Tag Archives: Theatre

Refuge Comes To The Firehall Arts Centre March 18 – April 1, 2017

6 Mar

As many know, immigration and refugees is front of mind in the news almost daily which makes this new play by Mary Vingoe rather timely.  The Firehall Arts Centre presents a new play Refuge based on the award-winning CBC Radio documentary “Habtom’s Path”. Refuge tells the emotionally riveting story of Eritrean army deserter, Ayinom Zerisenai, who has landed in Nova Scotia, where his mother already has refugee status.  But even as Ayinom’s plight wins the support of an immigration lawyer, Saul Ackman, questions about his past actions and his current behavior begin to haunt Pamela who has taken him into her home.  Could she and her husband be harbouring a legitimate refugee or a terrorist?  Refuge as you might guess is a provocative and poignant story of the pitfalls of seeking sanctuary in today’s suspicious world.  The play is directed by the very talented Donna Spencer.  Refuge runs from March 18 to April 1st at the Firehall Arts Centre. Tickets are available from the Firehall Arts Centre from $23. If you are interested in a Post Show Talkback discussion, you can participate in those on March 23rd and March 30th. For those on a budget, check out the Pay What You Can Performances March 22nd and 29th at 1:00 pm.

Photo Credit: Emily Cooper

 

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Elbow Room Café: The Musical At The York Theatre March 1-12, 2017

17 Feb

elbowroomcafeemilycooperYou are invited to take a peak inside one of Vancouver’s iconic eateries, the Elbow Room Café. The café is located in downtown Vancouver and is owned and operated by partners in life and in business,  Patrice and Bryan, who have been running the café since 1983. The restaurant is known for its eclectic breakfast and brunch menu that serves up sarcasm along with your food.  If you are lucky and you time it just right, you may also find a celebrity sighting or two.  The Elbow Room Café – The Musical features local actors Dave Deveau and Anton Lipovetsky who we hear sink their teeth into the roles of owners, Patrice and Bryan. Together they explore the reality of aging in a Technicolour world which is complete with campy misfits, drag queens and the perpetually hung over.  Elbow Room Café – The Musical runs March 1 to 12 at the York Theatre with artist talkback shows on March 3rd, 5th and 7th.  Tickets are available online from The Cultch and start from $20. Expect a loud, colourful and  unpredictable evening that’s full of heart.

Photo Credit: Emily Cooper

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ELLE At The Firehall Arts Centre February 8-18

1 Feb

elle-severnthompsonYou are invited to check out ELLE at the Firehall Arts Centre. This play is the story of Marguerite de Roberval, a French noblewoman who sets out to sail in 1542 for Canada with her uncle, Jacques Cartier to colonize new found territory.  She finds herself abandoned on a deserted ‘Isle of Demons’ located off the coast of Newfoundland as punishment for taking a lover during the voyage.  Marguerite finds herself in the company of spirit bears real and imagined and not only does ELLE survive, but she thrives. J. Kelly Nestruck of The Globe & Mail likens the play to the Oscar nominated movie The Revenant by Alejandro Iñárritu.  We are hearing that ELLE reinvents the beginnings of this country’s national narrative.  ELLE runs February 8 – 18 with tickets from $23 and available online at Firehall Arts Centre.

What people are saying about ELLE:

“Thompson holds the audience’s attention in a vice grip with her precision, depth, and hilarity. Her script is beautifully poetic, and is a master of delivery.”
 Mooney on Theatre  

“…a performance that weaves feminism, survival instincts, colonialism
and magic realism together.”
 The Toronto Star

“Elle is occasionally tense, but frequently funny.”
Globe and Mail

Photo Credit: Severn Thompson

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Mouthpiece At The Cultch January 31 – February 5, 2017

16 Jan

mouthpiece-joel-cliftonAn interesting show that has our attention is coming to The Cultch January 31st. It’s called Mouthpiece. The show features what goes through a woman’s mind during the course of one day.  Here you will see the push and pull, the past and present, the progress and regression along with all the inner conflict that exists within a woman’s head. Interwoven within the show is a cappella harmony, text and movement.  Mouthpiece is a ‘harrowing, humourous and heart-wrenching journey into the female psyche’.  The show hails from Toronto where it had a sold-out run. It comes to The Cultch on a national tour and is presented with the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival.  The show opens January 31st at 8:00 pm and runs till February 5, 2017. If you are interested in an Artist Talkback evening, that will be held February 1st.   Tickets are available online at The Cultch.

