Kingston Theatre Alliance

Shrimp cocktail.
Top 40 hits of the 1990’s.
The shady dealings of the 1%.
An unhinged rendition of I am The Greatest Star.

All of these elements and more can be found in Gone, presented by Toronto-based writer and performer Amber Mackereth. A romp in the anxieties of the global citizen, this work is unlike anything else playing at the Kingston Fringe.

Never Swim Alone is a Canadian classic that just needs a little more reinvention than what the script calls for. My understanding of the work is that it’s meant to be a critique of the ways in which men have been socialized, yet the play as it stands does not offer anything more than making toxic masculinity known.

The word anthropic is defined as informing or concerning the existence of human life, or simply, caused by human beings—anthropogenic. To me, