The King and I - Theatre Review

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The King and I - Theatre Review

Imagine yourself on a boat, pulling along the shore of Bangkok in 1862. You’re a windowed mother of a young son, about to embark on a new job – schoolteacher for the children of the King of Siam (currently known as Thailand). This is where the King and I begins its story; the titular “I” being the character of Anna Leonowens. 

The classic musical, written by the brilliant, multiple-award winning duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein, is, at its heart, a tale of clashing cultures. British born Anna has lived in the Eastern hemisphere most of her life, but only in countries under the British rule. Siam, much like its King, is still fiercely independent and lives by its own rules. Or rather, the rules of the King – a headstrong man who believes women are beneath him, and only exist to pleasure him and bear his children. When the equally headstrong Anna enters his life, he’s forced to reconsider this view.

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Fun Home - Theatre Review

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Fun Home - Theatre Review

Growing up is weird, isn’t it? When you’re a kid, going off to college seems so grown up and far away. Then suddenly you’re a real adult, looking back at your freshman year and cringing at your awkwardness and naiveté. Or you might look back at your shiny, happy childhood memories and see a darker truth behind them, and start to question everything. And if you’re a noted writer and illustrator like Alison Bechdel, you put it all in a graphic novel called Fun Home: A Family Tragicomedy, that gets adapted into a five-time Tony Award winning musical that’s part coming-of-age story and part family drama, with a bit of levity and lot of great music mixed in.

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Dixonlicious: A Taste of Community

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Dixonlicious: A Taste of Community

What’s better than a night out with great food, great wine and great people? How about raising money and awareness for a great cause while you’re at it? Recently, I had the opportunity to participate in such an event. Dixonlicious: ATaste of Community is a culinary celebration in support of vital food programs and was held at the Daniels Spectrum Auditorium. It is an annual fundraiser for Dixon Hall Neighbourhood Services, an organization that provides a range of services and programs for residents of Regent Park, Moss Park and surrounding neighbourhoods.

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The Bodyguard - Theatre Review

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The Bodyguard - Theatre Review

I’ve always loved the Academy Awards. Even as a kid I would watch them every year, from the red carpet pre-show to the very last thank you speech. When the nominations for this year’s Oscars came out, the category for Best Song prompted a conversation with a friend about the best movie songs of all time. We both agreed that, even though it wasn’t eligible for the Oscars, our favourite movie song was Whitney Houston's version of “I Will Always Love You” from The Bodyguard soundtrack, which we both loved. It got me thinking about how good that entire soundtrack is. I vividly remember listening to it – on cassette! – and dancing around to all the songs. Given that it’s still the best selling soundtrack of all time, clearly I’m not the only one who loved it. So of course when the trend of adapting popular movies into Broadway musicals proved to be successful, adapting The Bodyguard for the stage seemed like a no-brainer. 

The story of The Bodyguard centers around the character of Rachel Marron, a six-time Grammy winner who has just received Academy Award nominations for Best Actress and Best Original Song and is determined to do whatever it takes to fulfill her childhood dream of winning. Unfortunately for her, a mysterious stalker is hell-bent on doing whatever it takes to stop her. When a sinister letter appears backstage during one of Rachel’s concerts, her management team hires expert bodyguard, Frank Farmer, to protect Rachel, her son Fletcher and her sister Nikki. While Rachel and Frank’s relationship starts out as contentious, they quickly grow on each other as romantic feelings begin to develop.

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Breathing Corpses - Theatre Review

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By: Shari Archinoff

When I was invited to see the play, Breathing Corpses that opened near the end of October, I assumed I was in for something that would fit in with the macabre nature of the Halloween season. This play, however, wasn’t about the supernatural or the undead, but simply told the stories of ordinary people just trying to get through life, but not always making it. 

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Breathing Corpses, written by award-winning English playwright Laura Wade, opens in a fairly nondescript hotel room where Amy, the chambermaid discovers another dead body. Through its use of non-linear narrative, Breathing Corpses tells the story of the man who ended up dead in the hotel room and how he came to be there. Each scene takes us to a different point in time and features a different set of characters, but still cleverly provides enough context clues so that the audience can understand what’s happening as the tale unfolds. Each set of characters lead completely different lives, but they all end up being connected in ways they’ll never really understand. Just as I thought the winding story had come full circle, it ended with a little twist that kept me thinking all the way home. 

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Even though the play could have been adapted to suit the natural accents of the mostly local cast, director David Ferry kept the original English setting, and the small ensemble cast rose to the challenge of keeping up convincing British dialects throughout the show. Even though some of the actors only had a small amount of stage time, they all managed to create well-rounded characters and gave impactful performances. One scene that depicted a particularly intense moment of domestic violence felt so real that I found myself actually holding my breath. Yet despite the inherently heavy subject matter, there were still a number of light moments sprinkled throughout to provide comedic relief.

If you’re interested in seeing the Breathing Corpses, it plays at the Coal Mine Theatre on Danforth Avenue near Coxwell Avenue until November 13, 2016. The theatre space, which holds less than 100 seats per performance is extremely intimate, allowing you to be very close to the action on stage and appreciate every nuance of the actors’ performances. I highly recommend checking out the production and supporting this neighourhood theatre company. To find out more information about the play or about any of the other exciting productions coming up during the 2016-2017 season at the Coal Mine Theatre, visit http://www.coalminetheatre.com/breathing-corpses.

Photos by BensoPhoto.