Lynn

More from the Toronto Fringe…

The Man With the Golden Heart – A New Musical

At the Jeanne Lamon Hall, Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre, 427 Bloor St. W. Toronto, Ont.

www.fringetoronto.com

Written and directed by Andrew Seok

Music director, Jonathan Corkal-Astorga

Choreographer, Sam Jamieson

Lighting by Gordon Peck

Cast: Eunnie An

Scott Beaudin

Tess Benger

Rhoslynne Bugay

Rachel Delduca

Bruce Dow

Tristan Hernandez

Sarah Horsman

George Krissa

Charlotte Moore

Timothy Ng

Lee-Orr

Ted Powers

Andrew Seok

Annie Wang

Musicians: Jonathan Corkal-Astorga

Andrew Ascenzo

Alex Toskov

Andrew Seok, the writer and director of this stirring musical, has a huge beating heart and is brimming with humanity. He was concerned about the meanness and darkness of our present world and decided to write a musical full of the goodness of people in hard times. The Man with the Golden Heart is the result.

The musical takes place over three stressful times in our history: 1883 the building of the Canadian-Pacific railway by East Asian’s who were brought to Canada as cheap labour to build the railway; 1917 during WW1, 1929 the stock market crash. If I have the dates wrong it’s because I could not properly read the dates on the prop papers that characters unfolded to show us the dates.

Three couples go through hard times when they are affected by one of these events. An Asian husband works on the Canadian-Pacific and volunteers for a dangerous job to earn money they need; a young husband is conscripted to fight in WW1; a young couple is horribly affected by the stock market crash and it almost ruins their marriage.

To help these couples through it, a stranger, the man with the golden heart gives a bit of his heart to help them through the hard times, unbeknownst to them.  Unfortunately, by so doing he diminishes his own life until the matter becomes very serious.

Writer/director Andrew Seok has created a stirring, lush score. The songs (I wish there was a song list) cover such subjects as falling in love, trust, loyalty, making hard decisions for loved ones, forgiveness and hope. I must confess that often songs sounded the same, or it could have been the frequent reprises or what seemed like reprises.

The cast is first rate. They are led by Bruce Dow, the man with the golden heart. He has a strong tenor voice and spills his guts in emotion as he is compelled to help people in trouble. Playing the man with the golden heart’s mother is Charlotte Moore. She too has a strong voice and a compelling ability to act the song with conviction. Tess Benger, the War Wife, goes from strength to strength. She has a crystalline voice and she digs deep into the heart of each song. There is grace in everything thing she does.

I hope The Man With The Golden Heart has another life with some judicious editing.

Plays at the Jeanne Lamon Hall, July 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 (95 minutes long.)

www.fringetoronto.ca

Fertility Slippers

Written by Ece Aydin

Directed by Christopher Legacy

Sound by Eric Kinsella

Cast: Aida Keykhaii

Parnian Pourzahed

This is a terrific piece about the cultural/generational divide between a traditional Turkish mother and her modern thinking daughter. The mother wants her daughter to wear slippers in the house and not just her socks on her feet. The mother feels that the slippers will protect her daughter from colds and illness and will keep her safe and thus make her fertile and able to have children. The mother also feels that their Turkish traditions should be maintained—that the daughter should meet a nice Turkish man and marry him. The daughter wants to be independent and chose whoever she wants as her partner.

To show the divide, the daughter wears a “Green Day” sweatshirt (the rock group). The mother wears modern garb but also scarves that represent a Turkish connection. The mother peppers her English dialogue with snippets of Turkish endearments and other Turkish comments. One doesn’t need to know Turkish to get the gist of the conversation of the mother.

The acting is divine of Aida Keykhaii as the mother, and Parnian Pourzahed as the daughter. The affection of both mother and daughter is clear in these lovely performances. The mother is gently pushy and over protective and the daughter is subtly frustrated by the push and the protection. They tug and push with equal measure creating a lovely dynamic.

Playwright Ece Aydin has written a story that is specifically between a Turkish mother and her modern-thinking Turkish daughter, and by being specific Ece Aydin has written a universal story that is recognizable no matter what culture you are from.

Christopher Legacy has directed Fertility Slippers with care, whimsy and a lovely sense of buoyancy. And Aida Keykhaii does some pretty impressive Turkish dancing as well.

Pure joy.

Fertility Slippers continues at the Tank House at the Young Centre  July 12, 14, 15, 16.

www.fringetoronto.com

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From the Toronto Fringe: Live and in person at Theatre Passe Muraille Backspace:

www.fringetoronto.ca

Written and performed by Nicholas Eddie

Directed by Sepehr Reybod.

Music and sound by Nicholas Eddie

Our gangly and over-sweatered hero has a dilemma. The RCMP are coming to his house tomorrow morning at 9 am to retrieve his late father’s handgun because the license for it is years out of date. Our hero can either turn it in or lie and say he couldn’t find it and thus keep it for himself. He seems to lean towards the latter with cause. He muses on so many things that are wrong with the world: the phoniness of land acknowledgements, the frantic pace of life as exemplified in his “healthy stew”, how depending on cell phones is addictive, racists, the fear of getting old, how AI could get the vote and where would we be (hmmmmm), loneliness. But there is always hope and the celebration of life.

Nicholas Eddie is a tsunami of energy. He charges around the stage pursuing ideas, demons and inspiration. He does pushups, a perfect downward dog and an excellent pigeon pose. He takes the audience on a sweat inducing workout without their needing to get up and be breathless, except for laughing. His riff on the woes of the world is both funny and moving. His perceptions about that world are deeply felt. He gives voice to many thoughts/feelings the audience must have all felt at one point or the other. Nicholas Eddie is both charming and quick-witted. He replies to a comment or two from the audience with a smart replay, but never smart-assed.

Well worth a visit to see the show. Hurry. My performance was sold out.

Continues at the Fringe, Theatre Passe Muraille Backspace on: July 9, July 11, July 12, July 13, July 14, July 15.

www.fringetoronto.ca

COMMENT: The volunteers to a person at the Fringe are cheerful, helpful and accommodating. I love that every show I’ve seen starts bang on time. There is a no-late admission policy at the Fringe. How then to explain why two people were allowed in five minutes late to ONE NIGHT ONLY? They disrupted a quiet, poignant moment. Nicholas Eddie was gracious. Classy.

