The Next Stage Video Listings

A Beautiful View

thenextstage — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:53:06 +0000

Writer/Director Daniel MacIvor tells us why we should see

A Beautiful View

Written and Directed by: Daniel MacIvor

Starring: Colleen Wheeler and Diane Brown

A Beautiful View is a seriocomic trek across the intangibles of love, and about our affinity for re-writing history in its name. Two women, both camping aficionados, meet while shopping for tents. Their connection informs their choices for the next two decades, culminating in a quiet note of tragicomedy.

“I wrote the play as a response to how we have become so comfortable with labeling ourselves and our relationships, even when those labels are restricting,” says MacIvor. “The star of the play really is the friendship between the two women, that means that beyond everything else, it’s all about what the actors bring to the play. I’m very excited about working with Diane and Colleen – I’ve been a fan of them both for some time.”

“And I’m also excited about working in Vancouver again – the city has been an inspirational place for me both in terms of my work and my life. I’m always happy to have the chance to breathe in some of that west coast air, it’s like a shot of espresso for the spirit.”

Multi award-winning Ruby Slippers Theatre, who are celebrating their twenty-first year, have earned a reputation for smart social satire that is infectiously entertaining by producing critically heralded productions like The Cat Who Ate Her Husband, The Winners, The Leisure Society, Trout Stanley and most recently Life Savers.

The Western Canadian premiere production of A Beautiful View previews Friday December 4, 2009, opens December 5 at 8 pm, then runs nightly through until December 13 (dark Mondays).

All performances are at Performance Works, 1218 Cartwright St, Granville Island.

Tickets are $20/24, except for the preview, which is pay-what-you-can. There will be $15 shows on December 8th at 8pm, and December 13, at 2 pm.

Tickets are available through VancouverTix.com or by calling 604-629-VTIX.

The Burnaby production runs December 16-19, at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, 6450 Deer Lake Ave, Burnaby. Tickets are available at www.shadboltcentre.com, or by calling 604-205-3000.

On Sunday, December 6 at 2pm, Jerry Wasserman hosts Coffee and Conversation with Daniel MacIvor, at Performance Works. This intimate interview is free.

Zong! Booklaunch

thenextstage — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 23:09:59 +0000

Artistic Director Diane Roberts tell us about

Urban Ink’s Celebrity AGM; Zong! Booklaunch

Featuring: NourbeSe Philip, our 2009-10 Canada Council Playwright in Residence

Written by: M. NourbeSe Philip, (www.nourbese.com)

Presented by: urban ink (link)

Sunday Nov 29, 1pm at Chapel Arts 304 Dunlevy Ave

Zong! is a poetic un-telling of the story of the slaveship Zong and its human cargo -some lost, some destroyed and the subsequent insurance claim trial at the end of the eighteenth century. Philip’s Zong! is a haunting lyrical work from trial transcript to poetry. The Zong! book launch will include readings by the writer and a dramatic interpretive response by a small cast of actors through song, gesture and spoken word. The full piece is being developed as environmental participatory ritual theatre and a performance installation integrating visual art, spoken word, video, song, rhythm, dance and improvisation based in Afrisporic traditions slated for production in 2012.

More information at www.urbanink.ca or info@urbanink.ca

An Indigenous Crossroads Laboratory

thenextstage — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:05:14 +0000

Danielle Smith, Heather Hermant and Diane Roberts tell us about

The Co(Lab) showing: An Indigenous Crossroads laboratory

Presented by: urban ink (link)

November 22, 2009 at 7pm- 112 W. Hastings (W2 Bldg.)

The Arrivals Co(Lab) Exchange (Nov 16-22) is a multidisciplinary performance project exploring root cultural practices, ancestral embodiment and intercultural exchanges. Using urban ink’s Personal Legacy Creation process, led by Diane Roberts, Heather Hermant, Danielle Smith and Rose Georgeson- 18 artists of Aboriginal & diverse backgrounds from across the Country will plant the first seeds for an exciting new cross-disciplinary performance work. The Co(Lab) will culminate in an invitational showing on November 22nd at 7pm. The Co(Lab) performance outcome will explode with contemporary and historic collisions of language, ancestry, and ceremony. – Join in the post-showing talk back session to piece out the Co(Lab) creation-compounds.

