After 15 years in London, England as Editor to a lifestyle mag and Communications Consultant, Jennifer returned to Canada, making Ottawa her new Capital City and Apt613 her outlet for arty opinions. An avid people watcher and conversation eavesdropper, Jennifer remains delighted to have her writing derided, mocked and shouted-down in equal measure.
Review of Jennifer Cavanagh Family/ 45 Minutes Though unquestionably rich fodder, discussions of faith lacking strong opposing views miss their mark in terms of creating convincing and moving theatre. Despite good intentions and a mountain of found-dialogue, God Verbatim manages only fresh and sometimes thought-provoking observations in this pleasant spoken-word production. Directors Eleanor Crowder & Anna Lewis sifted through […]
Divorce, so often an un-mined topic from the female perspective, is rich fodder for theatre and it was with anticipation that I headed to the Gladstone Theatre. A charming introduction from Director John P Kelly opened the evening and soon we were off on Geraldine Aron’s one-hander tale My Brilliant Divorce. Katie Hurman features as […]
On Sunday evening a cavalcade of theatre luminaries gathered in Bates Hall, Sandy Hill to honour the brightest amongst their ranks. The Prix Rideau Awards founded in 2006 celebrates locally produced professional theatre and artists in both French and English. It is inspiring to see categories, including best male and female performers, best director, emerging […]
As surely as buds bloom so too at this time of year are Ottawa lawyers found limbering up to break some legs. Not those of disgruntled clients but of the theatrical nature as they come together for the annual “Lawyer Play”. This yearly fundraiser brings together legal eagles of all stripes: criminal, corporate, civil, family, […]
As the virtual curtain fell on The Anger in Ernest & Ernestine this tweet went out: venue is insane but the talent is undeniable. The setting in the tiny basement of the Backpacker’s Hostel on York Street is uninviting. Seating –12 max- includes dingy stained sofas and cushions on the laundry room cement floor. With […]
Sans Sense is a collection of short plays and monologues featuring farfetched fantastical storylines. The material is creative and fresh yet despite the advertised brevity the production would have greatly benefited from harsher editing. Joel Garrow delivers the monologues that bookend the evening in diametrically opposed style. The opener is a frenetically nervous retelling of […]
Searching for Snails / À la recherche des escargots is a fable of co-existence, self-discovery and ecological respect. Luckily, this journey of predatory human nature versus planetary needs is also a cavalcade of darkly entertaining performances replete with ingenious puppetry, larger-than-life characters, comedy, dance, song and haunting stilt walking. The story is simple–business man Maximilien […]
Arts Court is hosting a trio of theatre productions for the next two nights. “Trois (Three)” brings three 30min productions from fringe favourites MayCan theatre, Dead Unicorn Ink and GrimProv. To sweeten the deal the theatre lobby is set up nightclub-style complete with a well priced bar. Playing on the name there is even a […]
It isn’t often a play staged in a bar takes on the role of Christianity in modern culture. Thus on the coldest night of the year we settled into The Mercury Lounge with a glass of wine and the day’s headlines of the Joe LeClair affair on our mind eager to see how this production […]
“I wasn’t an activist before G20, but G20 made me an activist…” You Should have Stayed Home covers the explosive events in the summer of 2010 when protestors and police clashed violently at Toronto’s G20. Based on a Facebook note detailing the arrest and detention of first time rally attendee Tommy Taylor, it’s the story […]
A night of fast-paced double crosses, psychological twists and Manhattan murders are taking centre stage at the Ottawa Little Theatre. Set in the luxury apartment of Camille, a Manhattan socialite of “a certain age” (played by Kim Strauss), Deadly Murder gets straight to business with Camille attempting to divest herself of one-night stand waiter Billy (Connor […]
Grab your drink and take your seats as FreshMeat2 Theatre rolls in to town for not one but two consecutive weekends October 17-19 and 24-26. The pop-up festival brings 14 top theatre companies together to showcase brand spanking new short and sharp edgy works in a single, comfortable and ‘serving’ venue. Keeping it fresh the 14 […]