Stick to the no late admission please, out of respect for the artist and all the people who managed to be there on time.   

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Live and in person at the Blyth Festival, Blyth, Ont. Playing until September 1, 2023.

www.blythfestival.com

Adapted by Gil Garratt

Original writer, James Reaney

Directed by Gil Garratt

Set and lighting by Beth Kates

Costumes by Jennifer Triemstra-Johnston

Sound by Lyon Smith

Cast: Geoffrey Armour

Masae Day

Paul Dunn

Randy Hughson

Rachel Jones

Cameron Laurie

Steven McCarthy

Hallie Seline

James Dallas Smith

Mark Uhre

A herculean effort by Gil Garratt to bring this sprawling, gripping tale of the Donnelly family to the stage in three parts. Sticks and Stones the first of the trilogy, is a  fluid, compelling production.

NOTE: The story of the Donnelly family is told in three parts over the course of the summer on the wonderful Harvest Stage: Sticks and Stones, St. Nicholas Hotel and Handcuffs.

The Story of Sticks and Stones. This first part of the trilogy of the Donnelly family establishes who they were; why they came to Canada and the difficulties they had along the way.

James Donnelly and Johannah Magee met and married in Tipperary, Ireland. They were both Catholics. Because James Donnelly refused to join a secret catholic sect, he was given grief by those who wanted him to join. To escape this kind of persecution, James, Johannah and their first born, James Jr. sailed for Canada in 1844. They settled on 100 acres of land in Biddulph Township (near what is now London, Ont.) based on a handshake with the landlord, James Grace.

James Donnelly worked hard to maintain his farm and the crops. He and Johannah welcome more children into their family over time, eight children in all.

In 1856 Mr. Grace severs 50 acres of James Donnelly’s land and sells it to Patrick Farrell. James cannot raise the money to keep his land. He can’t read so could not argue that his agreement was not officially written down. It was based on a handshake. This starts the animosity between the Donnelly’s and Patrick Farrell and their other neighbours. The matter is taken to court. The judge sees the improvements that James Donnelly made to the land in 10 years and rules James is allowed to keep 50 acres of his original land.

1857. James gets into a fight with Patrick Farrell and kills him. James is sentenced to be hanged. Johannah gathers names in a petition to have the sentence changed and travels a huge distance by foot to present it to the Governor General. The sentence is commuted to seven years in prison. The animosity does not end when James is released and reaches a horrifying conclusion when neighbours take revenge.

If ever there was a story about religious intolerance and the blinkered animosity of neighbour for neighbour, the story of the Donnelly family and what they endured, is it.

The Production and comment. For my performance, a stagecoach circles the area of the Harvest Stage and brings James (Randy Hughson) and Johannah Donnelly (Rachel Jones) to the theatre. Magic.

Beth Kates’ set is rustic, efficient and evocative of the pioneer spirit needed to build a home for a growing family in the early days of Upper Canada. There is a piano up over there; a hat stand, table and chairs, ropes and tools for farming. The space is not cluttered with stuff and there is room to move this sweeping story along. And director Gil Garratt has a delicate but firm touch in negotiating this large talented cast around the space.  The production begins with a beautiful song sung by the cast who also play many instruments to set things up.

Young Will Donnelly (Steven McCarthy) establishes what he has contended with. He describes himself as crippled and that he has been called a ‘blackfoot’ a pejorative name hurled by one Catholic person to others they feel are lesser. Steven McCarthy plays Will Donnelly through various ages, from young to a mature man, with grace, a quiet courtliness and a sweet innocence when he is the younger Will.

We then go back in time to the beginning of the story in Ireland. James Donnelly, played with gruff authority by Randy Hughson, is determined to take his family to Canada for safety and a new life. Randy Hughson plays James Donnelly with sturdy conviction. James is a man of few words. He is also a man of huge character. He stands up for what is right and will fight his position. Hughson conveys the confusion and frustration of James when he realizes that his land has been taken from him by James Grace and that the handshake of the two meant nothing. One is fully aware at the many and various slights, cheats and humiliations that James Donnelly had to endure by the strong acting of Randy Hughson. By James Donnelly’s side is his wife Johannah, played with a determined conviction by Rachel Jones. As full of character as James is, so is Johannah. They instill that in their children. Her determination to save her husband by gathering all those petition names, and then trudging to the Governor General is a testament to her resolve. We get a sense of the huge distance she travelled by Gil Garratt’s staging and Rachel Jones physicality of the difficult journey.

Cameron Laurie as Pat Farrell, one of James Donnelly’s enemies is a dark and forbidding presence. Mark Uhre as John Cassleigh is also another enemy of James Donnelly. Mark Uhre plays Cassleigh with a smooth arrogance and condescension. The animosity that the Donnelly’s endured is carefully created by director Gil Garratt and his cast.

One can certainly appreciate the complex story of the Donnelly’s over time. The programme outlines a detailed timeline for details and dates of births, deaths and details. Gil Garratt’s respect for the original plays of James Reaney that dealt with this huge Donnelly story, is so obvious in his efforts to adapt the plays.

Garratt goes into great detail to establish the lay of the land that James and his family settled on in Biddulph Township. Garratt names the roads, the concessions, who owned the land. Garratt stages the cast in circling motions, intertwining lines and variations. Over the course of the play these formations and recitations of the names will be repeated.

I admit that I found the detail bogged down the story. I don’t think this minute detail or the extended circling and entwining enhances the story. It’s James Donnelly’s interactions with his neighbours and how he dealt with them that keep the story charging along.

Still, to hear the Donnelly story again, after so long (I saw a version of it years ago) is thrilling and unsettling when one knows what happened to that family.

The Blyth Festival presents:

Plays until September 1, 2023.

