The past year has been filled with lots of theatre. The sheer volume of productions in the theatre industry is sometimes overwhelming.
Here is a look back.
Ravi Jain’s A Brimful of Asha, part of the High Performance Rodeo, and a show about culture clash in which he cast his own mom. The audience ate samosas at the Engineered Aired Theatre and chatted with Jain and his mom.
Porte Parole’s Seeds, presented by Theatre Junction Grand, the story of a small Saskatchewan farmer vs biotech giant Monsanto. This theatre piece was so well done and well staged with a balanced look at the lawsuit at the heart of the play. Eric Peterson’s performance was also great.
The incredibly charming 6.0: How Heap and Pebble took on the World and Won presented by Lunchbox Theatre and the High Performance Rodeo. Heap and Pebble moving around on skates on a wooden floor and the over dramatic depiction of ice skating. Heap and Pebble was so much fun.
Ghost River’s Tomorrow’s Child. The first installment in a 6 sense series, this theatre piece was an immersive auditory experience that you got to experience blindfolded.
Christian Goutsis’ Trekkie Monster in Stage West’s production of Avenue Q. The whole production was strong, but Goutsis seemed giddy to be able to say “for porn” on stage and it made it that much more fun to watch.
Kira Hall’s Paleoncology as part of the Calgary Fringe Festival. Deftly told and touching, this fringe show took a tragic story and brought in dinosaurs and drawings to bring it to life.
In what I call the year of the evil Haysam Kadri, his and Joel Cochrane’s performance in Ground Zero Theatre’s High Life. This play was about criminals trying to pull off a heist and things not going exactly to plan.
The Shakespeare Company’s Othello. It really should have been titled the Iago show. This production was strong and compelling.
Alberta Theatre Projects’ production of Butcher. Intense, political drama.
Vertigo Theatre’s production of The Game’s Afoot. A character name Daria Chase, who was homage to former Critter Jessica Goldman. The incredibly hilarious Kevin Rothery and Tyrell Crews along with great comedic timing of Natascha Girgis and Karen Johnson Diamond made this play laugh out loud funny. Lines from this play have fit themselves into my life.
Forte Musical Guild’s Naughty but Nice. Joe Slabe’s monologue about Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer is so brilliant. All of the songs were compelling with great performances from the cast.
We’re into the New Year and there won’t be a shortage of theatre this year. The year kicks off with the High Performance Rodeo and we are launched back into it. Cheers to a new year of theatre.
Photo Credit: Ground Zero Theatre’s High Life