PLAYBILL: The end of the world as we know it
A group of scientists sequestered in a secure facility in the Far North are tasked build a device that will destroy the sun. Why? Who knows? But Star Killing Machine a musical comedy! How’s that for a twist? They can make anything into a musical comedy these days – and the world is better for […]
REVIEW: Fire from the ashes in Annapurna
Twenty-five years ago, actors Shaun Johnston and John Hudson put together a new company called Shadow Theatre to present “modern theatre for adult audiences.” A lot has changed. Hudson also still performs, but now is best known as a sensitive director with a deft feel for text. Johnston went on to be a staple of […]
REVIEW: Heavenly Blue Rodeo
Having Blue Rodeo in Edmonton for a pair of January shows is a tradition. After playing a two-nighter at the Jubilee Auditorium in January 2016, the six-piece country rock band is back for another two nighter at the Jubilee Auditorium in January 2017 – and Thursday was another packed house. This is unsurprising in a […]
Fortune Falls more style than substance
Of Jonathan Christenson’s dark Catalyst Theatre off-Broadway production of Nevermore – The Imaginary Life & Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe, one waggish New York reviewer observed, “Quoth the raven – Lighten up!” It looks as if Christenson took it seriously. His latest musical, Fortune Falls, which plays through Feb. 5 on the Citadel’s Maclab […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Must be January, Blue Rodeo is here
Today on Hinterland Who’s Who: Like the swallows to Capistrano, Blue Rodeo returns to Canadian concert halls once again for their annual migration. Behold the wonders of nature! Wait, are there any swallows left or are they all extinct? Where the heck is Capistrano, anyway? No fair Googling. Anyway, Blue Rodeo is a perennial Canadian […]
INTERVIEW: Blue Rodeo careful with politics
Blue Rodeo might be too close to themselves to understand how interesting it is that they didn’t include their one-off protest song Stealin’ All Our Dreams on their new album, 1000 Arms. Maybe it’s a hidden secret bonus track? “It is?!” exclaims singer Jim Cuddy in a recent interview. No … what? It is? “No.” […]
PLAYBILL: Awkward encounters
A Muslim, a Jew, an African-American and a white person have a heated conversation over dinner in New York City. What could possibly go wrong? Didn’t you listen to your mother?! No sex, politics or religion at the dinner table! All the characters in Ayad Akhtar’s explosive drama break mom’s rules in a play that […]
Gender a moot point in powerful Henry V
Shakespeare’s Henry V is the most manly of kings. In his earlier play, Henry IV, the Bard gives us the wild, undisciplined wastrel known as “Prince Harry,” who together with his partner in excess Falstaff probes the depths of dissipation. But in Henry V we see a new man born. The former rake assumes the […]
INSIDE Edmonton’s Avant-garde
There may have been as many performers as there were audience members at the gig – but it didn’t matter. This was ART. A man named SkruntSkrunt rendered space sounds through a speaker box that was duct-taped to a didgeridoo. The Japanese performer Himiko wore a scary face mask as she played oddly consonant chords […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Bye Bye Bunny
Everyone’s favorite year-end album list starts as a blank slate. Which way will the winds blow in 2017? Where will this year’s standouts come from? What genres will they play? It certainly seems like the most interesting local projects these days are those that blend a bunch of sounds into one, but isn’t that really […]