Running time: 2 hours 30 minutes (1 intermission)

www.blythfestival.com

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Short Bits on the Toronto Fringe Festival, Toronto, Ont. Until July 15, 2023.

www.fringetoronto.com

JUNE

Written and directed by Gillian R. Edwards

Set by Daniel Bowden

Lighting by Duaa Zahra

Sound effects/video by Kevin Quain

Cast: Bonnie Anderson

Daniel Christian Jones

Jacob Klick

Jesse McQueen

We hear five gun shots at the beginning of the production of this intriguing play. It’s 1958, the Midwest of the United States. June (Jesse McQueen) shot her lover Richard (Jacob Klick), stood trial and was found guilty of murder and sent to prison. She develops a friendship with a woman prison guard name Parker (Bonnie Anderson). They talk about children—June has a son and Parker doesn’t have children. Parker can’t believe that June would not reveal that her lover beat her and her son. She had her reasons—who would believe her?

Gillian R. Edwards has written an intriguing play about what women put up with in abusive relationships; why they pick the partners they do and not more suitable ones—June was also loved  by Geoff (Daniel Christian Jones), and what they will do to protect their children.

But Gillian R. Edwards introduces a topic at the end—the inhumanity of the death penalty and the process—that comes from no where and is not supported. That could make an interesting play on its own.

The production is efficient but the scenes between Jesse McQueen as June and Bonnie Anderson as Parker are spoken so quietly, not projected, that one can’t hear much of what they are saying. The words are important; please speak up! Interestingly, when Jesse McQueen had scenes with the men, audibility was no problem.

JUNE continues at Theatre Passe Muraille Mainspace July 7, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15. 60 minutes.

A programme is provided.

www.fringetoronto.com

CORPORATE FINCH

Written and directed by Taylor Marie Graham

Designed by Matthew Ivanoff, David DeGrow, and Terre Chartrand

Cast: Matthew Ivanoff

Rainbow Kester.

It’s midnight and two teenagers are breaking into an abandoned factory. He is Jacob (Matthew Ivanoff). She is called Corporate Finch (Rainbow Kester) by him (he misheard her real name Courtenay, when they first met years before. Now he mostly calls her Finch. She sometimes sleeps there. She does not get along with her father. While they appear to like each other, Finch has other reasons for daring Jacob to come with her to break into the factory. Something happened to them that tested their friendship and he failed. He has a ‘touch’ of narcolepsy so that anytime he might be needed to help her, he’s conveniently asleep.  And she’s going to set it right.

It’s interesting how Finch (Rainbow Kester) toys with Jacob (Matthew Ivanoff) in such a deceptively playful way. He seems completely in her thrall, if not afraid of her. While he is alone in the factory—Finch has gone to get something—Jacob calls a mutual friend named Liam and indicates that he is afraid of Finch.

Taylor Marie Graham has written a dramatic tale that slowly evolves and grips us on the way. We learn some important information about Liam and his relation to the two friends. That should be developed because of what we learn happened in the past to Finch. The playing of Rainbow Kester and Matthew Ivanoff is playful and then steadily spooky when the truth is revealed. The pace seemed laggy on the opening, but I have faith it will tighten as the run progresses.

CORPORATE FINCH continues at Theatre Passe Muraille Backspace July 7, 8, 10, 12, 15, 16. 50 minutes.

www.fringetoronto.com

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Live and in person at the Stratford Perth Museum, 4275 Huron Road, RR #5, Stratford, Ont. produced by the Here for Now Theatre. Playing until July 15, 2023.

www.herefornowtheatre.com

Written by Matt Murray

Directed by Sheila McCarthy

Costumes and set by Monique Lund

Cast: Lauren Bowler

Sara-Jeanne Hosie

Barbara Kozicki Beall

Wild, funny, raucous.

The Story. (The programme says it best, and doesn’t give away hints): “Pam finds an inappropriate letter from her teenage son to his mystery girlfriend, she arrives unannounced at Holly’s house to discuss their children’s relationship. What starts as a pleasant visit, quickly takes a turn. The situation launches into orbit with the arrival of Holly’s filter-less best friend, Cheryl. One lie leads to another, and another, on this outrageous roller coaster ride of misunderstandings.”

The Production. Playwright Matt Murray knows from “funny.” He has written extensively for the Ross Petty Pantomimes, the musicals Grow and Maggie and a host of other projects. In Myth of the Ostrich, he is not only funny, he’s creative, inventive and perceptive. He has written thoughtfully about three women! Imagine that. I guess you can do that quite credibly when you have talent and sensitivity and an imagination.

For this iteration of the summer season of Here for Now Theatre, the audience sits in comfortable seats, under a wonderful protective white tent on the grounds of the Stratford Perth Museum 4275 Huron Road, RR #5, Stratford, Ont. The audience looks out on a vista of lush greenery and past that is a huge field of green.

Designer, Monique Lund has created a set that reflects the life of a writer. Post-it-notes with messages are pasted to Holly’s laptop. There is stuff all around—a tea pot, cups, pencils, paper clips. Stuff. Holly (Sara-Jeanne Hosie) is the writer in question. And she is furious with her slack agent. In her first scene Holly is on the cell phone with the agent and she’s not happy. “SHUT-UP, SHUT-UP, SHUT-UP!” she bellows into the phone.

Is Matt Murray giving an homage to Sara-Jeanne Hosie when she played the villain in Ross Petty’s Pantomimes, with her first lines of “SHUT-UP?”  Sara-Jeanne Hosie is no stranger to funny. In the Ross Petty Pantomimes she would appear on stage as the villain and the audience immediately started to boo her, loudly. She looked at them with contempt, wound up and hurled a “SHUT-UP!!” at them, and then some. I’m going with the homage…

Holly is trying to write. She has just fired her agent. Holly’s day is interrupted by the arrival of Pam (Lauren Bowler) who is prim, proper and concerned about her son and his girlfriend Jody, who she’s never met. She comes over to meet Jody’s mother, Holly.

Pam seems harried with the constant calls from her lawyer-husband Dan who wants to know what she’s doing, where, and what’s for dinner. (lamb). He’s waiting for the verdict in a big case. Holly is also suffering the effects of being off sugar for two weeks.

Holly is also interrupted by her wild friend Cheryl (Barbara Kozicki Beall) who has brought some ‘plant-based’ treats. While nutritionists urge us to eat more plant-based foods, I don’t think they meant the kind of ‘plant-based treats’ Cheryl is bringing. As the best-friend-without-a-filter, Cheryl regals one and all of the sex she just had with her boy-friend; her concern that there seems to be a missing condom that the boyfriend ‘was’ using and now can’t find; and lots of inuendo about the relationship of Pam’s son and Holly’s teenager.

