Category Archives: Personal ruminations & essays

Ayre: An Evening of Osvaldo Golijov

When the organizational wizards of Against the Grain Theatre decided to present Ayre: An Evening of Osvaldo Golijov beginning November 10th I doubt that anyone recognized the significance of the date.  Had the American electorate made their expected repudiation of … Continue reading

Posted in Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Reviews | 1 Comment

Questions for Caitie Graham – Paradise Comics

Since graduating from the Performance Acting Program at Ryerson University in 2014, Caitie Graham has become a committed member of the theatre and youth education community in Toronto, as well as an advocate for work that engages young women. Her … Continue reading

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Interviews, Personal ruminations & essays | Leave a comment

Kubo, because I promised

I feel very much at cross purposes, having promised I would complain about something in a film that I loved. The film is Kubo and the Two Strings. Let me get the complaint out of the way, as it’s from … Continue reading

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Personal ruminations & essays, Reviews | 1 Comment

THE SECRET GARDEN in concert

Podium Concert Productions presents THE SECRET GARDEN New Company to focus on Musical Theatre ‘in Concert’ Presentations Inaugural Production set for January 2017 Podium Concert Productions (Peter da Costa and Mark Camilleri) proudly presents the Tony Award®-winning musical THE SECRET … Continue reading

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Encounter with Hilary Kilbourn

I posted a press release earlier this week, concerning someone who passed through my life briefly. One paragraph in particular caught my eye: About The Hilary Kilbourn Memorial Fund Hilary continues to cast her spell over the Island through good … Continue reading

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Personal ruminations & essays, Spirituality & Religion | 2 Comments

Brady, Kaepernick, Eastwood and Trump 

  The arts confuse us regularly, somewhat like life itself.  One minute we’re kept at a distance by a performance using some alienating device calling attention to the artifice, the next we’re sucked into the world we’re watching.  I believe … Continue reading

Posted in Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics, Popular music & culture | Leave a comment

Taking up Lance’s nationalist challenge to the CBC #Canada150

Lawrence Wiliford (AKA Lance Wiliford) posted the following on Facebook today: I challenge @CBCMusic @CBCclassical @CBCArts to air 15 mins/day of music by Canadian classical composers during 2017. Not film or crossover.#Canada150. Canadian Music Centre Canadian League of Composers/La Ligue … Continue reading

Posted in Music and musicology, Personal ruminations & essays, Popular music & culture | 6 Comments

Florence Foster Jenkins, everywoman

When I was a child I was introduced to the singing of Florence Foster Jenkins, on a record called “The Glory (??) of the Human Voice”. There was a kind of illicit pleasure in listening to her singing, because She … Continue reading

Posted in Cinema, video & DVDs, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays | 5 Comments

CBD, part the second

After writing two pieces last night (one about the AGO, one about a trip to a dispensary to get CBD), I decided to take one of the pills, a gel capsule containing cannabidiol (aka CBD). Please note, this is just … Continue reading

Posted in Food, Health and Nutrition, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception | Leave a comment

CBD, part the first

A loving family member cajoled me to try something new today. My chief pain management strategy for dealing with my arthritic symptoms could be summed up (before tonight) with the following quote: “Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt. It’s … Continue reading

Posted in Food, Health and Nutrition, Personal ruminations & essays, Psychology and perception | 1 Comment