Photo Credit: Joel Clifton

What people are saying about Mouthpiece:

“It’s an engrossing and virtuosic performance, layered with meaning…”
 Toronto Star

“Mouthpiece holds you transfixed until the very end”
Scene Changes

★★★★ (out of four)
The Globe and Mail

“…a sophisticated, nuanced, complex portrait of the woman’s voice. It offers an incisive, humorous, thoughtful, afflictive telling of a narrative that is undeniably true, yet criminally underrepresented”
Espace Musique

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The Fighting Season At The Cultch January 10-21, 2017

30 Dec

Fighting_Season_PhotoEmilyCooper.jpgVancouver based theatre company Bleeding Heart Theatre is bringing The Fighting Season to the Culture Lab at The Cultch January 10- 21, 2017.  This show is written by Vancouver playwright Sean Harris Oliver. His inspiration for this play came from his father who was deployed in Afghanistan as a field medic. The story is told through his father’s eyes and that of a recovery room nurse.  This show played to sold out audiences at the 2015 Vancouver Fringe Festival and was awarded the Georgia Straight’s Critics Choice Award.  The show previews January 10th with opening night kicking off on January 11th and running to January 21st.  A couple of matinees are offered January 15th and 21st. Tickets are $20 and available online from The Cultch.

Photo Credit: Emily Cooper

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And Bella Sang With Us January 4-14, 2017 At The Firehall Arts Centre

27 Dec

andbellasangwithusemilycooperThe Firehall Arts Centre has recently added the works of two female playwrights to their 2016-2017 season. One of which is And Bella Sang With Us opening in the New Year. This show was “Pick Of The Fringe” at the 2016 Vancouver Fringe Festival and is written by written by Vancouver’s Sally Stubbs. The story is set in 1912 in the Downtown Eastside and features Constable Lurancy Harris and Minnie Miller, Vancouver’s first female police officers. In this play, they will show you how they dealt with the ‘female morality issue’.  This subject matter, of course, leads them into a host of other issues including societal and family pressures as well as political corruption not to mention trying to deal with ‘The Lord of the Bawdy Houses’. The cast features a great line up of local talent including Leanna Brodie, Sarah Louise Turner, Simon Webb, Beatrice Zeilinger, Agnes Tong, and Patrick Courtin.  Opening night is January 4, 2017 and the show runs to January 14th with several matinees featured. Tickets are $24 and available online at Firehall Arts Centre.

Photo Credit: Emily Cooper

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CREEPS Comes To The Cultch November 30 – December 10, 2016

21 Nov

creepstimmathesonThe play CREEPS premiered in 1971.  At that time, it was David E. Freeman’s first play for which he won the Chalmers Award for Outstanding Play Award, the New York Drama Award for Outstanding New Playright in 1973 and one of the six Edinburgh “Fringe” Festival Awards in 1979.   This is a unique and sometimes dark comedy that features a mix of abilities and as it is set in the 1970s the language from that time will raise some interesting questions.  Three cast members have disabilities and the other 4 cast members are from the professional theatre community. The play features men that work in a workshop doing rather mundane work. They become tired of the way they are treated and end up barricading themselves in a washroom. You are invited to join the cast for an evening of savage wit and uncompromising truth-telling. The play previews November 30th with Opening Night taking place on December 1st. The show runs to December 10th and its run happens to fall on International Day of Disability on December 3rd on which day a 2 for 1 special ticket price is being offered followed by a post-show reception.  Tickets start from $18 and are available online from The Cultch.

