2008 Shaw Festival Season Reviews
By David Grapes
Productions are listed in order of preference
DON’T MISS!
After The Dance (Royal George)
• Wonderful undiscovered play by Terence Rattigan
• Taut and insightful direction by Christopher Newton
• Strong cast lead by Patrick Galligan and Deborah Hay
• Nice supporting performance by Neil Barclay. While known primarily as a comedian Barclay’s last scene was quite simple and very poignant. He showed a dramatic range that unfortunately we do not get to see from Mr. Barclay very often
• Nice comic turn by the venerable Jennifer Phipps as a dotty maid and later an over zealous secretary
• The night we were in attendance Claire Jullien was on for Lisa Horner as Julia Brown and gave a big brassy performance. While she ahs done some strong work the past few years at the Stratford Festival the artistic leadership always struggled to find the proper roles for her talent. It was nice to see her in two plays here at Shaw that really suited her talent.
• Excellent pace and attention to period detail
• The set by William Schmuck was breathtaking and his costumes exquisite
• Nice ensemble work from the acting company (Jay Turvey, Ken James Stewart, Marla Mclean
• Actors and the audience were emotionally and intellectually engaged in a thought provoking play
The President (Royal George)
• The best performance of the season by Lorne Kennedy who not only gave us all a lesson in both fast- talking and side-splitting comedy. His vocal and physical work in this production were nothing short of amazing.
• I can’t remember laughing so hard since the late Heath Lamberts lit up the Shaw stage in the 1980’s
• It is hard to know how much of this marvelous mayhem was created by Kennedy or director Blair Williams. It looked like it was Kennedy at the helm but I am going to give Williams credit for keeping it all under control and in focus.
• An amazing set design by the gifted Cameron Porteous. Not only was it beautifully executed but it was funny. And it gave the ever-inventive Kennedy lots of opportunity to create silly stage business.
• The pace was full on in your face farce. You took your breaths between laughs so most of the time we were all gasping for air
• Funny funny character work from Jeff Meadows, Nicole Correia-Damude, William Vickers, Guy Bannerman and Thom Marriott (who conjured up memories for me of his brilliant Bottom in the “Cirque Midsummer” a few years back at Stratford)
• Performed as a lunchtime production with a running time of 50 minutes this show had more entertainment value than any show I saw at Shaw or Stratfor this season
• It is time to give Mr. Kennedy a crack at those silly English farces like One for the Pot
An Inspector Calls (Festival)
• Interesting visual design by Peter Hartwell. It was certainly had a “film noir” influence and featured a large warehouse looking structure in front of a platform which moved like the pendulum of a clock. While the design nearly occupied every square foot of the Festival Theatre stage it still had a claustrophobic feel that served the tension created in the plot
• Nice atmospheric lighting by Kevin Lamontte which was also supported by an evocative soundscape created by Paul Sportelli.
• Sharp focused direction by Jim Mezon. Well staged with inventive business. Nice transitional moments with the inspector before and between scenes. Coached some excellent performances from the acting ensemble.
• Benedict Campbell was a stand out as the Inspector. He was part film noir and part Brechtian
• I always felt that the actors were listening to each other and “in the moment”
• Well cast with uniformly strong performances across the veteran cast
• Good vocal and dialect work
• Watching the acting area move was an interesting visual for the audience
• A very classy and well produced production. A delightful and modern twist on an old chestnut of a script.
• Obviously it is time to give director Mezon some of the larger Shavian productions to mount on the large stage
Wonderful Town (Festival)
• A strong production of a seldom produced American classic
• Not the best Bernstein score but a Bernstein score none the less. Some witty lyrics by the late great songwriting team of Comden and Green
• Interesting unit set design by William Schmuck that was always transforming into a new location with drops and revolves. Schmuck received able support from Costume designer Judith Bowden
• Large cast with excellent singing chops
• Dancing was inconsistent and the choreography (Jane Johanson) did not always have an organic feel to it and was repetitious
• Nicely staged by Roger Hodgman
• Both female leads (Eileen – Chilinda & Kennedy Ruth –Lisa Horner) were triple threats. Horner in particular reminded me of a young Nancy Walker, Imogene Coco or Ruth Buzzi. Horner was funny, self deprecating and charming and almost single handedly held the flimsy plot line together. She and Kennedy had wonderful chemistry together and lit up the stage each time they appeared.
• Good supporting work by Thom Marriott and Lorne Kennedy (both of whom were so excellent in The President)
• A talented orchestra - well supported by sound designer John Lott
WORTH A LOOK
A Little Night Music (Court House)
Mrs. Warren’s Profession (Festival)
Belle Moral (Court House)
The Little Foxes (Royal George)
DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME
The Stepmother (Court House)
Getting Married (Royal George)
DID NOT ATTEND
Follies in Concert
Friday, August 15, 2008
2008 Stratford Shakespeare Festival Season Reviews
By David Grapes
Productions are listed in order of preference
DON’T MISS!
The Trojan Women (Tom Patterson)
• Wonderful new script translation from Nicholas Rudall (a taut 1 hour and 40 minutes)
• Iconic and memorable performance by Martha Henry as Hecuba
• Strong supporting cast featured Seanna McKenna (Andromache) and Kelli Fox (Cassandra)
• Brilliant design concept from Stratford veteran John Pennoyer
• Marvelous use of the difficult Patterson stage and complex chorus work from director Marti Maraden
• Contained powerful visual images that were supported by solid vocal and character work
• Excellent pace and effective emotional variety
• Evocative sound design and original score by Marc Desormeaux (burning of Troy, percussion, choral singing)
• Nice ensemble work from the acting company (especially the chorus led by Severn Thompson)
• Actors and the audience were emotionally and intellectually engaged
Hamlet (Festival)
• Intelligent, quirky, funny, acerbic and idiosyncratic performance by Ben Carlson in title role
• Carlson handled the famous soliloquies well
• Stunning visuals (costumes, scenery) which created a more modern Danish court (Santo Loquasto)
• Interesting locations (pool room, piano salon, train station)
• Enjoyed the use of on stage piano music except for the one very “new age” song that Ophelia sang to an electronic synthesizer in act two
• Nice use of lantern effects
• Creative use of stage business
• Solid direction/concept and consistent interpretation from Adrian Noble
• The players were well acted
• Scott Wentworth seemed emotionally unengaged and spent a lot of the play stumbling and mumbling. He needed the ambition, ego and sexual appetite that he later demonstrated in Fuente Ovejune
• Maria Ricossa’s Gertrude was weak and unmemorable. She had very little command of the verse, projected a quality that was cold and asexual and lacked physical and vocal energy
• There was no sexual Chemistry what so ever between Claudio and Gertrude. I felt like they actually did not like each other very much.
• Ophelia seemed physically and emotionally awkward undefined in the first half of the play but her performance improved once she went mad
• Mature articulate performance by Geraint Wyn Davies as Polonius
• Combat from fight director John Stead at the end of the play was not well staged or executed and felt dangerous (in the wrong way) to the audience
The Music Man (Avon)
• Stunning “American Gothic” set design featuring a miniature main street by Patrick Clark
• Beautiful period costumes that really flowed well during the dance numbers
• Jonathon Goad made an excellent Harold Hill. He acted it well and held his own during the musical numbers. A smooth charismatic performance with just the right amount of testosterone. His Harold Hill had just a dash of Petruchio and Benedict which helped ground the performance
• Leah Oster as Marion sang well and was lovely to look at. Her transition from act one skeptic/loner to act two romantic cheerleader was one of the best I’ve ever seen. It enabled us to believe in Harold’s own transformation and decision to remain in River City at the end of the musical.
