Centre Stage
CENTRE STAGE: Western Gold Theatre presents Splitting Heirs and White Rock Player Club presents both gender versions of The Odd Couple
July 7, 2016Splitting Heirs – Western Gold Theatre PAL Studio Theatre June 24 – 26, 2016 Western Gold Theatre serves a vital purpose in our local theatre scene: they focus on producing plays that feature roles for actors over 55 years old. While they originally began as a company solely comprised of those in their golden years, the company now works with younger actors and mentors them along the way. Their recent production, Splitting Heirs, was Freyda Thomas’s adaptation of Le Legative Universel, a French farce by Jean-Francois Regnard. The protagonist of this story is an old duke, Geronte, played by Bernard…
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CENTRE STAGE: Pre-professional CatchingART Contemporary Ballet shows off aspiring talent in West Vancouver
June 6, 2016Dancing a famous pas de deux from Le Corsaire at the Pro Arte Gala, Ethan Ponton and Cassia Slager of CatchingART Contemporary Ballet Theatre looked ready to step into professional roles. Slager effortlessly performed her turns and jumps while Ponton…
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CENTRE STAGE: Ballet Kelowna teams up with Continuum Contemporary Music and Belgian choreographer Thierry Smits presents ReVoLt
May 16, 2016Renaissance – Ballet Kelowna Chutzpah! PLUS May 4–6, Norman & Annette Rothstein Theatre Since becoming artistic director and CEO in 2014, former Ballet BC dancer Simone Orlando has led Ballet Kelowna to become a mature company presenting stunning contemporary choreography.…
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CENTRE STAGE: In Review: Tu te souviendras de moi, Gallim Dance, Ga Ting (Family), Memory Wax/Danza Teatro Retazos at VIDF, and Reclaiming Hope
March 22, 2016Tu te souviendras de moi - Theatre la seizieme March 8–12; Studio 16 Last fall, I saw a play presented by Ruby Slippers Theatre at The Cultch called You Will Remember Me. The play was presented in translation from the…
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CENTRE STAGE: Virginie Brunelle and Maria Kong present strong narrative dance at VIDF and Chutzpah!
March 15, 2016Foutrement – Compagnie Virginie Brunelle Vancouver International Dance Festival March 3–5; Roundhouse Performance Centre Quebecois choreographer Virginie Brunelle presented a beautiful, arresting work performed by three dancers. Wearing what can most accurately be described as tighty-whiteys, a male and female…
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CENTRE STAGE: Great Russian Ballet touring Canada and reviews of Janeane Garofalo, This is That, Betroffenheit, and Spellbound Contemporary Ballet
March 7, 2016Great Russian Ballet’s Giselle currently touring Canada March 14 in Abbottsford; Vancouver show postponed and TBD Most people would assume that Russians are used to the cold, but Viorel Balan, founder of Great Russian Ballet, assured me that when his…
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CENTRE STAGE: In review: Winners and Losers, Trevor Noah at JFL Northwest, and dance at Chutzpah!
February 29, 2016Winners and Losers Feb 16–27; The Cultch This show has been gaining plenty of critical acclaim, from being nominated for a 2015 Governor General’s Literary Award to rave reviews from critics, but it didn’t work for me. While there were…
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CENTRE STAGE: In Review: Bigmouth, Little One, 887
February 20, 2016BigMouth Feb 11–21; York Theatre Spurred by his interest in the power of words to change the course of history, Valentijn Dhaenens set out to read at least one speech per day, and ended up reading over 1000 in a…
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CENTRE STAGE: In Review: Huff, Relative Collider, L’Immediat, Closer Than Ever
February 15, 2016HUFF I don’t think I’ve ever been so disturbed at a show or found something as difficult to watch as Huff. Cliff Cardinal’s one-man show presented as part of the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival at the Firehall Arts Centre…
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CENTRE STAGE: In review: Leftovers, Seeds, Lapin blanc, lapin rouge, and Company
February 8, 2016LEFTOVERS The Cultch and the Push International Performing Arts Festival presented Neworld Theatre’s Leftovers at the York Theatre — a one man show combining politics and comedy. Charles Demers (who wrote the show along with Marcus Youssef) told the story…
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