Gateway Theatre
A Broadway Holiday by Christopher King and Barbara Tomasic

When and Where December 16 - 23, 2021 | MainStage at Gateway Theatre, 6500 Gilbert Road, Richmond

Director Barbara Tomasic Music Director Jenny Anderson Arranger Chrisopher King Production Design Sophie Tang Sound Design Darren John Costume Design Melicia Zaini Stage Manager Susan Miyagishima

Cast Jenny Anderson, Caitriona Murphy, Gabrielle Rutman, Devon Busswood, Sean Hara, Alexander Nicoll

Reviewer John Jane

Most of the songs were performed as an ensemble, yet it was two female solos that provided highlights: Jenny Anderson’s interpretation of Jason Robert Brown composition “Christmas Lullaby” was quietly affecting and Caitriona Murphy made “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” her own. Full review

 

 

Promethean Theatre Company
King Lear

Where and When December 11-23, 2021, 8pm Tues-Sat, 3pm matinées Sundays + matinee on Sat, Dec. 18 (Preview on December 10) | Jericho Arts Centre, 1675 Discovery St, Vancouver

Director & Producer Isaac Li General Manager Erin Purghart Sound Design & Music Director Jared Ager-Foster Fight Directors Mike Kovac & Sylvie La Rivière Set Design Marcus Vaillant Lighting & Projection Design Charlie Beaver Costume Design Shel Wyminga Props Design Elliot Roberts Stage Manager Diyalla Malijian

Reviewer Christian Steckler

King Lear is one of Shakespeare’s strongest tragedies. It deals not only with his familiar investigations into power and personality, but with complex levels of intrigue compounded by the onset of insanity, raising the question of whether circumstances cause mental breakdown, or vice versa. Full review

 

 


Theatre Replacement
East Van Panto: Alice in Wonderland by Sonja Bennett, music by Veda Hille

When & Where November 24, 2021 – January 2, 2022 | In-Person at the York Theatre OR Online Performances

Director Meg Roe Associate Director Arthi Chandra Musical Director Ben Elliott
Cast Dawn Petten Amanda Sum Mark Chavez Ghazal Azarbad Raugi Yu

Reviewer Darren Cordeiro

Ready to fall down The Cultch and Theatre Replacement’s rabbit hole filled with energy, laughter, and creativity? The East Van Panto’s novel production of Alice in Wonderland provides exactly this with their adoption of the classic fairy tale to the bohemian vibe of B.C.’s artisan community. Full review

 

 

 

Western Gold Theatre
The Ballad of Georges Boivin by Martin Bellemare, translated by Jack Paterson with Johanna Nutter

When & Where November 10 – 28, 2021, Wed to Sat at 7:30pm, Tues , Wed , Sat and Sun at 2pm from Nov. 14. | PAL Studio Theatre, 581 Cardero St.

Director Jack Paterson Dramaturg Johanna Nutter Set Design Glenn MacDonald Lighting Design John Webber Costume Design AlaiaHamer Sound Design Stephen Bulat Stage Manager Ingrid Turk

Reviewer John Jane

The Ballad of Georges Boivin is Jack Paterson’s translation of Martin Bellemare’s award winning Francophone play Le Chant de Georges Boivin. The play is essentially about four senior citizens undertaking a 4,500 kilometre Trans-Canada road trip in a Toyota Corolla with only one driver. Full review

 

 

United Players
Emilia by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm

When & Where November 12 – December 5, 2021 (Thurs-Sat at 8pm, Sun at 2pm), Talkback: November 18 | Jericho Arts Centre – plus streaming

Director Lois Anderson Composer/Sound Design Sierra Haynes Musical Director/Band Glee Devereaux Set and Costume Design Cecilia Vadala Choreography Ali Watson Fight Choreography Sylvie La Rivière Lighting Design Harika Xu Producer Linda Begg Technical Director Jamie Sweeney Stage Manager Anita Jian