All three actors are masters at comedy. Lauren Bowler as Pam is that uptight, prim woman who is let loose from constraints when she hoovers down one WHOLE plant-based treat, instead of a quarter of it—all that sugar, right? There is a certain finesse needed to carry off appearing woozy-high-excited-enervated-and light-headed because of something you ate. Lauren Bowler as Pam does it beautifully. This is a measured, beautifully paced performance that is very funny. As Cheryl, Barbara Kozicki Beall has that exuberance of an unrestrained spirit, but with nuance and a keen idea of how to float a laugh-line so that it lands perfectly. And as Holly, Sara-Jeanne Hosie both watches and participates in the madness, knowing what is really going on with her teenager and Pam’s son; what’s in the treats; and being sensitive to both friends.  All beautifully done.

Leading them in mayhem is director Sheila McCarthy. Ms McCarthy is no slouch in the humour department either as a gifted actor or director. She knows how to nurture the humour in her dandy cast, coax out every last opportunity for a laugh and make it all seem effortless.

Comment. A wise friend noted that rehearsals for Myth of the Ostrich must have been hilarious if the production is any indication. Terrific play. Wonderful production. See it.

Produced by Here for Now Theatre:

Runs until July 15, 2023.

Running time: 80 minutes.

www.herefornowtheatre.com

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If you want to learn how to write for the theatre, Anusree Roy is the one to learn from. She is the real deal. She has written for the theatre, television, film and radio. She knows her stuff. Check out this fantastic opportunity.

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Live and in person at the Festival Theatre, Stratford Festival, Stratford, Ont. Plays until Oct. 27, 2023.

www.stratfordfestival.ca

Written by William Shakespeare

Additional text by Erin Shields

Directed by Chris Abraham

Designed by Julie Fox

Lighting by Arun Srinivasan

Composer and sound designer, Thomas Ryder Payne

Choreographer, Adrienne Gould

Cast: Graham Abbey

Anousha Alamian

Akosua Amo-Adem

Maev Beaty

Michael Blake

Déjah Dixon-Green

Austin Eckert

Allison Edward-Crewe

Jakob Ehman

John Kirkpatrick

Kevin Kruchkywich

Josue Laboucane

Cyrus Lane

Patrick McManus

Danté Prince

Glynis Ranney

Anthony Santiago

André Sills

Gordon Patrick White

Rylan Wilkie

Micah Woods

On Stage Musicians:

George Meanwell

Jonathan Rowsell

Stephan Szczesniak

A raucous, riotously funny, wonderfully thought-out production of reluctant love, the power of rumour and innuendo without considering the source of the statement, and finally a few extra speeches to set things straight and in perspective. Chris Abraham has directed a gem of a production. Graham Abbey and Maev Beaty are the crowning jewels of it.

The Story. Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy with some darker moments that are dealt with in a modern way. It’s a story of getting a second chance to do right by people you love.  A group of soldiers led by Don Pedro have just returned from a successful campaign. They are invited to spend a month at the palatial home of Leonato in Messina, in Italy. In the group is Benedick, a confirmed bachelor and Claudio a fellow soldier and a close friend of Benedick. Claudio is in love with and soon engaged to Hero, Leonato’s daughter. Leonato’s niece, Beatrice earlier in her life had a relationship with Benedick, but he jilted her. She has been wounded and angry ever since, and when they meet there is a war of wit and words, each one scoring points on the other.

The friends of both Beatrice and Benedick want to get them together again, and so a trick is played in which Beatrice and Benedick overhear the friends say that Beatrice is in love with Benedick and he is in love with her. This puts the idea in the mind of Beatrice and Benedick that it’s true—they have feelings for the other.

There is another sub-plot—Don Pedro’s half-brother Don John likes to make mischief and sets in motion a plot to discredit Hero’s chaste character. He will have Claudio think that he is actually seeing Hero chat up another man at night, before the wedding. In fact the person chatting up a man at her bedroom window is Margaret, an innocent in this scheme. At the wedding Claudio refuses to marry Hero accusing her of being unfaithful. This stuns everybody, and causes Leonato to even question his own daughter’s integrity. She faints, and it’s believed she has died from the shame. This puts in motion, Benedick declaring he will challenge Claudio to a duel because of this terrible accusation. From this terrible situation, Beatrice and Benedick declare their love.

The Production. Julie Fox’s lush set is full of vegetation, pots of flowers, an orange “bush”, a majestic tree of some kind or other that dominates everything and provides lots of places to climb. Suspended above the stage is a white hoop that slowly revolves in the air. I’m thinking it’s a kind of Dyson air filter/fan thing. I learn what it is later, when the production starts.

The set suggests peace, warmth and quiet, except for the birds chirping in the background. All it lacks is a hammock in which to lounge, read books and imbibe tropical, potent drinks. 

Much Ado About Nothing is directed by Chris Abraham. He is a wonderful director, no matter if it’s a drama or comedy. But comedy is his forte. This production is full of intellectual wit, sight gags that are natural and hilarious, physical humour that comes honestly out of funny moments, and moments that are just packed with jokes and humour that will have you doubling over, gasping for breath.

Chris Abraham is also a thoughtful intellectual artist. Many characters go on a journey of discovery in Much Ado About Nothing. Certainly Beatrice and Benedick go from animosity and hurt to true love. In this case Chris Abraham felt that a few extra speeches were needed to ‘update’, explain and clarify aspects in the play that needed it. So Erin Shields—a wonderful playwright in her own right–was called in to add some speeches, first for Beatrice (Maev Beaty) and lastly for Hero (Allison Edward-Crew).

Beatrice enters and points out Hero, standing above on the balcony of the Festival Theatre. She is admiring herself in the ‘mirror’ suspended above the stage-the white hoop. (Aha!). Hero primps and poses in the mirror. Beatrice notes that her cousin Hero does not have a care in the world. That all that occupies her time is how she looks and appears. Beatrice is not being unkind. As played by Maev Beaty, Beatrice is observant, watchful to the world she lives in. Beatrice is nothing like her cousin, but still can observe, with kindness, the lovely frivolousness of her cousin.  Once that is established, we go on with the production. I also note that that hoop/mirror was revolving in the air to subtly reflect the audience as well.

