Category Archives: Dance, theatre & musicals

Gould’s Wall

Tapestry Opera have premiered Brian Current’s new site-specific work Gould’s Wall, an event that adds another layer to the association between the Royal Conservatory of Music and one of their most distinguished alumni Glenn Gould. I like it more than … Continue reading

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Immortal Glenn Gould

I want to write something about Glenn Gould. Who is he, what is his legacy in 2022? I’m thinking about what GG means to me as I anticipate Tapestry Opera’s premiere of Gould’s Wall, a new site-specific opera opening August … Continue reading

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Scary Dead Broke

I saw Will King’s darkly comic Dead Broke today at the Toronto Fringe. I was blown away by King’s first play From the Water in December 2018, amazingly good for a first play. This one is better, unfolding in a … Continue reading

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TSO + Rajaton = ABBA

This week the Toronto Symphony under their pops conductor Steven Reineke presented three concerts of the music of ABBA featuring Rajaton, the Finnish vocal ensemble. While they describe themselves as an a cappella ensemble –singing their vocals accompanied—it was electrifying … Continue reading

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The Mel Brooks Songbook

Happy Birthday Mel Brooks. He turned 96 today. And no joke, there really is a Mel Brooks Songbook. When I picked it up from the shelf in the Indigo bookstore I was a bit disbelieving myself. Mel Brooks, songwriter? The … Continue reading

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TOT: A Waltz Dream

Insights sometimes sneak up on you. I was blind-sided by one today watching the Toronto Operetta Theatre Canadian premiere production of Oscar Straus’ A Waltz Dream at St Lawrence Centre. TOT play an important role offering local artists a place … Continue reading

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Amazing Immersive Sweeney Todd from TIFT

I’m never going to see a better Sweeney Todd than the one I saw tonight from Talk is Free Theatre at the Neighbourhood Food Hub, Glen Rhodes Campus. Wow. Each night there are just 44 seats available, a cohort providing … Continue reading

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CCOC Alice in Wonderland

Today I watched an outdoor performance of Alice in Wonderland presented by the Canadian Children’s Opera Company. Over the past few weeks it’s been a joy to see productions that signal a return by many companies forced to the brink … Continue reading

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From the Met: Jocelyn and Dean create a Hamlet

Adapting a play into an opera can be fascinating work, especially when it’s as well-known a play as Hamlet. I’ve seen several attempts to turn this play into something else including a couple of musicals, an opera long ago, and … Continue reading

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Singulières in Toronto

Singulières is a piece of theatre about single women in Québec, although the most remarkable things about the show are not what I expected. Five women fill the stage of Crow’s Guloien Theatre with vibrant life, sometimes throbbing with joy, … Continue reading

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