• Both of the children (Christopher Van Hagen and Aveleigh Keller) were excellent singers and adorable actors
• Wonderful quartet featuring the ever debonair Laird Williamson
• Nice directorial work and use of the Avon stage by American Susan H. Schulman
• Fiona Reid’s Mrs. Shinn was weak and lost most of the characters comic opportunities. Ms. Reid a capable actor seemed out of her element in the musical numbers and in River City in general
• Lee MacDougall’s Mayor Shinn was serviceable, however, I would have liked to have seen him played as a more formidable adversary for Harold which would have raised the stakes and created more dramatic tension (something this musical could use more of)
• Fantastic orchestra support under the capable baton of Berthold Carriere
• Nice ensemble work led by Sara Topham as Edith Toffelmier and Eric S. Robertson as Tommy Djilas
• A real audience favorite and a wonderful opportunity to bring children with you to the theatre
All’s Well That Ends Well (Festival)
• More excellent directorial work by Marti Maraden
• Play had a Chekovian feel to it
• Simple yet elegant set that allowed the play to flow and breathe
• Beautiful stage pictures on designer Christina Poddubiuk’s elegant setting
• Strong ensemble performances by Martha Henry, Jeff Lillico, Daniela Vlaskalic Brian Dennehy, Ben Carlson, Juan Chioran and Stephen Ouimette
• The strongest text work of the 2008 season
• Well cast right down to the smallest roles
• A simple well-spoken production. Full of beautiful language and characters that we could all care about
• A text book demonstration of how to effectively use the large festival stage to serve the actors and the work
There Reigns Love (Patterson)
• Warm charming performance of the sonnets by film and stage actor/authors Simon Callow who obviously has a deep love for the words and language of Shakespeare
• Interesting mix of poetry and theatre
• Well produced
• Nice pace and variety in Callow’s performance. The performance never became an academic lecture
• A rare opportunity to hear 80+ sonnets performed out load by a consummate actor with a mellifluous speaking voice
WORTH A LOOK
Cabaret (Avon)
Fuente Ovejuna (Patterson)
The Taming of the Shrew
Shakespeare’s Universe (Pavillion)
DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME
Love’s Labour’s Lost
Romeo and Juliet
DID NOT ATTEND
Caesar and Cleopatra (featuring Christopher Plummer opens August 17th)
Emilia Galotti (previews begin November 5)
Krapp’s Last Tape/Hughie (Starring Brian Dennehy – This production was SRO)
Palmer Park
Moby Dick
By David Grapes
Productions are listed in order of preference
DON’T MISS!
The Trojan Women (Tom Patterson)
• Wonderful new script translation from Nicholas Rudall (a taut 1 hour and 40 minutes)
• Iconic and memorable performance by Martha Henry as Hecuba
• Strong supporting cast featured Seanna McKenna (Andromache) and Kelli Fox (Cassandra)
• Brilliant design concept from Stratford veteran John Pennoyer
• Marvelous use of the difficult Patterson stage and complex chorus work from director Marti Maraden
• Contained powerful visual images that were supported by solid vocal and character work
• Excellent pace and effective emotional variety
• Evocative sound design and original score by Marc Desormeaux (burning of Troy, percussion, choral singing)
• Nice ensemble work from the acting company (especially the chorus led by Severn Thompson)
• Actors and the audience were emotionally and intellectually engaged
Hamlet (Festival)
• Intelligent, quirky, funny, acerbic and idiosyncratic performance by Ben Carlson in title role
• Carlson handled the famous soliloquies well
• Stunning visuals (costumes, scenery) which created a more modern Danish court (Santo Loquasto)
• Interesting locations (pool room, piano salon, train station)
• Enjoyed the use of on stage piano music except for the one very “new age” song that Ophelia sang to an electronic synthesizer in act two
• Nice use of lantern effects
• Creative use of stage business
• Solid direction/concept and consistent interpretation from Adrian Noble
• The players were well acted
• Scott Wentworth seemed emotionally unengaged and spent a lot of the play stumbling and mumbling. He needed the ambition, ego and sexual appetite that he later demonstrated in Fuente Ovejune
• Maria Ricossa’s Gertrude was weak and unmemorable. She had very little command of the verse, projected a quality that was cold and asexual and lacked physical and vocal energy
• There was no sexual Chemistry what so ever between Claudio and Gertrude. I felt like they actually did not like each other very much.
