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Cory Thibert received a standing ovation from the audience after his hour long show at The Cultch, a venue that he manages to fill with his presence and his storytelling. Through the seemingly simple story of his parents needing to move house, he is able to give us glimpses into his life and his parent's life and to make us reflect on the systems in place for treating people that society think are different. The main lesson to take away from his story is how little our society cares about the smaller people. While I mean this to mean that people that aren't considered the 'norm' are overlooked and neglected, I also thought this was most prevalent in the story of the mouse. People should not be allowed to buy pets spontaneously without being prepared for them, having researched their needs. There must be a better way to stop this from happening. Those animals are completely reliant on us. Age is not an excuse for being ignorant of how to look after animals and if you cannot continue to look after one, then don't put it out in the wild to die. Find someone who can. The mouse story definitely overshadowed the whole show for me and I found it is the thing I think back on the most after the show. The audience audibly had reactions to the story of how teachers treated his mother at school but nobody seemed to have a reaction to him putting his mouse in -20 degree weather to die. I definitely feel this should make us think more about how pet stores enable this lack of responsibility and don't ensure potential owners are prepared enough. The show I saw had an ASL interpreter which I thought was a wonderful addition to the show. However not all the shows have this. You'll definitely enjoy this show and completely drawn in to his charisma. ~ reviewed by Ferne Brown
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Devon More is always a joy to see perform. In Flute Loops, as ever, musical talent, verbal skill, and physical grace are interwoven into seamless fabric. The simplest, clearest demonstration of this comes from the pedalboard, which is used to create the titular “loops”. More integrates the working of the pedals with her physical performance, controlling the sophisticated arrangement of samples through motions that seem effortless, accidental—to the point that we can almost believe the opening conceit of the show, that this entire performance is spilling out of her spontaneously as she waits for her boyfriend’s band to come on stage. Prospective theatre goers might be wondering about the educational content. This is about as deep a dive into quantum physics as a one-person symphonic orchestral poetic performance incorporating flutes and physical comedy can reasonably be expected to be. Devon’s descriptions of physical concepts are accurate up to a point, but they are mostly being used as the vessels of a more central creative idea, one that explores the role of science in the modern world and the objective of the human search for knowledge. (I discuss this more in the video review, which contains spoilers.) I did feel a little uncomfortable around the performer’s handling of Stephen Hawking. Perhaps the honorific of “Saint Hawking” and the imitation of his distinctive robotically synthesized speech patterns were meant to be affectionate, but to me both came off as sarcastic and perhaps a little in poor taste. I’m sure opinions will vary. Overall, I would recommend this as a fun, witty treatment of physics that informs and moves, even if it doesn’t (and probably can’t) explain things at a deep level. Also, if you’ve yet to see Devon More onstage, don’t miss this because Flute Loops is Devon More in top form. Flute Loops by Devon More Music is playing at the Cultch Historic Theatre 6 - 16 September as part of the 2018 Vancouver Fringe Festival. ~ reviewed by Mattias Martens
Levana Irena Prud’homme and Clay Nikiforuk’s collaborative piece, Life, Blood, Water is a unique and intimate look at an alternative narrative to clinical, normative, state-sanctioned understandings of pregnancy loss. This piece follows one woman’s personal narrative, as expressed through word and dance storytelling. Prud’homme and Nikiforuk perform in this piece and are joined by dancer Hayley Gawthrop. Prud’homme and Nikiforuk’s choreography and writing works well together to create a sombre and supportive story that poetically and politically examines ideas of body literacy. I really enjoyed this production and think this is an important piece for everyone, people with uteruses and without. My favourite part of the choreography was the dance implementing jars full of water; the dancer’s body movements were beautifully complemented by the swooshing sounds of the water in the jars. ~ reviewed by Sonja Cvoric
