Category Archives: Reviews

‘Mirth! mirth!’ Cocktails at Pam’s returns to Teatro Live! with the bubbly

Posted on July 13, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca If you ever suspected that human civilization is built on sand, or possibly the cubes in an ice bucket, you’re going to love the way the perfect hostess looks around her living room in the opening … Continue reading →

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Spell it, don’t sell it. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at the Citadel, a review

Posted on July 11, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca In the age of auto-correct, when the distinction between ‘their’ and ‘they’re’ has vanished into the mists of time — consider the kids in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, whose claims on glory depend … Continue reading →

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Musical theatre tickles the Bard: larky Something Rotten! at the Freewill Shakespeare Festival, a review

Posted on July 2, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca “Who on earth is goin’ to sit there while an actor breaks into song?” ambitious playwright/impresario Nigel Bottom wonders incredulously (in song, natch) in Something Rotten!, the ingenious musical comedy hit now singing and dancing on … Continue reading →

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Funny, amiable, and hey, there’s small-town curling: Hurry Hard at the Mayfield, a review

Posted on June 28, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca Curling may have snazzy international tentacles, and Olympics cred and all that. But there’s something quintessentially small town, domesticated, and Canuck, about curling. The camaraderie, the jokey squabbling, the tenacious feuding, the intense competitive spirit (not … Continue reading →

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Taking the leap into the timeless (with tartan): Brigadoon at NUOVA Vocal Arts, a review

Posted on June 25, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca If it takes a village to stage any Golden Age Broadway musical, consider the case of Kim Mattice Wanat’s production of Lerner and Loewe’s 1947 Brigadoon, the finale of this year’s NUOVA Vocal Arts Festival. The … Continue reading →

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Once more unto the park! Much Ado About Nothing celebrates the homecoming of the Freewill Shakespeare Festival, a review

Posted on June 21, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca A sweet, long-awaited reunion is happening in Hawrelak Park. And you should be there to feel the vibrations. It’s been a hard, uphill road back, but the Freewill Shakespeare Festival, a ‘merry wanderer’ (as a sprite … Continue reading →

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A Michelin star performance by Andrew MacDonald-Smith in Fully Committed, at Teatro Live!, a review

Posted on June 7, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca A phone starts ringing before our unemployed actor hero even arrives at his day job for a shift in the underworld — at the reservation desk hidden in the nether regions of the hottest, hippest Manhattan … Continue reading →

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The guilty pleasures of Mamma Mia! Broadway Across Canada at the Jube, a review

Posted on May 14, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca Mamma Mia! is one of those shows that’s made to be called a guilty pleasure. There’s no use having a guilty pleasure that’s decaf instead of double full-fat cinnamon dolce latte with a shot and sprinkles. And … Continue reading →

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What? This wine is made in England? Autumn at Shadow Theatre, a review

Posted on May 11, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca The co-stars of Autumn, the season finale at Shadow Theatre, have their work cut out for them. Resourceful theatre veterans Cathy Derkach and Karen Johnson Diamond have charisma, comic chops, and fortitude. All will be put … Continue reading →

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How high is the price tag attached to working in the arts? Everyone Is Doing Fine at Workshop West, a review

Posted on May 10, 2026 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca In Everyone Is Doing Fine, the season finale at Workshop West, Calgary-based playwright James Odin Wade steps boldly up to a conundrum that leaves the arts and its practitioners stuck between a rock and a hard … Continue reading →

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