• Ophelia seemed physically and emotionally awkward undefined in the first half of the play but her performance improved once she went mad
• Mature articulate performance by Geraint Wyn Davies as Polonius
• Combat from fight director John Stead at the end of the play was not well staged or executed and felt dangerous (in the wrong way) to the audience
The Music Man (Avon)
• Stunning “American Gothic” set design featuring a miniature main street by Patrick Clark
• Beautiful period costumes that really flowed well during the dance numbers
• Jonathon Goad made an excellent Harold Hill. He acted it well and held his own during the musical numbers. A smooth charismatic performance with just the right amount of testosterone. His Harold Hill had just a dash of Petruchio and Benedict which helped ground the performance
• Leah Oster as Marion sang well and was lovely to look at. Her transition from act one skeptic/loner to act two romantic cheerleader was one of the best I’ve ever seen. It enabled us to believe in Harold’s own transformation and decision to remain in River City at the end of the musical.
• Both of the children (Christopher Van Hagen and Aveleigh Keller) were excellent singers and adorable actors
• Wonderful quartet featuring the ever debonair Laird Williamson
• Nice directorial work and use of the Avon stage by American Susan H. Schulman
• Fiona Reid’s Mrs. Shinn was weak and lost most of the characters comic opportunities. Ms. Reid a capable actor seemed out of her element in the musical numbers and in River City in general
• Lee MacDougall’s Mayor Shinn was serviceable, however, I would have liked to have seen him played as a more formidable adversary for Harold which would have raised the stakes and created more dramatic tension (something this musical could use more of)
• Fantastic orchestra support under the capable baton of Berthold Carriere
• Nice ensemble work led by Sara Topham as Edith Toffelmier and Eric S. Robertson as Tommy Djilas
• A real audience favorite and a wonderful opportunity to bring children with you to the theatre
All’s Well That Ends Well (Festival)
• More excellent directorial work by Marti Maraden
• Play had a Chekovian feel to it
• Simple yet elegant set that allowed the play to flow and breathe
• Beautiful stage pictures on designer Christina Poddubiuk’s elegant setting
• Strong ensemble performances by Martha Henry, Jeff Lillico, Daniela Vlaskalic Brian Dennehy, Ben Carlson, Juan Chioran and Stephen Ouimette
• The strongest text work of the 2008 season
• Well cast right down to the smallest roles
• A simple well-spoken production. Full of beautiful language and characters that we could all care about
• A text book demonstration of how to effectively use the large festival stage to serve the actors and the work
There Reigns Love (Patterson)
• Warm charming performance of the sonnets by film and stage actor/authors Simon Callow who obviously has a deep love for the words and language of Shakespeare
• Interesting mix of poetry and theatre
• Well produced
• Nice pace and variety in Callow’s performance. The performance never became an academic lecture
• A rare opportunity to hear 80+ sonnets performed out load by a consummate actor with a mellifluous speaking voice
WORTH A LOOK
Cabaret (Avon)
Fuente Ovejuna (Patterson)
The Taming of the Shrew
Shakespeare’s Universe (Pavillion)
DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME
Love’s Labour’s Lost
Romeo and Juliet
DID NOT ATTEND
Caesar and Cleopatra (featuring Christopher Plummer opens August 17th)
Emilia Galotti (previews begin November 5)
Krapp’s Last Tape/Hughie (Starring Brian Dennehy – This production was SRO)
Palmer Park
Moby Dick
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