSeven Tyrants Theatre’s Doubt – a psychological drama that keeps you in suspense
Sometimes we have instinctual feelings, even though we don’t have solid evidence to prove our suspicions. If we stay true to our instincts, we’re showing strength by sticking to our conviction. The flipside is, that in order to do this we need to ignore doubt. What’s the wiser thing to do? Sticking to your conviction or acknowledging doubt? That’s the premise of John Patrick Shanley’s Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning play, Doubt: A Parable, which Seven Tyrants Theatre has skillfully mounted.
Read moreThe Enemy pits economic prosperity against ethics and environmental concerns →
Paul Herbert, Jenn Griffin, Sharon Crandall, and Agnes Tong in The Enemy.
Is the majority always right? That’s the question that the The Enemy appears to ask at first. Adapted and directed by artistic producer Donna Spencer, from Henrik Ibsen’s 1882 An Enemy of the People, the play examines tensions between ethics and public interest. The Enemy does a nice job of transplanting Ibsen’s story into a contemporary setting that B.C. audiences can relate to. However, the play could benefit from some refinement, as the dialogue feels a bit unnatural, and there are a few too many extraneous pieces.
Read moreBeautiful: The Carole King Musical glows with inspirational storytelling
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical gets to the heart of what I love the most about musical theatre – it takes you on a character’s journey and combines acting, music, dance, and theatrical magic to tell a captivating story. It tells a simple story – but it’s a moving story nonetheless and the show’s star – the incredible Sarah Bockel – is dynamite.
Read moreAlign Entertainment’s A Christmas Story is a heart-warming treat of musical theatre magic
Photo credit: Emily Cooper
The holiday season has begun and Align Entertainment is on the ball, with its slick, fun-filled production of A Christmas Story: The Musical. Based on the classic 1983 film, the musical version features an excellent score by Dear Evan Hansen’s Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. The stage version definitely succeeds in capturing the same quirky humour and sweet family-life sentiment as the film. Align Entertainment has put a lot of hard work into this show – and the quality of this production sparkles like Christmas lights.
Read moreBallet BC’s opening program a blend of risk-taking and reviving a fan favourite
Ballet BC opened its season this past week with Program 1, featuring three ballets with distinctly different styles. One of these ballets was an internationally acclaimed work from iconic choreographer William Forsythe. The second piece was a world premiere, set to the music of Jimi Hendrix. The third – and strongest – piece was a gorgeous remount of a ballet originally set on the company in 2011. It’s no surprise then that this piece, Petite Cérémonie, fits the company like a glove, and was likely the most memorable ballet of the night among audiences.
Read moreBackbone defines gravity with flair and quirkiness
Photo credit: @GomCircus Instagram
Gravity may not be as limiting as you think. While you always have to come down to earth after taking flight, there’s a lot you can do while still up in the air. And there’s no better example than Gravity & Other Myths thrilling production of Backbone. Featuring a cast of ridiculously in-shape and talented circus artists, this world-renowned show lifts you from your seat and whisks you into a whimsical world that challenges human strength and ability.
Read moreThe Merry Widow sparkles with attitude and charm
The company of Vancouver Opera’s The Merry Widow. Photo credit: Tim Matheson
Vancouver Opera has outdone itself with its dazzling production of Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow. This lighthearted operetta, written by Franz Lehár, will be a delightful treat for many theatre fans. It features dynamite performances, and some of the most spectacular sets and costumes I’ve ever seen onstage. But the heart of this production is the masterful craftsmanship of director Kelly Robinson, and choreographer Joshua Beamish.
Read moreKill Me Now is a touching play about family bond
The cast of Brad Fraser’s Kill Me Now. Photo credit: David Cooper
Brad Fraser’s Kill Me Now is a serious look into the lives of a family plagued by unfortunate health conditions. It is heartfelt, touching and solidly based in its arguments. While the play’s primary message examines who holds the right to decide life or death, another layer explores the coming-of-age of a young man – a story, which regardless of disabilities involved (the central teenage character is disabled), is a beautiful representation of the circle of life.
