Lauren Gienow - Page 3

After a brief delay due to weather, the FREEDOM CABARET opened at the Stratford Festival on Saturday night and it had the audience captivated from start to finish. The show may not have begun until the lightning passed, but the mood under the canopy was certainly electric. This cabaret offers an exploration and celebration of Black music and its undeniable contribution to the very fabric of the music industry and to culture in general. In addition to performing, Beau Dixon is the Curator, Director, and Music Director of this superb cabaret and he has assembled some incredible talent. From the vocalists to musicians, everyone has their moment to shine. 

R&J, produced in collaboration with WhyNot Theatre, makes it clear that one does not need to experience theatre with all five senses in order to be moved. The audience point of entry to this production is shifted from visual to auditory, allowing for this production to be intended for blind, low vision, and sighted audiences alike.

Every year, the Stratford Festival mounts a production geared towards young people and I was thrilled to see that despite the unique season that COVID protocols have demanded, the Festival still made this a priority. What’s more, they have made a truly interesting and fun choice in I AM WILLIAM - A play by Rébecca Déraspe and Théâtre le Clou with the english translation by Leanna Brodie. Director Esther Jun, Choreographer Alyssa Martin, Dramaturge Kamana Ntibarikure, three musicians including Music Director Njo Kong Kie, and a fabulous four person company, delight audiences with a clever, funny, and thoughtful family-friendly production that is sure to have theatre-goers of all ages engaging in meaningful conversations one minute, while singing a catchy ‘horse’ song to themselves the next.

The fresh new PLAY ON! Cabaret at the Stratford Festival offers an impressive celebration of what popular music pulls from Shakespeare, what Shakespeare has to say about music, and what themes are frequently explored in both. Described as a “Shakespeare-inspired Mixtape,” this 90 minute cabaret produces diversified covers of songs by artists like Taylor Swift, Prince, and Rush while skillfully weaving in some of Shakespeare’s most celebrated words. Between the excellent music selections and arrangements, beautiful words, and tremendous performances from all four singers, The Festival Theatre Canopy has become home to a bonafide rock concert with the bard. 

The Tomson Highway play, THE REZ SISTERS was supposed to debut on a Stratford Festival stage in the 2020 season, but of course those plans were put on hold due to the pandemic. Over a year later, the Festival made sure to include it in its unique 2021. The show opened Wednesday night under the Tom Patterson Theatre Canopy. Directed by Jessica Carmichael, THE REZ SISTERS is the story of seven indigenous women who live on a Reserve on Manitoulin Island. Each woman has endured trauma throughout her life and the effects of those traumas are layered into their everyday lives. One of them is also dying of cancer – a fact that is rarely acknowledged by the characters but feels like a constant, thick presence in the air between them all. Bonded by a desire to experience more in life, the women set out on a quest to attend “the Biggest Bingo in the World” in Toronto. Along the way, truths are shared, realities are faced, and relationships between them continue to shift and change.

After what feels like an eternity, Shakespeare has made its triumphant return to the Stratford Festival. Peter Pasyk’s production of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM opened last week and this writer had the opportunity to take in a midday production at the Tom Patterson Theatre Canopy on Sunday. With eight performers taking on a multitude of roles, this production appropriately feels like a fever dream. The performers are up to the task – with some actors taking on three different roles, providing a fun and whimsical experience for an audience that has been waiting for so long to see live theatre again! Boy, is it good to be back!

After over a year without live theatre pretty much anywhere in the world, Canadian musical theatre lovers made it known just how much they missed this art form by quickly scooping up tickets to YOU CAN’T STOP THE BEAT - a Cabaret at the Stratford Festival curated and directed by Thom Allison. This performance is exactly what everyone needs as they return to the theatre and so if you have the chance, be sure to purchase a ticket, add yourself to the waitlist, or watch the filmed version from home when it becomes available. The team of Evangelia Kambites, Mark Uhre, Alana Hibbert, and Gabrielle Jones delivers a wide array of memorable musical numbers spanning from Tin Pan Alley to the present day. A lot of material is covered in the hour and twenty minutes and there is sure to be something for everyone.

This exquisite cabaret delves deep into the catalogue of African American Musical Theatre and not only poses the titular question of WHY WE TELL THE STORY but also leaves audiences wondering why theatres haven’t been telling these stories nearly enough.

By now the news has gotten out that The Stratford Festival is putting its 2020 season on hold due to the social distancing guidelines brought on by this unprecedented pandemic situation. The Stratford Festival is a magical place and yesterday's announcement was tough to digest. This is not a news story about the postponement of the season. This is one BWW writer's love letter (and get-well-soon card) to the Stratford Festival.

Drayton Entertainment's St. Jacob's Country Playhouse has kicked off their 2020 season with a memorable production of Aaron Sorkin's A FEW GOOD MEN. Despite its critical acclaim, this play is likely less familiar to most theatregoers than the classic movie it inspired. This provides an extra challenge to the company to inhabit roles made famous by the likes of Jack Nicholson, Tom Cruise and Demi Moore, and to make the characters their own. It takes no time at all to be fully confident that director Marti Maraden has assembled a company that has done just that.

 Broadway star Chilina Kennedy returns to Stratford for a one night only in-concert performance of Leslie Arden's acclaimed Canadian musical THE HOUSE OF MARTIN GUERRE. Stratford audiences may remember Ms. Kennedy from her much lauded lead performances in WEST SIDE STORY, EVITA, and JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR to name just a few. Since then, she transferred to Broadway with the rest of the company of JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, and then played over a thousand performances on Broadway as the title character in BEAUTIFUL: THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL. Currently, she is starring as Dina in the national tour of THE BAND'S VISIT. BWW had the chance to speak with Ms. Kennedy a few days after she concluded the Toronto run of THE BAND'S VISIT. She shared her excitement to finally return to the Stratford Festival, and her passion for THE HOUSE OF MARTIN GUERRE.

