Category Archives: Dance, theatre & musicals

Erin Shields’ Mary, Mary, Mary, Mary at Crow’s Theatre

Posted on April 19, 2026 by barczablog

I saw the matinee of Erin Shields’ Mary, Mary, Mary, Mary on Saturday afternoon April 18th. The title is playful I suppose, but makes a lot of sense when you look at the New Testament, particularly the female characters. I … Continue reading →

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Opera Atelier present their new Pelléas et Mélisande

Posted on April 16, 2026 by barczablog

Wednesday night saw the premiere of Pelléas et Mélisande in a new orchestration by Christopher Bagan, conducted by David Fallis at Koerner Hall. Opera Atelier commissioned Bagan to reduce the scope of Debussy’s opera from a post-Wagnerian orchestra (70 + … Continue reading →

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Room of Keys with David James Brock and Adam Sherkin playing Béla Bartók

Posted on April 10, 2026 by barczablog

Room of Keys is a sort of sacred mystery play. I don’t throw that M word out there in the spirit of a whodunnit so much as the old sacred pre-Shakespearean plays that would stage a small Biblical episode. No … Continue reading →

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Cyclops on the edge

Posted on March 29, 2026 by barczablog

I have just seen Cyclops: A Satyr Play, Produced by Panic Theatre in association with Talk is Free Theatre, Written, Directed and Performed by Griffin Hewitt, with Original Music by Juliette Jones. If I said it’s Euripides’ only surviving Satyr … Continue reading →

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BELTing Over the Rainbow

Posted on March 11, 2026 by barczablog

BELT Monday night March 9th invited us to “another unforgettable night of communal singing at Crow’s Theatre” to “learn and perform the beloved classic “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz.” After spending Saturday morning March 7th studying … Continue reading →

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Interviewing Nicholas Rice before Another Side Of Rice

Posted on January 16, 2026 by barczablog

I wanted to interview Nicholas Rice, intrigued by the show he’s doing at Red Sandcastle Theatre, Another Side Of Rice. He’s a story-teller and an actor. A Side of Rice was on last March at the Red Sandcastle Theatre. And … Continue reading →

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Toronto Operetta Theatre’s Czardas Princess starts the New Year

Posted on January 5, 2026 by barczablog

Toronto Operetta Theatre began the new year of 2026 looking over their shoulders with a romance that had its premiere over a century ago in Vienna: Imre Kálmán’s Czardas Princess. We went on the weekend sitting among a boisterously enthusiastic … Continue reading →

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Accompanying Lepage to The Far Side of the Moon

Posted on December 24, 2025 by barczablog

Sometimes my need to explain myself leads to huge introductions that may confuse or perplex, pre-ambulations that happen both on foot and in the words of the blog. As 2025 closes I escaped into recreation at the Red Sandcastle Theatre, … Continue reading →

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Discovering the brilliant virtuoso Tony Siqi Yun

Posted on November 24, 2025 by barczablog

“I am a lucky guy.” That’s my mantra as a person seeking to live a life of gratitude: and sometimes it has proven to be true. My friends Gary & Bill left town for a family bris, giving me tickets … Continue reading →

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Kyle and Corey reflect on the Lion-hearted King and the operas telling their stories

Posted on November 4, 2025 by barczablog

Kyle & Corey, as in Kyle Derek Mcdonald and Corey Arnold are the two creators of The Lion Heart, an opera being presented in concert in Ottawa November 15-16, one of several things they’re doing. I wanted to ask Kyle … Continue reading →

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