Photo Credit: Tim Matheson

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Miss Shakespeare Will Be At The Firehall Arts Centre November 5-26

1 Nov

missshakespeareThe Firehall Arts Centre along with Musical TheatreWorks bring you Miss Shakespeare starting November 5th. Miss Shakespeare is a story inspired by the Bard’s daughter, whose own creative aspirations come alive as she leads a group of women in something secret, subversive and illegal. As it turns out, it’s staging of a play, but it’s the 1600’s and women are banned from the stage.  Behind the dingy walls of The Cage Tavern, six women explore the seductive power of the theatre. With a musical score that is influenced by underground European Cabaret. The women embrace their creativity, their voice and their freedom. Unfortunately, the law is not on their side, and if these artists are to truly have a voice, they must find the courage to get beyond the walls and in front of an audience. The book and lyrics are written by local talent, Tracey Power, with music co-written by Steve Charles. Miss Shakespeare runs from November 5-26 at the Firehall Arts Centre. Tickets are available online from $23.

What people are saying about Miss Shakespeare:

“With humour and heart, Miss Shakespeare imagines an underground
world of women who broke the rules, first quietly and then brazenly, changing the landscape forever” 
Vancouver Sun

“This is smart, funny stuff!” 
Jo Ledingham

“Things are looking up for Canada’s contribution to the musical theatre genre”
Vancouver Presents!

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Smash Hit Motherload Returns To The Cultch October 4-15, 2016

15 Sep

motherloadThe smash hit Motherload returns to The Cultch, 1895 Venables Street, from October 4th to 15th.   This show is an intimate account of parenting in the modern age.  Four prominent Canadian theatre artists share their personal stories of motherhood.  They will be drawing on personal experiences such as playground conversations, coffee shop confessions and the issue of isolation that many moms feel while some get into ‘competitive mommying’.   By sharing their real life stories of parenthood, they hope to’ lighten the collective load’.  Motherload kicks off October 4th with a preview show, opening night is October 5th and the show runs until October 15th. For those wishing to check out a matinee show, there will be two performances at 2:00 pm on October 9th and 15th. Tickets are available online at The Cultch starting from $20.  What people are saying about the show:

“Reminds you that you are not alone. I can’t recommend it enough; go with your
partner for a date night or bring your best friends for a girl’s night out or most
importantly – take your mother!”
Urban Baby and Toddler Magazine

“Motherload will charm, delight and touch you”
Vancouver Presents

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Til Death – The Six Wives of Henry VIII At The Rio Theatre September 8–18, 2016

9 Aug

TilDeathSixWivesThe Vancouver Fringe Festival is coming September 8-18, 2016 and will be showcased at various  venues throughout the City.  One show that caught our eye is ‘Til Death’ – The Six Wives of Henry VIII which will take the stage at the Rio Theatre September 8 – 18, 2016. This show was Pick of the Fringe in 2012 and is a fast paced one woman show showcasing the six wines of Henry VIII.  You will meet the Betrayed Wife, The Scheming Wife, The Peacemaker, The Ugly German, The Tarty One and the One In Love with Someone Else.   We understand that the show starts off in the afterlife in a bizarre waiting room of sorts. One by one, the wives of Henry VIII arrive, much to the shock and dismay of each previous wife. What culminates is the heated frenzy of an ex-wives club where these women swap stories, toss Anne Boleyn’s head around, pick on the ugly German one, and, most importantly, fight for the right to be acknowledged as Henry’s true bride and eternal partner. But when Henry arrives, everything changes. This production is brought to you by Monster Theatre and under the direction of Tara Travis who is an actor-writer-puppeteer and artistic producer with a long list of works to her name.

What people are saying about Til Death:

 “Travis’s energetic charm and flashes of emotional depth impress.”
Colin Thomas, Georgia Straight

“Travis puts on a dazzling display of comedy acting.”
Stephen Hunt, Calgary Herald

Til Death: The Six Wives of Henry VIII gets under way at the Rio Theatre on September 8th and runs till September 18th. Tickets are available online at Vancouver Fringe Festival.

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