Love on the rocks in The Last 5 Years The construction of the two-character musical The Last 5 Years is both clever and confusing. Half the scenes are told from the point of view of Cathy (Becca Guilderson) while the other half are from the perspective of her husband Jamie (Taylor Long). Cathy’s arc traces […]
Theatre
Posted inArts + Music
Magnetic North Theatre Festival. So act. Much ovation
June 19 to 29 in HRM will be a cozy tangle of productions, play readings, workshops and more, thanks to the Magnetic North Theatre Festival and Eastern Front’s Stages Theatre Festival. The Magnetic North Theatre Festival is Canada’s only national theatre festival, each year the festival alternatives between Ottawa and a new Canadian city, and […]
Posted inArts + Music
Awarded on Merritt
The 2014 Merritt Awards payed homage to the past and pointed the way to a bright future for theatre in Nova Scotia. The ceremony, a three-hour long marathon held in the Schooner Room of Casino Nova Scotia, was hosted by funny-man Bill Wood who joked that he’d been instructed to shape his hosting style as […]
Posted inArts + Music
Never a Syllable
Benny Fong Halifax circa 1813 comes to life in Never a Syllable Theatre based on historical facts can be a mine field. So often, the playwright feels the need to share every fact that has been painstakingly gathered from the archive and ends up with a play that is an inert info-dump lacking in drama. […]
Posted inArts + Music
Theatre Nova Scotia’s Merritt Award Nominations 2014
If you haven’t already taken a browse of the 2014 Merritt Award Nominations, have a click right here and see which talented theatre affiliate from your neighbourhood you should be high fiving this week. Watch this space for The Coast’s theatre reviewer Kate Watson‘s breakdown of the awards ceremony next week and buy your Merritt […]
Posted inArts + Music
The Mother Club
Juanita Peters’ The Mother Club is a play rich with historical detail and mystery. It is a testament to the enduring strength of women. The story is specific in its setting (a rural community in Nova Scotia in the 1930’s), but it’s also very relevant, since it deals with violence against women and the toll […]
Posted inArts + Music
Working Up a Lather‘s spin city
A three-course meal and a play for 15 bucks just might be the deal of the century, but patrons of Spencer House Seniors’ Centre’s ridiculously affordable dinner theatre aren’t the only ones who’ll be getting something of value from the experience. The cast and crew of the upcoming production of Working Up a Lather are […]
Posted inArts + Music
Doctor Faustus
MJ Photographics Dealing with the devil Time is running out to catch Vile Passéist Theatre’s terrific production of Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus, and if you miss it, you’ll be sorry. This tale of an egotistical 16th century scholar who trades his soul for 24 years of pleasure is darkly funny and visually captivating. Pasha Ebrahimi’s portrayal […]
Posted inArts + Music
MIMI or A Poisoner’s Comedy
Pleasure in Paris It’s not often that “feather-light”, “sexy” and “serial killer” belong in one sentence, but for MIMI, a light-hearted musical comedy about a comely, hedonistic 17th century mass murderer, the words go well together. This is a show that’s all romp, from its opening ménage à quatre through Mimi’s discovery of the pleasure […]
Posted inArts + Music
Mimi helps you pick your poison
Mary Lou Martin is not a woman who minces words. If a show is shit, she’ll be the first to tell you. So when she has high praise for something like TheatreSpeak’s production of Allen Cole’s musical farce Mimi (or A Poisoner’s Comedy)—which she is directing—it pays to listen. “This show is so funny, so […]
Posted inArts + Music
The Good Soul of Szechuan
Soul-full performers Sometimes plays by Bertolt Brecht are described as preachy and overly-didactic, but neither word applies to DalTheatre’s spirited take on The Good Soul of Szechuan. It is a gorgeous and utterly engaging production, filled with both humour and pathos. Marina Gwynne shines as Shen Tei, the soft-hearted prostitute whose goodness is rewarded by […]
Posted inArts + Music
Xara’s Constellations
Paige Marvel as Andromeda Constellations is Xara Choral Theatre’s most ambitious program to date. It uses dance, spoken word and music that ranges from the classical “Magnificat” to the catchy “Royals” to explore celestial-based myths. The show, staged in the round at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, delivered on both esthetic and emotional levels. […]
