Category Archives: Reviews

Hilarious combat in The Bidding War

Posted on November 21, 2024 by barczablog

The title of The Bidding War isn’t just a metaphor. Michael Ross Albert’s new play has just opened at Crow’s Theatre with a big cast and big laughs. The premise is so simple that it can’t miss. Buyers and agents … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Reviews | Tagged Amy Matysio, Aurora Brown, Crow's Theatre, Fiona Reid, Gregory Prest, Gregory Waters, Guloien Theatre, Izad Etemadi, Michael Ross Albert, Paolo Santalucia, Peter Fernandes, Real Estate, Sergio Di Zio, Sophia Walker, Steven Sutcliffe, The Bidding War, The Master Plan, Veronica Hortiguela | Leave a comment

Fire & Ice: Shostakovich, Sibelius and TSO specialties

Posted on November 18, 2024 by barczablog

When an artist tells you their goals & objectives one should listen. Gustavo Gimeno’s “European Soundscapes” essay in the current Toronto Symphony program gives us some great clues as to what we should expect from the orchestra. No they are … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged Ana Sokolovic, classical-music, Dmitri Shostakovich, Gustavo Gimeno, Jean Sibelius, Julian Rachlin, Mozart, music, Shostakovich, Sibelius, Toronto Symphony Orchestra | Leave a comment

Grounded and how we got here

Posted on November 10, 2024 by barczablog

I was disappointed to miss the live High Definition broadcast of Grounded October 19th, seeing the Canadian Opera Company Nabucco. I thought that the main reason I wanted to attend was to see brilliant mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo in the lead … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Politics, Reviews | Tagged Ben Bliss, cognitive dissonance, Ellie Dehn, Emily D'Angelo, futurism, George Brant, Grounded, Jenine Tesori, Kyle Miller, Metropolitan Opera, Metropolitan Opera High Definition Broadcast, Mimi Lien, Yannick Nezet-seguin | Leave a comment

Stunning serendipity as John Adams Returns

Posted on November 7, 2024 by barczablog

The concert is titled “John Adams Returns”. Toronto Symphony seemed prescient in welcoming the composer this week to conduct a program including some of his own works. It’s uncanny. By the serendipity of the calendar tonight’s concert had a special … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged Anna Prohaska, Claude Debussy, John Adams, Maurice Ravel, Nixon in China, Roy Thomson Hall, Toronto Symphony | 1 Comment

Her Name is Lucy Barton

Posted on October 24, 2024 by barczablog

I just came home from seeing My Name is Lucy Barton at the Bluma Appel theatre, in Canadian Stage’s new production of Rona Munro’s 2018 adaptation of Elizabeth Strout’s 2016 novel of the same name. It felt so close to … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Reviews | Tagged Amelia Scott, Bluma Appel Theatre, Canadian Stage Company, Jackie Maxwell, Jacob Lin, Lucy Barton, Maev Beaty, Michael Gianfrancesco, My Name is Lucy Barton | Leave a comment

A natural high from Tafelmusik’s Feast of Unknowns

Posted on October 19, 2024 by barczablog

Tafelmusik have outdone themselves this time. This concert titled Feast for the Senses was an exploration of new flavours presented with the assistance of Amandine Beyer, guest director and violin soloist, a genuine feast. Baroque for most people means Bach … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Opera, Reviews | Tagged Amandine Beyer, Charlotte Nediger, Elizabeth Jacquet de la Guerre, Feast for the Senses, Georg Muffat, Jean-Philippe Rameau, Jeanne Lamon Hall, Lucas Harris, Michael Unterman, Michel Richard de Lalande, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra | Leave a comment

Ambitious COC Faust

Posted on October 14, 2024 by barczablog

The Canadian Opera Company have a new production of Charles Gounod’s 1859 opera Faust, telling the tale of the old man who sells his soul to the devil for youth and romance. Gounod’s opera is but one of the many … Continue reading →

Posted in Opera, Reviews | Tagged Alex Hetherington, Amy Lane, Canadian Opera Company, Charles Gounod, Emma Ryott, Faust, Guanqun Yu, Johannes Debus, Jules Barbier, Korin Thomas-Smith, Kyle Ketelsen, Long Long, Megan Latham, Michel Carré, opera, Szymon Mechlinski, theatre | Leave a comment

A seriously playful TSO program

Posted on October 5, 2024 by barczablog

The search for fun can be a serious pursuit. Play is the operative word for a Toronto Symphony program titled “Spirited Overtures:” Gioachino Rossini–Overture to The Barber of SevilleIgor Stravinsky–Jeu de cartes (Card Game)–intermission–Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart–Violin Concerto No. 3 in … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged Barber of Seville, Bugs Bunny, Claude Debussy, Die Fledermaus, George Weston Recital Hall, Gioachino Rossini, Gustavo Gimeno, Igor Stravinsky, Jeu de cartes, Jeux, Johann Strauss Jr, Renaud Capuçon, Roy Thomson Hall, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart | Leave a comment

Picture this: challenging showcase as TSO season-opening concert

Posted on September 29, 2024 by barczablog

The concert was titled “Pictures at an Exhibition.” Roy Thomson Hall was full Saturday night for a fun evening at the Toronto Symphony. It was a showcase for the TSO. Music Director Gustavo Gimeno’s program notes suggest that he was … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged Carlos Simon, Felix Mendelssohn, Gustavo Gimeno, Jan Lisiecki, Jonathan Crow, Joseph Johnson, Ludwig van Beethoven, Mark Williams, Maurice Ravel, Modeste Mussorsky, Roy Thompson Hall, Sergei Gorchakov, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, TSO, Wake Up! | 4 Comments

Tafelmusik get Podger who gets Mozart

Posted on September 28, 2024 by barczablog

As I look at this stylish picture of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart I wonder. Through the decades I have been listening to his music there are a variety of approaches, sometimes so respectful as to put Mozart on an impossible pedestal. … Continue reading →

Posted in Music and musicology, Reviews | Tagged Koerner Hall, Rachel Podger, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, William Shatner, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart | 2 Comments