Tag Archives: Varscona Theatre

The healing touch of humour: Drew Hayden Taylor’s Cottagers and Indians at Shadow Theatre

Posted on March 4, 2022 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca “Humour is the WD-40 of healing.”  That’s what an elder from the Blood Reserve in southern Alberta once told Drew Hayden Taylor. “I liked that. So cool. Almost T-shirt-worthy,” says the well-travelled Ojibwa playwright/ filmmaker/ TV … Continue reading →

Posted in Previews | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on The healing touch of humour: Drew Hayden Taylor’s Cottagers and Indians at Shadow Theatre

New faces in theatre: meet actor Rochelle Laplante

Posted on January 30, 2022 by Liz Nicholls

They’re young, adaptable, and creative. And as theatre returns in this late-pandemic grind, and the doors open to live audiences, we’ll be seeing the work of these theatre artists light up, and transform, the scene here, on- and backstage. Meet … Continue reading →

Posted in Features | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on New faces in theatre: meet actor Rochelle Laplante

A mysterious encounter en route to the Promised Land: The Mountaintop opens the Shadow season. A review

Posted on January 21, 2022 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca “Why America is going to hell … ” repeats the man before us, testing different ways of rolling off each syllable for a speech-in-progress. It’s a sonorous voice gone scratchy around the edges by hard use … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on A mysterious encounter en route to the Promised Land: The Mountaintop opens the Shadow season. A review

Merry, merry … further suggestions for your holiday entertainment this week

Posted on December 14, 2021 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca This is the week you can get Santa to say Merry Christmas to you in a language of your choice — for $4.38 (including fees). It’s also the week you can go backstage in the notoriously … Continue reading →

Posted in News/Views | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Merry, merry … further suggestions for your holiday entertainment this week

Holding the torch in a man’s world: The Great Whorehouse Fire of 1921 at Northern Light Theatre. A review

Posted on November 21, 2021 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca History is the springboard for The Great Whorehouse Fire of 1921, the cunningly knotted little play that opens the Northern Light Theatre season in Trevor Schmidt’s crackling production. The title reveals the small-town crime, recorded by … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Holding the torch in a man’s world: The Great Whorehouse Fire of 1921 at Northern Light Theatre. A review

Linda Wood Edwards reimagines a mysterious chapter in our history: The Great Whorehouse Fire of 1921 at Northern Light

Posted on November 16, 2021 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca In December 26, 1921, just outside the small Alberta town of Big Valley, a brothel started by an enterprising woman burned to the ground.Narrow escapes ensued, as duly reported by The Big Valley News that week. … Continue reading →

Posted in Previews | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Linda Wood Edwards reimagines a mysterious chapter in our history: The Great Whorehouse Fire of 1921 at Northern Light

What’s up in Edmonton theatre this weekend? Have a peek

Posted on October 30, 2021 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca What’s up in Edmonton theatre this weekend? Oh, you know, the usual…. A new theatre is glowing from the inside out. Shows are ending their runs, a live season of Die-Nasty is about to begin, Opera … Continue reading →

Posted in News/Views | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on What’s up in Edmonton theatre this weekend? Have a peek

Noodling with The Stroganoffs: Die-Nasty returns with the first of three mini-seasons

Posted on October 29, 2021 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca    A weekday morning in the life of an improviser: Wayne Jones is hanging with Chekhov. He’s spent the a.m. watching The Seagull and Uncle Vanya. Who does that? The producer/artistic director of the 30th annual … Continue reading →

Posted in Previews | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Noodling with The Stroganoffs: Die-Nasty returns with the first of three mini-seasons

The comedy of excavation: Hiraeth at the Varscona in a Bright Young Things production. A review.

Posted on October 23, 2021 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca In a visceral way, there’s nothing more gut-wrenching than hope. It puts your dreams into a never-ending spin cycle. You can’t get a grip on grief, or heartbreak. You can’t even grab onto sadness properly, much … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on The comedy of excavation: Hiraeth at the Varscona in a Bright Young Things production. A review.

It’s the theatre season, and you have options this weekend

Posted on October 22, 2021 by Liz Nicholls

By Liz Nicholls, 12thnight.ca Hey, there’s a Theatre Season (now, there’s a term that’s gotten a little rusty) going on in this town. There’s live theatre in your weekend — two openings Friday night alone — and you have options. … Continue reading →

Posted in News/Views, Previews | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on It’s the theatre season, and you have options this weekend