When the troops come home from the campaign we witness the barbed banter of Beatrice and Benedick (Graham Abbey). As Beatrice, Maev Beaty plays her with the lingering sting of embarrassment that Benedick dumped her years before. He knows of her sharp tongue and tries to counter her with his own barbs. Both Maev Beaty and Graham Abbey have the meaning of Shakespeare in their finger-tips; the cadence and meter of the language on their tongues. They are masters at the effortless delivery, nuance and subtlety of the language. And they are both fearless, with Beatrice beating Benedick by a hair. 

Maev Beaty as Beatrice is feisty, combative—using that misplaced anger at Benedick to get even with him for dumping her years before—and his intellectual equal. Maev Beaty illuminates Beatrice’s wit, smarts, keen intelligence and integrity. And she too is open-hearted with she declares her love for Benedick.  

Graham Abbey plays Benedick as boyish, impish and irreverent. At one point he looks at the laughing audience and says, “there are too many women in this audience.” He might also be commenting on the addition of various women on stage too. In one scene Benedick asks a servant to get him some books—that servant is usually a boy. Here it’s two women, Margaret (Déjah Dixon-Green) and Ursula (Akosua Amo-Adem) and they reluctantly go and get the books and drop them on his stomach and perhaps the hint of a sucking teeth sound, letting Benedick know their contempt for him on a feminist level. Love that bit of business.

But Benedick can also be open-hearted when he finally admits and accepts that he truly loves Beatrice and says: “I do love nothing in the world so well as you. Is that not strange.” He truly sees the hurt that Beatrice is suffering because her cousin Hero is being maligned and he challenges Claudio to a dual to right it.

The biggest journey of discovery is Hero’s.  She goes from being self-absorbed and frivolous to being enlightened and confident in her self-worth as a person. She is wrongly accused of being unfaithful based on a malicious trick played on her by Don John. Immediately Claudio (Austin Eckert who plays him sweet but gullible) and Leonato (a courtly Patrick McManus) believe the lie without questioning the source of it—Don John is a malicious, mean-spirited man. And it’s not the first time that Don John has played his tricks. Initially Claudio feels awkward wooing Hero so Don Pedro says he will do it for him, making it look like he’s wooing Hero for himself but will then reveal it’s really for Claudio. (I love Claudio’s aside to the audience: “Why?” (why indeed does Don Pedro’s scheme make sense??). But then Don John puts doubt in Claudio’s mind—that in fact Don John is wooing Hero for himself. And Claudio believes him! Twice!!!

Hero has another Erin Shields speech at the end, when the truth is revealed, that she is an honourable woman. In the speech, Allison Edward-Crew as Hero chides both Claudio and her father Leonato for quickly believing she is untrue without questioning it. She makes Claudio prove to her that he is worthy to marry her, not the other way around.  She needs to know that he has grown up as well and will not fall into the easy ways of just believing any lie a male friend will tell him. She makes him question everything he believes in to win her trust and her love again. Allison Edward-Crew as Hero is full of conviction, emotional intensity and blazing intelligence

I love that.

The cast from top to bottom are a joy. Besides those I have already mentioned, Michael Blake as Don John makes mischief seem delicious, he does it with such relish. Josue Laboucane plays Dogberry, the leader of the Watch, as a man who never met a malapropism he didn’t love to bits. He is so self-righteous. Jakob Ehman as Borachio is so excited about the trick he’s played on Claudio and Hero he practically twists himself up and exhausts himself with the pushing of the lines. A little less gusto would be perfect and just as funny. As excitable as Borachio is that, is as laid back as Conrad is as played by Cyrus Lane. How does a character move at all if he is tied up from top to bottom? Cyrus Lane gives a masterclass in just such a movement. I must mention George Meanwell. He is such a gifted musician and proves it here, by always enhancing the scene with his presence on guitar, accordion, violin and anything he sets his mind to.

More on Chris Abraham and his attention to detail. He makes the audience see that detail. Margaret (Déjah Dixon-Green) is one of my favourite characters in Much Ado About Nothing. It’s a small but so vital and important a part. Margaret holds the key to the second ruse—in which Don John tries to discredit Hero’s character.

Borachio says that Margaret will do anything for him, so it’s set up that Margaret will be talking to him from a window late at night. Don John suggests to Claudio that Hero is unfaithful and will urge him to watch what transpires from a ‘bedroom’ widow with ‘Hero’. Claudio will not know that it is Margaret he is watching, not Hero. When he sees what happens Claudio humiliates Hero at the wedding the next day.

While one is fixated on how Hero is humiliated by Claudio downstage, upstage is the wedding party, looking on in horror. One of the party is Margaret. It’s fascinating watching Déjah Dixon-Green slowly register that the person being talked about at the window late at night was her. She looks on, stunned, comes forward a step to make sure we see her reacting, then she covers her mouth in emotion and runs off. It’s a small scene, but created with such care and detail by Chris Abraham to quietly reveal the truth.  Later the story is out that it was Margaret, not Hero at that window.

Comment. I love the fact that the 21st century visits Beatrice and Benedick when they lived to flesh out areas that are not addressed. Shakespeare is always being fiddle with—the play is still there and it’s living and breathing.

The Stratford Festival presents:

Plays until Oct. 27, 2023.

Running time: 2 hours, 50 minutes (1 intermission)

www.stratfordfestival.ca

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Toronto Fringe: July 5-16, 2023.

Looking forward to the Toronto Fringe July 5-July 16 for the first time in forever…..Not going to England in the summer anymore…too hot. So Toronto Fringe here I come.

Kudos to the pro-active companies who reached out to me with their own PR and asked me to review them. With pleasure.

I’m seeing so far:

Corporate Finch

Dancer

Dead End

The Man With the Golden Heart

One Night Only

Our Little Secret

Perhaps more to come.

