Monthly Archives: April 2017

MYOpera + Rossini = the perfect marriage

Posted on April 29, 2017 by barczablog

I like an opera with ambition. Tonight I saw a production with style & wit whose chief ambition was to make us laugh: and it succeeded admirably because it was unafraid of sometimes being totally silly. MYOpera launched their 2017 … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Reviews | Leave a comment

CCOC’s 50th Anniversary Season Announcement

Posted on April 25, 2017 by barczablog

Ben Heppner and other opera stars join the Canadian Children’s Opera Company for thrilling 50th Anniversary Season TORONTO – The Canadian Children’s Opera Company presents the thrilling lineup of its 2016/2017 50th Anniversary Season. Founded by Ruby Mercer and Lloyd … Continue reading →

Dr Ryhana Dawood’s Martial Smarts: FIGHT LIKE A GIRL

Posted on April 24, 2017 by barczablog

The words on the poster caught my eye. “FIGHT LIKE A GIRL”, all in capitals. When I inquired further I discovered Martial Smarts and then its founder Dr Ryhana Dawood: a strong advocate for women’s health and female empowerment through self-defense. … Continue reading →

Posted in Interviews, Politics, Psychology and perception, Spirituality & Religion, Sports, University life | Leave a comment

Opera Atelier: badass Jason vs hot mess Medea

Posted on April 23, 2017 by barczablog

When an opera company remounts a work they’ve done before, one wants to see improvement. Lately every time Opera Atelier revives a piece it comes back better than before. Tonight was the opening of Charpentier’s Médée, promoted as “Medea and … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Reviews | 1 Comment

Georgia O’Keeffe at the AGO

Posted on April 22, 2017 by barczablog

After walking through the Georgia O’Keeffe exhibit at the AGO today, I can’t help thinking about the way people are stereotyped, misunderstood, misread. Louis Riel was very much on my mind after two intense nights, one in the company of … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Architecture & Design, Personal ruminations & essays | Leave a comment

Hinton’s Riel: protocols for reconciliation

Posted on April 21, 2017 by barczablog

When I look back at my childhood, the way the word “Indian” was used and abused, I can barely recognize where we were and where we’ve come. The past two years have been especially transformative, with the Truth & Reconciliation … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Politics, Reviews | 3 Comments

Questions for Peter Hinton concerning his Revisionist Riel

Posted on April 20, 2017 by barczablog

Director, dramaturg and playwright Peter Hinton has worked across Canada with many theatre companies. He has been the Associate Artistic Director at Theatre Passe Muraille and the Canadian Stage Company in Toronto, Artistic Director of the Playwrights Theatre Centre in … Continue reading →

Posted in Interviews, Opera, Politics | 3 Comments

Boss Baby boffo box-office bodyslams both Beauty and Beast

Posted on April 16, 2017 by barczablog

We’re in a golden age: for parenting and grand-parenting that is. If you’re taking a child to see a film, they’re now so sophisticated that not only will the child like the film but so will you. No one will … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Reviews | 1 Comment

Questions for Howard J. Davis: C’est Moi

Posted on April 16, 2017 by barczablog

Howard J. Davis is a Toronto based filmmaker, the director of C’est Moi, a short film shot on location, about Marie-Josèphe Angelique, a young slave who was tried, tortured and killed for allegedly burning down the city of Montreal. Howard … Continue reading →

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JS Bach’s St Mark Passion according to Heighes

Posted on April 15, 2017 by barczablog

In addition to the two well-known passions by JS Bach (the ones based on the gospels according to St Matthew and St John) there’s also the Passion according to St Mark that we know to have been performed at least … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | 1 Comment