Le Soulier

At Studio 16 until March 9, 2019
Quebecois playwrights definitely do theatre differently from playwrights in the rest of Canada and to that I say, “Vive la différence”.

Annie Lefebvre as Mélanie and Félix Beauchamp as Benoit in Le Soulier. Credit: Gaëtan Nerincx

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Changed Utterly

At Jericho Arts Centre until March 16, 2019
Constance Markievicz was an original: an authentic, Emerald Isle, pistol-packing mama.

Naomi Wong as Constance Markievicz in Changed Utterly. Credit: Doug Williams

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Revisor

At The Playhouse until February 23, 2019
With every newspaper and news broadcast this week leading with the scandalous SNC-Lavalin affair, Revisor, a re-visiting of Nikolai Gogol’s 1836 The Government Inspector, is eerily relevant.

Doug Letheren in Revisor. Credit: Michael Slobodian

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The Shoplifters

At the Arts Club Granville island Stage until March 9, 2019
Playwright Morris Panych presents a premise so off-beat and persuasive that you find yourselves rooting for the bad guys. Or in this case, the bad gals.

Dean Paul Gibson as Otto and Patti Allan as Alma in The Shoplifters. Credit: David Cooper

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True Crime

Goldcorp Stage at the BMO Theatre Centre until February 24, 2019
Fascinating, enigmatic, provocative, True Crime runs ninety-five uninterrupted minutes. It takes work but the premises are interesting. Criminals, actors and the rest of us: whose fault is it anyway?

Torquil Campbell in True Crime. Credit: Dahlia Katz

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Cabaret

At Studio 58 until February 24, 2019
Cabaret is a terrific choice for Studio 58: it’s rowdy and sexy and marks a great  directorial debut for Josh Epstein.

Paige Fraser (centre), as the Emcee, with the Kit Kat Girls in Cabaret. Credit: David Cooper

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Zvizdal

Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre
Sad but beautiful in its way and technically impressive, Zvizdal is highly recommended. Two more performances.

Nadia and Pétro Lubenoc. Photo provided by BERLIN

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The Matchmaker

At The Stanley until February 24, 2019
Taming of the Shrewd. Not only does Dolly Gallagher Levi, a.k.a. The Matchmaker, make matches but she tames the Scrooge-like Yonkers businessman Horace Vandergelder. “Money is like manure”, Dolls tells Horace. It’s no good unless you spread it around.”

Nicola Lipman as Dolly Gallagher Levi in The Matchmaker. Credit: David Cooper

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