Lynn

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Live and in person at the Tom Patterson Theatre, Stratford Festival, Stratford, Ont. Plays until September 28, 2023.

www.stratfordfestival.ca

Written by William Shakespeare

Adapted by Brad Fraser

Conceived and directed by Jillian Keiley

Choreographer, Cameron Carver

Set by Michael Gianfrancesco

Costumes by Bretta Gerecke

Lighting by Leigh Ann Vardy

Composer, Rhapsodius

Sound by Don Ellis

Cast:

David Collins

Sarah Dodd

Thomas Duplessie

Justine Eddy

Charlie Gallant

Jordan Hall

Stephen Jackman-Torkoff

Matthew Kabwe

Marcus Nance

Sarah Orenstein

Debbie Patterson

Andrew Robinson

Steve Ross

Tyrone Savage

Michael Spencer-Davis

Emilio Viera

John Wamsley

Hannah Wigglesworth

And many others.

A consistent, bold imagining of Shakespeare’s play of power, the dangers of hubris, court intrigue and love and a constant challenge to our perceptions of what a king looks and acts like.

The Story.  Richard II had been king since he was 11 years old, but was hidden away and overseen by advisors etc. When he was 14 years old, he actually quelled an uprising so from then on Richard II had the sense he was invincible. He played favourites at court.

In the play there are clashes between the house of Lancaster and York.  When Richard II is asked to deal with matters of court—settling a conflict between two courtiers, Henry Bolingbroke (the House of York) and Thomas Mowbray—things begin to go off the rails. Richard’s enemies begin to gather and challenge his rule. It goes from there.

The Production and comment. Richard II originally takes place in the 14th century in England but in Brad Fraser’s adaptation it’s been moved to New York in the 1970s and 80s. Richard II leads a hedonistic gay life of subversion and raunchy dancing parties that are a cross between the Met gala and Studio 54.

Because Richard II is played by Stephen Jackman-Torkoff, who is a Black actor, then Richard is Black, a further challenge of our perceptions of what a king looks and acts like.

The first and last image in the production is a crown held aloft. The first time Richard II wears the crown he makes his entrance in a wild white feathery outfit, followed by leather clad followers as if in some kind of hedonistic bar; a gay bar; a leather bar, use your imagination. Kudos to costume designer Bretta Gerecke, for creating costumes that reflect the schism in Richard’s court: his followers are leather clad, glitter-laden and flamboyant; the other courtiers are in tailored dark coloured suits that are subdued in hue and cut and convey a seriousness to the affairs of state.

The second time the crown is held aloft is at the end of the production, when Henry Bolingbroke’s (Jordin Hall) forces defeat Richard II to become king Henry IV. Again, the crown is held aloft and Henry is crowned.

But to get to that last scene, Richard II has to settle a dispute between Henry Bolingbroke Thomas Mowbray (Tyrone Savage) in which each man accuses the other of treason. They agree to a dual to settle their differences, but Richard II has other plans. Initially he has both men stripped of their shirts and oiled up as if it’s a homoerotic wrestling match as in Women in Love. Both men are startled by this, but then continue the fight.  In the end, Richard exiles both men anyway and thus begins his many problems of governance with court intrigues in abundance.

What Richard wants to do more than anything else is to go off with his cousin Lord Aumerle (Emilio Vieira) with whom he is in love. Matters of court and a war in Ireland prevent that.

Brad Fraser has adapted Shakespeare’s play and the result is bold, brash and daring. Brad Fraser has cut some speeches. The famous John of Gaunt death-bed speech about “this Royal throne of Kings, this sceptered isle…..this England” is cut. But Richard’s speech about “let’s sit upon the ground and tell sad stories of the death of kings”…..is still there. So speeches about the majesty of England and nationalism are cut, but speeches that reflect Richard’s outlook and perception of his ruling remain.

Brad Fraser’s adaptation is liberal in borrowing speeches from other Shakespeare plays—Troilus and Cressida; the sonnets and my favourite line from Much Ado About Nothing is included here. Richard II says to Lord Aumerle; “I do love nothing in the world so well as you. Is that not strange.”  So yes, liberties are taken but this is a deliberate brash adaptation, conceived by director Jillian Keiley, and adapted by Brad Fraser, one of our most iconoclastic, perceptive playwrights, that turns Shakespeare’s play on its ear, but is still true to it, in its way.

Jillian Keiley’s production meets the adaptation in brashness, big time. It is also beautiful, vivid in its imagery and gripping in its intimacy.

Michael Gianfrancesco’s set is sleek and spare. Silver rectangles rise up from traps and are moved to form benches, borders and other formations of the set. In one instance the pieces are pushed together to create a sunken structure. Leather-clad characters on all sides of the structure stretch elastic sheets across the top of the formation. Richard II and Lord Aumerle appear up in between the sheets to the accompaniment of steam billowing up and the sound of water lapping. Voilà a hot tub. In this production Richard and Aumerle are lovers and their intimacy in the hot tub illuminates that love. The kissing is deep and passionate; there are suggestions of physical arousal beneath the water. As Aumerle, Emilio Vieira is as brash as Richard II in their relationship, but he is also conflicted. Aumerle comes from a political family and would know the choppy waters he is in both politically and emotionally with such an erratic, mercurial king.

Interestingly one is aware that there is no nudity. Both actors/characters wear briefs. Theatre is about illusion. In the hot tub there is the illusion of nudity. When they get out of the tub (there is no water, just the lapping sound), we are aware they are wearing tight briefs. The nudity would have taken us out of the illusion and put us in a jarring reality. The fact that they are wearing clothes does the same thing. The magic of theatre.

There are scenes with the other courtiers who are trying to keep a grip on their wild-acting king, and try and head off political disaster. For instance, Edmund, Duke of York and Aumerle’s father, is played by Michael Spencer-Davis wearing a trim fitting suit. Spencer-Davis adds a note of decorum, political savvy and a touch of exasperation at what is happening at court, with the free-wheeling king. The Duke of York’s even temper but occasionally clipped speech suggests a frustration at trying to keep things from exploding. Jordin Hall plays Bolingbroke, level-headed, clear-eyed and the complete opposite of Richard. He will get even with Richard for banishing him from the kingdom and cheating him of his father’s inheritance. Jordin Hall gives a performance of what another type of king looks like, as he will become Henry IV. Sarah Orenstein plays Countess of Northumberland and a supporter of Bolingbroke. She is determined, politically savvy, and formidable. Charlie Gallant plays a dashing Lord Willoughby who gets sicker and sicker with a mysterious disease that no one can diagnose. Remember this is New York in the 1970s and 80s. We know what is making him sick.

At the center of this as Richard II, is Stephen Jackman-Torkoff (they/them). They are supremely confident, playful, impetuous and dangerous. They don’t just walk when they can strut or flounce. they love ‘playing up’ when dealing with courtiers. But they impetuosity makes Richard dangerous. Stephen Jackman-Torkoff is compelling in the part.   

The production is sobering when we see where this sexually free and almost careless life-style will lead.

I loved the commitment of the cast and all those surrounding the production of this brash interpretation of Richard II.

An aside. Isn’t it time that some producer in Toronto steps up and produces any of the many plays that Brad Fraser has written in the last 20 years, the last time he had a play produced in Toronto? For example: Five@ Fifty (about five women at 50 years old creating an intervention for one of their friends); True Love Lies, Kill Me Now?

The Stratford Festival presents:

Plays until September 28, 2023.

Running time: 2 hours, 39 minutes (one intermission)

www.stratfordfestival.ca

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Recently played at Luminato, but now closed.

Time escaped me and I didn’t post comments about offerings at this year’s Luminato Festival before they closed by June 18.

LITTLE AMAL

From the blurb about the creation:

“Little Amal is a 12 foot partly-animatronic giant puppet which was used as the centrepiece of a performance art project called The Walk in 2021. The project was created by the British production companies The Walk Productions and Good Chance in collaboration with the South African Handspring Puppet Company (of War Horse fame).  

Little Amal, a 12-foot puppet of a 10-year-old Syrian refugee, who has travelled through 13 countries to 90 cities across Turkey, Europe and New York City.  She arrived in Toronto on June 7. She walked across the region for 5 days looking for hope and her new home. She was welcomed by musicians, dancers, children and elders, civic leaders, community organizers, newcomers, fellow refugees and you in a journey of art and hope.  

See the world through the eyes of a child who was forced to leave her war-torn home.  On behalf of displaced children everywhere, she asks that we take note, offer support and hear her message to the world: “Don’t forget about us”.  

Little Amal had been to Scarborough, Mississauga, other suburbs during her five day stay in Toronto.  On Sat. June 10 she was to appear at Berczy Park between 6:30 and 7:30 after she walked along the Esplanade. I waited for her in Berczy Park, across from the St. Lawrence Centre that was preparing for the opening of Treemonisha, the Scott Joplin opera he wrote in 1911.

The park was buzzing with families enjoying the summer weather; a choir that was singing over there, while I was mesmerized by three couples casually doing the samba to music from a boombox. A man in baggy jeans, a t-shirt and a baseball cap on backwards, danced with his partner in a form-fitting top, black tights and ballet slippers. The grace of the couple, (and the other two couples) was astonishing. Effortless. Sensual. Sexy. I wondered when one traded in the easy sway of the hips for general creakiness. Perhaps it’s something that creeps up on you.

In the meantime, I kept looking up the street in front of me for a 12-foot puppet. The time was drawing close for her appearance. From behind me, on Wellington Street I saw a charge of people running forward banging boxes and behind them there she was, towering over the crowd, Little Amal. The sight of her is astonishing. She came into the park, graceful, confident, poised, her head turning slowly to the left and right, taking in the crowd. She blinks! Her arms are manipulated by two people, each holding a pole attached to each arm. I noted that inside the structure of the puppet is a person who is manipulating her eye-lids and I guess controlling her walk. That walk was almost like floating. To see this ‘creature’, this creation, was quite moving. She did a turn of the park giving everybody a chance to look at her and take pictures, then she walked off to her next destination. Loved seeing her.

Loss

Created and performed by Ian Kamau

Written by Ian Kamau and Roger McTair

Dramaturg and rehearsal director, Aislinn Rose

Composer, music director, performer, piano and Synth, Bruce A. Russell

Tenor Saxophone, Dennis Passley

Guitar, Dyheim Stewart

Costumes Cat Calica

Filmmaker, Tiffany Hsiung

Co-sound: David Heeney, David Mesiha

Lighting, Shawn Henry

Environment designer, Javid Jah

Video designer, Jeremy Mimnagh

Loss was developed and nurtured at the Theatre Center, as part of the year-long Residency Program.

From the programme: “Loss is a deeply honest, live retelling of an intergenerational family story, written by Ian Kamau and his father Roger McTair.

This multi-media performance begins as a mirror into a winter of depression for Ian Kamau, then slowly unravels the mystery surrounding the death of his paternal grandmother Nora Elutha Rogers.

An orchestration of memories using live music, video, and storytelling—Loss is an exploration of grief in Afro-Caribbean communities, and an immersive experience towards healing shared with the audience.”

The theme of the piece might explore ‘grief in Afro-Caribbean communities’ but there is resonance no matter what the ethnicity. Ah the beauty of theatre to transcend cultural differences and find common ground no matter the ethnicity.

The main audience sits on three sides of the Harbourfront Centre Theatre. A circle of chairs is placed around the main playing area with some audience members sitting there. There are standing microphones inside the circle. The band of keyboard, guitar and saxophone are microphoned. Ian Kamau sits on a stool off to one part of the circle. He speaks into a hand-held microphone. He says that this is a performance and then opens a binder and begins to read his script in a clear, measured voice. What he is reading sounds like poetry to me that will deal with his sorrow, grief, depression, his absent, distant father; his feelings about his father and that his father contributed four poems to the evening, but it’s not actually clear which they are. Some works are introduced on the screen facing part of the audience. Videos of family scenes will be projected on the screen. Because there are people around Ian Kamau he will turn his stool slightly, so that his back is not always ‘facing’ part of the audience.

Often music will underscore the reading, often drowning out the reader. I wonder (yet again) what the sound would be like if the band was not amplified, but just played and Ian Kamau read through his microphone. I bet we would be able to hear every word.

I wonder why we need music for what really is an overproduced and over amplified poetry reading for 1 hour and 45 minutes without intermission.

Played June 14-18.

Dragon Tale

 Co-produced by Tapestry Opera and Soundstreams. Presented by Luminato Festival Toronto and realized in partnership with Harbourfront Centre.