Read moreBlood flies in site-specific Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street →
Colleen Winton as Mrs Lovett and Warren Kimmel as Sweeney Todd.
With Halloween approaching, the Snapshots Collective’s immersive production of Stephen Sondheim’s Tony Award–winning musical Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street has been unleashed at the perfect time. Bone-chilling and imaginative, this resurrection of Sweeney Todd delivers Sondheim’s masterpiece score and the show’s murderous story line in a way that’s wickedly and enjoyably up close and personal: at an actual pie shop.
Read moreWhat would you say to your younger self? Krapp’s Last Tape is an interesting look at self-reflection
Linden Banks in Krapp’s Last Tape. Photo credit: Seven Tyrants Theatre
Looking back at our younger selves is always interesting, and can conjure all kinds of emotions. A lot of times, we may think, “What was I thinking?”. Seven Tyrants Theatre’s production of Samuel Beckett’s play, Krapp’s Last Tape, explores the mixed emotions we have when reflecting on the past, and how we may often think, “I wish I could tell my younger self what I know now – and maybe give them a shake as well”.
Read moreTestosterone explores societal gender expectations with sincerity and sensitivity
The company of Testosterone. Photo credit: Luke Forsyth
Does our personality shape how we look, or does how we look shape our personality? That’s the question that Kit Redstone asks in the UK’s Rhum and Clay Theatre’s show, Testosterone, presented in Vancouver by The Cultch. Inspired by Redstone’s own experiences from transitioning to male in his early 30’s, Testosterone in an insightful look into adjusting to post-operation life and addressing pre-conceived assumptions about gender behaviour.
Read moreThe Book of Mormon sparkles with fresh, young talent and fun humour
The ensemble of The Book of Mormon. Photo credit: Julieta Cervantes
Our favourite Mormon boys and their pals are back in the Tony Award-winning musical comedy, The Book of Mormon, presented by Broadway Across Canada. This cheeky musical from the creators of South Park combines fun, adult humour with valid commentary and insightful perspectives on society – the perfect balance of lightheartedness and intelligence. And while this is the third touring production of the show, this version is as fresh as ever, pumped up with exciting, youthful talent.
Read moreFirehall Arts Centre opens season with exciting new work, Never Still
Dancer: Alexa Mardon; Photo Credit: Ben Didier
Water is life. We’re basically made of it. Our body composition is roughly 50 – 70% water. Water also covers 71% of the earth. We’re mysteriously connected to water – and that’s something that Vancouver’s Vanessa Goodman, artistic director of Action at a Distance Dance Society, explores in her new work, Never Still, which will open the Firehall Arts Centre’s 2018/2019 season on Wednesday, September 26.
Read moreEnsemble Theatre’s A Few Good Men keeps you on the edge of your seat
As a society, we tend to expect our summertime entertainment to be spectacular. Epic Hollywood adventure movies (I recently watched the new Jurassic World), large scale stage shows (I recently reviewed Les Miserables, Cinderella and 42nd Street, and concerts and music festivals (I might have been to a couple of EDM festivals) are the norm. And all of that is great. But we can’t count out the other end of the spectrum. For example, intimate plays with minimal actors, sets and costumes…that are very well done. And Ensemble Theatre’s production of the acclaimed play, A Few Good Men, is a small-scale show that blows you out of the water.
Read moreThe Dance Teacher is a dark tango of truths and lies
Tomo Suru’s The Dance Teacher, is an intriguing play that reads like a Gillian Flynn novel. If you’ve read any of Flynn’s work, or watched the film adaption of her story, Gone Girl, you’ll catch my drift. The Dance Teacher is a dark mystery that draws you in and keeps you hooked as piece the story together.
Read moreNew generation breathes fresh life into Theatre Under the Stars' fast-tapping 42nd Street
The Broadway musical 42nd Street has tapped its way to Malkin Bowl in Stanley Park. The Theatre Under the Stars production opened to an appreciative audience who enjoyed the tremendous efforts put forth by the popular theatre company, which is celebrating its 72nd season. And while 42nd Street doesn’t quite knock it out of the park, there’s some great talent on display.
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