Something's Cominga??To the First Ontario Performing Arts Centre! This coming weekend, audiences have the chance to experience some of the most beautiful music ever written, performed by some of the top musicians in Canada. The Niagara Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Bradley Thachuk, presents: WEST SIDE STORY IN CONCERT as part of the POPS! Series. Joining the Symphony are some big names in Canadian musical theatre: Robert Markus, fresh off his celebrated performance as Evan Hansen in Mirvish's Canadian premiere of DEAR EVAN HANSEN is performing the role of Tony. Soulpepper Theatre vet Meher Pavri is Mariaa?"a role she has played before to rave reviews at the Lower Ossington Theatre in Toronto and with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra. Playing Riff, is the very talented Sayer Roberts, who starred alongside Mr. Markus last year in the Stratford Festival's THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW; Stratford, Shaw, and Broadway star Kaylee Harwood is portraying Anita, and accomplished soprano, Charlotte Knight is reprising the role of Rosalia after recently singing the part with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra.

On Sunday night, audiences in Stratford Ontario were treated to a performance of a new musical that had most recently been seen at Toronto's Fringe Festival. EVERY SILVER LINING was brought to the stage at Stratford City Hall for one night only as a way to continue to workshop it and to be a homecoming of sorts for former Stratford resident Jennifer Stewart, who directed the show and is in the ensemble. Written by book writer Laura Piccinin and Composer/Lyricist Allison Wither, EVERY SILVER LINING tells the story of young people processing death and dying. With beautiful music and dialogue that is at times both witty and profound, the show explores the complex emotions felt by a family coping with their son/brother's illness and eventual death, as well as how his teenage friends process such an unthinkable loss.

For the first time since 1975, the Stratford Festival is putting on a production of Arthur Miller's chilling 1953 play, THE CRUCIBLE. Directed by Jonathan Goad, this production maintains a thrilling level of intensity for its entire duration, keeping audiences in the Avon Theatre utterly captivated while simultaneously squirming at the challenging situation they are seeing on stage and the frightening fact that some of the most outlandish elements of the plot are far too relatable to what is going on in politics and society today.

The Stratford Festival is celebrating the World Premiere of Michael Healey's adaptation of Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur's THE FRONT PAGE at the Festival Theatre. A beloved American satire set in 1920's Chicago, THE FRONT PAGE tells the story of journalists in a courthouse pressroom doing whatever they need to do to get their story while at the same time being the only potential failsafe against political corruption at a time when the seedy Chicago subculture was in full swing. Directed by Graham Abbey, this adaptation is updated to include more diversity among the characters. It is a knee slapping night at the theatre whilst also providing a seemingly timeless commentary about the flaws and biases of the criminal justice system.

On Wednesday evening, a powerful and complex exploration of identity, generational trauma, and spirituality opened at the Stratford Festival's Studio Theatre. The English language premiere of Wajdi Mouawad's BIRDS OF A KIND (English Translation by Linda Gaboriau) provokes thought and emotion and is a great companion to NATHAN THE WISE, which opened at the same theatre earlier in the season and despite being very different tonally, shares many themes. Directed by Festival Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino, BIRDS OF A KIND begins as a story of two almost unknowingly star crossed lovers and morphs into a tale about members of a family each struggling to honour their perceived identities and religions in their own ways.

As I took my seat in the lobby of Stratford's Festival Theatre on Monday night, the eager patron next to me leaned in and proclaimed a?oeThere is quite the buzz in here!a?? She was absolutely right. We had both arrived early enough to grab seats for WHY WE TELL THE STORY: A CELEBRATION OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN MUSICAL THEATRE--A much anticipated cabaret event conceived by Festival actor Marcus Nance who can currently be seen in LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS and BILLY ELLIOT. After initially selling out months before the Festival season even began, the high demand of this show led to more chairs being added and eventually to 'standing room only' tickets being sold so that as many people as possible could witness what indeed turned out to be a magical night of words and song.

Fresh off an acclaimed run at the Toronto Fringe Festival, new musical EVERY SILVER LINING is coming to Stratford City Hall for what is sure to be a moving and memorable performance on Sunday August 25th. BWW had the opportunity to chat with Producer, Playwright, and star, Laura Piccinin about how this musical came to be, the deep and moving themes it explores, and the journey it has taken to get to this point.

If you are looking for a master class in acting, look no further than Drayton Entertainment's production of 12 ANGRY MEN currently playing at the Huron Country Playhouse II in Grand Bend. Not only are the performances stellar, but there is also something equal parts thrilling and horrifying about how much this play resonates with today's audience. It is horrifying that so little has changed when it comes to the risk of the influence of prejudice and racism in the criminal justice system, but it is also thrilling that this exceptional piece of theatre still has the ability to reflect the good the bad and the ugly of the world back onto the audience in a way that challenges us to be better.

The Italian Stallion himself is currently tearing up the stage at Drayton Entertainment's Huron Country Playhouse in Grand Bend. ROCKY: THE MUSICAL premiered last week and audiences appear to be loving it. Based on the classic movie, with Book by Thomas Meehan and Sylvester Stallone, Music by Stephen Flaherty and Lyrics by Lynn Ahren; this Alex Mustakas directed beast of a show is sure to be thoroughly entertaining for the entire family.