Composer, Chan Ka Nin

Librettist, Mark Brownell

Director, Michael Hidestoshi Mori

Music director, David Fallis

Set and costumes, Jackie Chau

Lighting by Echo Zhou

Cast: Alicia Ault

Mishael Eusebio

Mike Fan

Todd Jang

Evanna Lai

Keith Lam

Grace Lee

Alyssa Nicole Samson

Plus an orchestra and a choir.

Dragon’s Tale is an opera embracing long-held traditions juxtaposed with the need to be free and engage in the world, among other issues.

From the programme synopsis: “Dragon’s Tale is the story of a Xiao Lian, a young Chinese-Canadian woman who faces a difficult choice: Honour her family’s traditional past or embrace a more modern present. Her ailing father wants her to stay home and take care of him and respect tradition. She wants to go off with her friends.

Xiao Lian must travel into the ancient past to answer questions about her own life and future in the modern world. By summoning the spirit of one of China’s greatest poets, Qu Yuan, Xiao Lian learns the significance of the ancient dragon boat festival of Duanwu and her family’s deep connection with Qu Yuan.”

Under the baton of Musical Director, David Fallis the singers and chorus were stirring and compelling. Director Michael Hidetoshi Mori used the whole stage and areas in and around the audience of the Harbourfront Centre Concert Stage to great effect. Set designer Jackie Chau created several moveable platforms that shifted the action from the modern world to the ancient world.

While Mark Brownell’s libretto was in English surtitles were used to ensure the whole audience got the full benefit of the story and the important aspects of the story. While the cast wore body microphones the sound occasionally was fuzzy, when a microphone might have been muffled or compromised, hence how important the surtitles were. How then to explain how banners representing an ancient king were so high on the stage, they obstructed the surtitles, preventing people, either close up or sitting at the back, to actually read the details. Didn’t director Michael Hidetoshi Mori or set designer Jackie Chau sit in the theatre during rehearsals to see if the panels obstructed the area where the surtitles were projected? Frustrating.  

Played June 15-18, 2023.

Treemonisha.

TO Live and Luminato Festival Toronto Present, at the Bluma Appel Theatre, Toronto, Ont. A Volcano production, in association with the Canadian Opera Company, Soulpepper and Moveable Beast.

Composed by Scott Joplin

Book and libretto adapted by Leah-Simone Bowen/Co-librettist, Cheryl L. Davis

Arranged and orchestrated by Jessie Montgomery & Jannina Norpoth.

Stage director, Weyni Mengesha

Choreographer, Esie Mensah

Conductor, Kalena Bovell

Set by Camellia Koo

Additional set design by Rachel Forbes

Costumes by Nadine Grant

Lighting by Kimberly Purtell

Cast: Neema Bickersteth

Andrea Baker

Cedric Berry

Nicholas Davis

Ashley Faatoalia

Marvin Lowe

Ineza Mugisha

SATE

Kristin Renee Young

Scott Joplin wrote this opera in 1911 and set it just after the American Civil War and the abolition of slavery. It has rarely been done. This reimagining of Scott Joplin’s opera does wonders to illuminate how ahead of his time Scott Joplin was.

This production celebrates many ‘firsts’: It has a creative team who are all Black: it has a new book and libretto by Leah-Simone Bowen, with co-librettist, Cheryl L. Davis, new orchestrations by Jessie Montgomery, directed by Weyni Mengesha, choreographed by Esie Mensah, conducted by Kalena Bovell, with an all-Black orchestra and cast lead by the always compelling Neema Bickersteth as Treemonisha.

The story is simple: A runaway slave carrying her baby in her arms, is shot in the back by a slave owner chasing her. The mother struggles to hide her baby in the hollow of a tree for safety, and then dies. Twenty years later there is to be a wedding by a young woman named Treemonisha. She is the baby, grown up. She was found by two decent people and raised as their own. When Treemonisha learns the truth—that the two people who raised her are not her birth parents—Treemonisha is hurt and confused that the truth was held back from her. She leaves to find out who she is and who her mother is. Her betrothed, Remus who belongs to the community of Freemen, goes after her. Treemonisha seeks knowledge of the Maroons, dwellers in the forest, for information. The two communities are always at odds with each other, not trusting them.  In the meantime she falls in love with Zodzerick, a Maroon medicine man. But Remus kills him. Treemonisha returns to her community where she brings both communities together to live in peace. Because of that Treemonisha is chosen as the leader who can bring stability to both.

Because opera/music is not my forte I won’t comment on the opera in specific terms, but will comment on the theatricality. I thought the whole enterprise stirring and beautifully sung, with Neema Bickersteth leading the enterprise with her soaring, crystal voice. She is also an accomplished actor, realizing the anguish of a young woman trying to find her roots and her history.

Camellia Koo’s set of the complex tree and its branches and offshoots is both mysterious, and mythical. Choreographer, Esie Mensah creates vibrant, sensual movement of this accomplished cast that is evocative and arresting. It’s always thrilling seeing her work. The whole endeavor is brought together by director Weyni Mengesha. She has a vivid sense of image, picture and the world of the opera. If I had a quibble it’s that occasionally the production seemed static, but I would offer it’s the piece itself, the story, that is static. But just a quibble. Being in that theatre for this opening night was a thrill.

There is a comment at the end of a note by the Treemonisha Team that is so important to consider. It says: “You, the audience, are encouraged to embrace the music in any way you see fit! Cheer, talk back, applaud—because this is an opera for everyone”. Amen and Hallelujah. If I’ve learned anything by seeing theatre of different ethnicities, different nationalities, different, attitudes, it’s that there is not one way to appreciate the artform, there are many, and they all are valid and important. I think it vital that we all be in the same room to experience the many, different ways of appreciating a form of art and learn from that difference, and not separated into separate groups. That separation just seems regressive.

I loved that the opening night audience of Treemonisha, multi-ethnic, mainly Black, dressed to the nines and ready for celebration, did laugh loudly where they believed something was silly or not right; talked back when they thought something warranted it, and stood and cheered instantaneously at the end, as did we all, in complete celebration at this rarely done work.  

Played June 6-17, 2023.

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