Winter theatre and dance shows continue this week, leading us into the Family Day long weekend. To keep you busy and entertained, here are my personal picks for mid-February.
Festivals
The 39th Rhubarb Festival
Buddies in Bad Times
February 14 – 25
Tickets: PWYC – $20; avail online
Rhubarb is a space for artists and audiences to experiment together by trying new things and testing their boundaries. Starting at 8pm (or 2:30pm on Sundays) there are shows happening in both spaces at Buddies (the Cabaret and the Chamber), so when you arrive at the theatre pick the show you want to see first, and 30 minutes later when it’s done you can either stay where you are or move to the other space for your next performance.
Some picks at this year’s Festival include Empty Orchestra Dreamland, Boiband the Boyband, and The Communist Manifesto for Children.
Plays On-Stage
The Watah Theatre Double Bill
Once Upon A Black Boy by d’bi.young anitafrika
I Cannot Lose My Mind by Najla Nubyanluv
Crow’s Theatre
Until February 17, 2018
Tickets $25-$30
Once Upon A Black Boy is a new Biomyth Dubtheatre piece, exploring the coming-of-age of Tsuki, a 13 year old Black boy living in Toronto with his mother who was recently diagnosed with cancer. Both the Tsuki and his mother Cha navigate the complex landscapes of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, motherhood, Black masculinity and death.
I Cannot Lose My Mind tells the story of a young womxn’s quest to rid herself of depression. When she meets a doctor who finds that many of her patients living with mental illness are having the same recurring dreams, their paths align on an unexpected afrofuturistic quest for a cure and a way to heal.
Bang Bang
Written and Directed by Kat Sandler
Factory Theatre
Held Over Until February 24, 2018
Tickets $30-$50; avail online
When a Black police officer shoots an unarmed Black youth, a white playwright uses the incident as inspiration for his new hit play, except he doesn’t exactly stay true to the facts. Now, a story that he tore from the headlines is being adapted into a major movie without the consent of the officer involved. Wary of the backlash he might receive, the playwright decides to visit the officer’s home. The play questions the impact of what it means to be “inspired by true events” while finding the humour in a humourless situation.
Photo by Tim Leyes.
Rumours by Fleetwood Mac
A Coal Mine Concert
Conceived by Ted Dykstra
Coal Mine Theatre
Until February 25, 2018
All Tickets $25-$42.50 + HST; avail online
Ominously romantic while dealing with the break-up of the quintet’s two couples, Rumours, which appears on the surface to be an album of love songs with heavenly harmonies, is a contradiction between its cheerful surface and its anguished heart. This is not a re-interpretation of the record, nor a jukebox musical, this is Rumours as you know and love it.
Criminal Girlfriends
Fierce
Written by George F. Walker
Directed by Wes Berger
February 15 – March 3, 2018
Red Sandcastle Theatre
Tickets: Previews February 15 & 16 PWYC
Regular Run: February 17-March 3 – $25; avail online
Two women. A retired professional woman, arrested while wandering in traffic is found to be under the influence of a potent “drug cocktail.” She is ordered by the court to undergo treatment, and placed in a clinic run by a psychiatrist who has her own difficult history. A volatile 75-minute encounter, fuelled by painful revelations – and their mutual distaste of politeness – provocatively ensues.
Dance On-Stage
Prevailing Voices
A double dance bill featuring
link by Aria Evans & Perdida by Lilia Leon
A DanceWorks CoWorks Series Event
Scotiabank Studio Theatre, Pia Bouman School
February 15 – 18, 8pm
Tickets: $18-$22; available online
link is a warrior dance about the blockades we come across in life, focusing on the idea of forging ahead and asking the question; “what is my generation fighting for or against?”.
Perdida combines dance, theatre, and live music to portray a Mestizo woman’s journey to discover her ancestry and find the courage to build her own path in a new land.
Prevailing Voices – Artist Interview from aria evans on Vimeo.
Family Friendly
Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann
The Secret Garden
By Paul Ledoux, adapted from the novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Directed by Allen MacInnis
Young People’s Theatre
Tickets: $10-$45, HST & service charges extra; avail online
The play tells the inspirational tale of Mary Lennox, a spoiled, contrary, solitary child raised in India but sent to live in her uncle’s manor in Yorkshire after her parents’ death. Left to wander his gloomy old estate, Mary lashes out at those around her. Then…she discovers a mysterious hidden garden. Her quest to find out more about the garden leads her to discover other secrets hidden in the house. These revelations, combined with the unlikely friendships she makes along the way, help Mary come out of her shell and find new fascination with the world around her.
One Thing Leads to Another
For ages 3-24 months
Young People’s Theatre
Feb. 17 – Mar. 3
Tickets: $5-$20 per person; avail online
A Collective Collaboration by Maja Ardal, Audrey Dwyer, Mary Francis Moore and Julia Tribe. Developed from the original concept, research and theme by Maja Ardal; Directed by Mary Francis Moore. Observe your littlest play-goer experiencing everyday objects as they transform into fabulous, theatrical phenomena.