Reviewer John Jane

Emilia Lanier (née Emilia Bassano) is an enigma; a published English poet born in Bishopsgate, London mid-sixteenth century of an Italian father and an English mother. It’s thought by some literature scholars that she is the subject of William Shakespeare's Dark Lady Sonnets. Playwright Lloyd Malcolm provides a highly speculative, if largely entertaining, exploration of Emilia’s 76-year life. Full review

 

 

The Cultch in association with Ruby Slippers Theatre
we the same by Sangeeta Wylie

When & Where November 3 - 6, 2021 at 7.30pm; November 6, 2021 at 2pm & November 7, 2021 at 12pm | Streamed live from the Historic Theatre

Director Diane Brown Assistant Director Patricia Trinh Dramaturge Amy Strilchuk Choreography Shanny Rann Set Design Kimira Reddy Lighting Design Sophie Tang Sound Design Matthias Falvai Costume Design Melicia Zaini Stage Manager Susan D. Currie

Cast Elizabeth Thai, Grace Le, Chris Lam, Brandy Le, Quynh Mi & Khaira Ledeyo

Reviewer John Jane

Sangeeta Wylie’s story is about the Truong family’s perilous journey from Saigon to Victoria, British Columbia. The story of hardship, chronic fatigue, dehydration and separation is retold by a mother who survived this odyssey to her youngest daughter four decades later. The play’ narrative time shifts between the late seventies and the present through flashbacks. Full review

 

 

The Shadbolt Centre for the Arts
CHILD-ish inspired by Sunny Drake

When & Where October 15, 2021, 8pm | Live Stream Performance only

Reviewer Christian Steckler

Child-ish is a live-streamed presentation of four episodes that offer a lively, at times exuberant presentation of children’s ideas about various topics. Adults act out and use the actual words that children have presented in interviews and conversations in pondering questions concerning company and companionship, relationships and marriage, getting along in the world, and how the world could get along better. Full review


 

United Players
Amphitruo by Titus Maccius Plautus
Translated by Toph Marshall

WHEN & WHERE September 10 – October 3, 2021 Thurs - Sat at 8pm, Sundays at 2pm | Jericho Arts Centre, 1675 Discovery St. and on-line

Director Toph Marshall Costume design Claire Turner Lighting design Mark Carter Set design Ariel Slack Technical direction Leighton Taylor Stage manager Caroline Tang

CAST Mercurius Camryn Chew Sosia Claire deBruyn Jupiter Matt Loop Alcumena Joan Park Amphitruo Ayush Chhabra Bromia, Blephero, and assorted slaves Erin Purghart

Reviewer Elizabeth Paterson

About 2,200 years ago when this play was first staged masks were the norm - worn by the actors though, not the audience. Toph Marshall has elected to present his actors unmasked, the first of many jokes.

The Roman dramatist Plautus is best known nowadays - if known at all - as author of The Menaechmi, a play about twins separated in infancy and the source for Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors. Shakespeare is generally given the credit for upping the ante and introducing a second set of twins, but possibly this play, Amphitruo, gave him the idea - duplicate house slaves, duplicate husbands, and one wife. There the resemblance ends. Full review

 

 

Bard on the Beach
Done/Undone by Kate Besworth 

When & Where On demand August 12 – September 30 , 2021

Director Arthi Chandra Lighting design Harika Zu Set design Pam Johnson Costume design Jessica Oostergo Sound design/Composer Mishelle Cuttler Editor Candelario Andrade Stage manager Joanne P.B. Smith

Performers Charlie Gallant, Harveen Sandhu

Reviewer Elizabeth Paterson

Done/Undone is a very clever and entertaining exposition of current issues in presenting and performing Shakespeare's plays .Kate Besworth, who grew up in Stratford in a theatrical family, has hacked through the thickets of Bardolatry, academic theory, cancel culture, actors' issues and audience reaction to discuss those aspects of Renaissance life that we now find so repugnant - chiefly misogyny, anti-Semitism, colonialism and racial superiority. She asks, 'should some of these plays not be performed today?' Full review