More information at www.urbanink.ca or info@urbanink.ca

What the Night is For

thenextstage — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 08:34:13 +0000

Performers/Producers Randall Barkman and Stevie Jackson tell us why we should see

The Canadian Premiere of

What the Night is For

Written by: Michael Weller

Directed by: Laureen Smith

Starring: Stevie Jackson and Randall Barkman

Presented by: Silk Purse (link)

What would you risk for a second chance? Ten years after their affair in New York, two ex-lovers meet in a hotel room for an evening of catching up. Both have moved on in their lives and both are wondering what might have been. But as the evening unfolds and each reveals secrets never mentioned, passions flare and how the night ends becomes a risky question of courage and truth.

Performance Dates: Wednesday – Saturday, November 18 – 28
Special Performance: ASL-Interpreted performance on November 26

Venue: Havana Theatre (Vancouver, BC)

Tickets available online or at the door: $15 adults, $12 students/seniors
Box office opens at 7:30pm and doors open at 7:45pm. Show starts at 8pm.

Reserve your tickets now at Tickets Tonight!

Please note: contains nudity, sexuality and coarse language.

Romeo and Juliet

thenextstage — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 08:33:35 +0000

Director Dawn Moore tells us why we should check out

Romeo and Juliet

Written by: William Shakespeare

Directed by: Dawn Moore

Presented by: Exit 22 at Capilano University (link)

In this version of Romeo and Juliet, a young acting company opens rehearsal for the second-most-performed Shakespearean play of all time. Excitement is high, but questions abound. Who plays the old guys? I’m not wearing tights! How do we tell this story of two families with an ancient grudge? A younger generation who have forgotten the reason they kill each other? A love story that becomes deadly? The Exit 22 company answers these questions with a fiercely youthful take for a generation that is more familiar with West Side Story, Baz Luhrmann and Franco Zeffirelli.

“When we decided to do Romeo and Juliet, I asked myself how to approach it, to make it fresh and accessible,” says Dawn Moore, who directs the piece. “And then I got interested in the question itself. So I am working on presenting multiple styles to highlight others’ choices and to explore the question of what is the best way to do R+J with a young company in a manner that can be understood by our modern audience.”

Exit 22 is the production company of Capilano University’s theatre department. It allows students in either the Acting for Stage and Screen, Musical Theatre or Technical Theatre programs to put their theory into practice in a professional setting.

Romeo + Juliet previews November 19 and opens November 20 at 8 pm, and runs nightly through until November 21. It also runs November 25 to 28.

There will be four matinees, November 24 and 25 at noon; and November 22 and 28 at 2 pm. All shows take place in the Performing Arts Theatre at Capilano University, which is located in the Birch Building, 2055 Purcell Way, in North Vancouver.

Tickets are $20/$14/$8. For more information or to purchase tickets, please phone 604.990.7810, or email boxoffice@capilanou.ca

The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood

thenextstage — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 08:12:48 +0000

Director Stephen Drover and performers Lawrence Haegert & Genevieve Fleming tell us why we should see

Based on the classic English legend

Adapted by: Jeff Pitcher

Directed by: Stephen Drover

Starring: Ryan Beil, Ian Butcher, Genevieve Fleming, Lawrence Haegert, Laura Jaye, Josue Laboucane, Julie McIsaac, Sean Oliver, Joshua Reynolds and Allan Zinyck

Presented by: Carousel Theatre (link)

From the playwright who brought you Carousel Theatre’s hit production Peter Pan, we are proud to present this classic folktale during the holiday season, suitable for the entire family.

Hidden deep within Sherwood Forest, he steals from the rich, gives to the poor, and leads his band of Merry Men in an adventures against the evil Sheriff of Nottingham and his quest for power. Join Robin Hood, Maid Marian, Friar Tuck and Little John as they fight to protect King Richard’s throne!

