Motown the Musical: Berry Gordy’s lavish love letter to himself
Motown: The Musical begins with a high decibel blast of pure soul straight from the ’60s. Immediately we are in the midst of a marvelous musical battle – an energetic sing-off between The Tops and The Temps (Temptations), two of the best known male groups from the early years of Motown. From their patent leather […]
PLAYBILL: Metis Mutt matures
“I am Metis – which means that I’m both native and white. Half of me wants to assimilate you into my culture – and the other half is just too lazy to do it.” Does that joke make you cringe? Yes? Does it make it any better coming from an actual Metis man? No? Well, […]
FORE! Locals let loose on links in Ladies Foursome
Norm Foster is probably the most produced playwright you’ve never heard of. For the past 35 years, from his home in Fredericton, New Brunswick, the prolific wordsmith has turned out a stream of comic works that have been produced as far away as Canberra, Australia. Although one of his plays was produced off-Broadway, that was […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Temple of the Starlite
The historic Starlite Room – originally constructed as a “citadel” for the Salvation Army before becoming the headquarters for the Citadel Theatre in 1965, and then a TV studio where the late Chuck Chandler hosted Disco Daze – first started running live music in 1978. It was later a popular underground club called the Bronx, […]
PLAYBILL: All about the women
Anyone complaining that women don’t get a voice in theatre ought to get a load of what’s going on in Edmonton this week. Opening this week are two plays on opposite ends of the theatrical spectrum – one from a mainstream commercial landmark; the other by a beloved amateur institution – and all the main […]
Portugal. The Man. Greater. Than. That One Hit.
It’s always a interesting experience seeing a concert from a modern rock band known in the mainstream for only one massive radio hit. Seems like they’re all that way these days. You never know what you’re going to get. They could be a box of chocolates – or as has been witnessed once or twice, […]
Edmonton trans singer to perform at anti Jordan Peterson rally
It started with a quibble about pronouns that escalated into a hill to die on – a bitter partisan war over free speech and gender politics that shows no signs of a ceasefire. University of Toronto psychology professor Jordan Peterson started it with his outspoken criticism of Bill C-16, which is meant to protect a […]
HMS Pinafore: A jazz cruise with pizzazz
Shortly after it was written in 1878, Gilbert and Sullivan’s HMS Pinafore (or The Lass That Loved a Sailor), became the most popular musical in the world. Propelled by silliness and mirth, it was a huge hit in London and, crossing the ocean, became an immediate sensation in America. At one time pirated versions were […]
Tears mix with laughter in remarkable one-man show
The one-person stand-up show is a staple of theatre – but you’ve never seen one like this before. Empire of the Son, on stage at the Citadel’s Club theatre until Feb. 18, is the work of the much-hyphenated (writer-comedian-filmmaker-movie-TV star-radio host) Tetsuro Shigematsu. He has co-starred in a sci-fi film with George Takei, was a […]
REVIEW: Brilliant play for short attention spans …
With Caryl Churchill’s Love and Information, MacEwan University’s Theatre Arts program introduces a new stage to Edmonton – the Theatre Lab in the impressive new Allard Hall. The play runs until Feb. 10. The new black box, 150-seat space is just what a theatre school needs – an area flexible enough to accommodate productions of […]