From the minute he takes the stage, Thomas Jones embodies Woody Guthrie right down to the swagger. This bioptic of Guthrie’s life follows this folk music icon all the way from childhood to the end of his life, and Jones’ has you singing along the entire way. Jones’ exceptional singing voice is a pleasure to listen to, and expertly captures Guthrie’s style. But Jones’ talent becomes even more apparent as he flexes his vocal cords to speak for, and sing for, the other remarkable characters that appear throughout this one man show. I have to admit that I was skeptical about whether or not I would enjoy the format of a one man show. But Jones’ really proved that one actor can use the entire stage in a way that keeps the audience interested, invested, and hooked into the story. Be ready to get up close and personal with Jones’ and to make friends with others in the audience (or at least shake their hands). This show is well suited for music lovers of all ages. Woody Sed by Two Dollar Shows is playing at the Cultch Historic Theatre 6 - 16 September as part of the 2018 Vancouver Fringe festival. ~ reviewed by Elizabeth Goode Click "read more" for the full video transcript.Unhinged was a crazed comedic rant, with the idea that the rant comes from a lunatic jester. I could see the intent but I did not understand the storyline that Luke Purm was attempting to weave. The jester is angry and with every reason. He plays with words as he hops from one topic to another bringing his audience along with him. Although angry, our lunatic jester is quite engaged with his audience and you never feel left out. My favourite part was the math on dinosaurs and our oil supply. I am sure he added that up right. If you are angry with the world as it is today and would like a dark and purposefully absurd telling of how a lunatic jester might explain our failings, then this show will get you all worked up. Unhinged by Knight & Daïs Entertainment is playing at the Cultch Historic Theatre 6 - 16 September as part of the 2018 Vancouver Fringe Festival. ~ reviewed by Melody Owen Click "read more" for the full video transcript.Direct Theatre Collective manages to interweave disturbing subject matter with playful moments without diminishing the significance of the message with Hysteria. They take you into a future of what if's which prompt you to contemplate their individual accounts of #metoo perhaps along with your own or of loved ones. Although some of the content may be shocking, it isn't presented in an overly crude or vulgar way other than some coarse language which is noted in the program description. Everyone left the theatre smiling which is an accomplishment considering the raw experiences that are shared. Even if they don't overcome some of the missed cues they had on opening night the production will still provide audience members with some smiles if not laughs as well as some serious issues to consider. Hysteria by Direct Theatre Collective is playing at the Cultch Historic Theatre 6 - 16 September as part of the 2018 Vancouver Fringe Festival. ~ reviewed by Karen Roller Click "read more" for the full video transcript.Written and in part performed by Jeff Hoffman. The story of 50 Fun Things is a musical romantic comedy that explores life from both positive and pessimistic angles. Opening with a scene about the current state of their relationship, characters: Kelcie and Seth present to you scenes of the beginnings of their relationship and their quest to find 50 fun things to do. This show is definitely a tear-jerker but it is also just so darn cute that you can’t help but smile. Filled with musical recordings and accompanied by live singing and ukulele, 50 Fun Things will take you on an emotional journey that you will appreciate. And you may even feel better about life after seeing this show. 50 Fun Things by Maniac Productions is playing at the Cultch Historic Theatre 6 - 16 September as part of the 2018 Vancouver Fringe Festival. ~ reviewed by Selene Dublanko Click "read more" for the full video transcript.Spanning three generations in a haunted drug trip of a story, this show was more psychedelic than I had anticipated. We got to see the past and future interact with each other in unusual ways. Auguries of Innocence held two main highlights in my mind- the original music by Meshe Mooette was familiar in words penned by Blake himself and haunting in melody, the other highlight was in the portrayal of the male protagonist. The actor expertly delivered a physically demanding performance with precision and apparent comfort while acting out various stages of sobriety. Auguries of Innocence by Urthona Vancouver is playing at the Cultch Historic 6 - 16 September as part of the 2018 Vancouver Fringe Festival. ~ reviewed by Annina Engelbrecht Click "read more" for the full video transcript. |
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