NOVEMBER 27, 2009 – JANUARY 2, 2010
The Waterfront Theatre
1412 Cartwright Street, on Granville Island

For Ages 4 +
No babes in arms.

Public Performances:
NOVEMBER 27, 2009 – JANUARY 2, 2009

School Matinees:
NOVEMBER 25 – DECEMBER 18, 2009

Click here for ticket info

School Groups- to book tickets NOW call Jessie van Rijn, General Manager, at 604.669.3410

Illustration by Christopher Rawlins. Used with permission from the artist.

The Winter’s Tale

thenextstage — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:06:16 +0000

Director Anita Rochon and performer Mike Wasko tell us why we should check out

The Winter’s Tale

Written by: William Shakespeare

Directed by: Anita Rochon

Starring: Mike Wasko as Leontes

Presented by: Studio 58 (link)

Studio 58, the nationally renowned professional theatre training program at Langara College, proudly presents one of Shakespeare’s late romances, The Winter’s Tale. The play follows the story of the emotionally volatile Leontes who accuses his faithful wife Hermione of adultery. He casts out their baby girl and his wife ‘dies’ of a broken heart. Sixteen years later the daughter Perdita, raised by shepherds, meets and falls in love with Prince Florizel. The play ends happily when Leontes is reunited with his daughter and the statue of Hermione comes back to life. Studio 58 alumnus Anita Rochon (BIOBOXES, Theatre Replacement; Patti Fedy Trilogy, The Chop Theatre) directs fellow graduate Mike Wasko (Life Savers, Ruby Slippers; The Constant Wife, Arts Club) as Leontes in this much-anticipated production.

In this Studio 58 production, the play begins in the kingdom of Sicilia, a stark land of speculation and intrigue much like Russia in the late 1950’s during the Cold War, where Leontes rules and his paranoia festers. Sixteen years later we are transported to Bohemia, a pastoral land of beauty and abundance, reminiscent of a Canadian park in the summer of 1975.

November 19 – December 13, 2009
Previews November 19 & 20; Opens November 21

At Studio 58, Langara College, 100 West 49th Avenue
Shows – 8:00 pm Tuesday to Saturday;

Matinees 3:00 pm Saturday & Sunday, except November 21;

NO SHOWS Mondays

Single tickets $20.50/16.50/15.50; previews and matinees $11.
Tickets Tonight, www.ticketstonight.ca or 604.684.2787

Demon Voice

thenextstage — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:04:14 +0000

Director Katrina Dunn and Playwright Shawn Macdonald tell us why we should see

Demon Voice

Written by: Shawn Macdonald

Directed by: Katrina Dunn

Starring: Stephanie Belding, Kevin K James, Patrick Keating, William MacDonald, Katharine Venour, Gwynyth Walsh

Presented by: Touchstone Theatre (link)

A melted woman hovers between life and death trying to remember what happened to her. Anna runs into an ex-con she sentenced harshly five years earlier. Mike meets Rachel for a one night hook-up that turns deep. Pete roams the streets looking for Darryl. Six lives stumble toward personal freedom and connection, entangling souls and exposing hidden damage. Demon Voice is a meditation on the thirst for intimacy and its inescapable consequences.

Multi-award-winning actor and playwright Shawn Macdonald has written plays and collaborated in the creation of new scripts for The Arts Club Theatre, the Vancouver Playhouse, Solo Collective, Ruby Slippers and Touchstone Theatre. He has twice won the Jessie Award for Outstanding Original Script, once for Touchstone’s 2006 hit Prodigal Son, and once for co-writing World’s Greatest Guy. Shawn is the instructor for the LEAP Playwriting Intensive for Teen Writers at the Arts Club Theatre.

WORLD PREMIERE
Performance Works
1218 Cartwright Street

November 19 – 28, 2009
Opens Nov 21
Tuesday – Saturday at 8pm

Free Preview: Thu, Nov19 at 8pm
(Tix at door, first come first served)

2 for 1 Matinee Saturday,
Nov 21 at 2pm – All tickets $13
Director’s Chat Sun, Nov 24 after show
Talkback Tue Nov 24 after show

BUY TICKETS
call: 604-684-2787

The Physicists

thenextstage — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:12:37 +0000

Producers/Performers Kelly Sheridan and Frano Marsic tell us why we should see

The Physicists

Written by: Friederich Dürrenmatt

Directed by: Nicole DesLauriers assisted by Ryan Swanson

Starring: Jordan Bodiguel, Duran Cruickshank, Masae Day, Simon Driver, Uriah Field, Sasha Fonarev, Micaele Johnson, Julia Kosor, Victoria Lyons, Frano Marsic, David Mott, Kathleen Pollard, Kelly Sheridan, Blake Stockford

Presented by: Genus Theatre (link)

Genus Theatre proudly announces the opening of its most thrilling, twist-turning production yet, the
cautionary tale of murder, betrayal, hidden agendas and earth-endangering secrets, Friederich Dürrenmatt’s
The Physicists!

We live in a time of confusion and uncertainty. Our leaders have betrayed us, their motivations and
decisions are suspect, and those we thought could be trusted with our well-being must now be watched with
heavy caution. Science progresses at a lightning pace, from stem cells and nuclear proliferation to
homemade child abducting weather balloons, humanity continues to grapple with questions of scientific
responsibility and ethics. These thoughts are at the forefront of the collective consciousness.
Who can be trusted? What can we do? Should we do it?

The Physicists directly tackles these issues. By presenting Dürrenmatt’s heralded script in the style of a
classic film noir, Genus Theatre invites the audience to return to the treacherous world of the stylish crime
drama and experience a master plot which, though it was written 50 years ago, seems more relevant than
ever.

The Physicists, a 120 min show with intermission, premiers at PAL Theatre this November 13. Tickets
are $18 and may be purchased at the door, or ahead of time at www.brownpapertickets.com.
PAL Theatre
8th Floor – 581 Cardero St, Vancouver
Tickets: www.brownpapertickets.com or www.genustheatre.com
Thurs. Nov 12, 8:00 PM (Special 2 for 1 preview performance)
Fri. Nov 13, 8:00 PM
Sat. Nov 14, 8:00 PM
Thurs. Nov 19, 8:00 PM
Fri. Nov 20, 8:00 PM
Sat. Nov 21, 2:00 PM
Sat. Nov 21, 8:00 PM

The Project

thenextstage — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 06:54:27 +0000

Performers Alvin Sanders and Sarah Rodgers tell us why we should see

Written by: Aaron Bushkowsky

Directed by: Rachel Peake

Starring: Andrew McNee, Sarah Rodgers, Alvin Sanders, Maiko Bae Yamamoto, and Lindsey Angell

Presented by: Solo Collective (link)

“In a world of grey, don’t you think it’s an act of bravery to believe in absolutes?”

What happens when Hollywood North takes on starvation in Africa? A black comedy on how NOT to make a documentary. Amidst four egotistical filmmakers “making a difference,” a revolutionary African military takeover, and big-business Christian fundamentalism, this darkly hilarious story leaves us asking: Where are our stories coming from? Who is actually pulling the strings? And what is left to believe?

This not-to-be-missed comedy is the latest offering by playwright Aaron Bushkowsky whose last play, My Chernobyl, was nominated for 9 Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards and won the Victoria Critics’ Spotlight Award for Outstanding Production.

November 4-15

Tickets (Performance Works, Granville Island, Vancouver)
Tues-Sat at 8pm; Saturday matinees at 2pm
*Special Sunday performances: Nov 8 at 8pm, Nov 15 at 2pm ONLY*
Pay-What-You-Can Preview: Nov 4, 8pm
2-For-1: Nov 7 at 2pm & Nov 10 at 8pm
Tickets: $22/15
Ticket reservations through VancouverTix at vancouvertix.com or (604) 629-VTIX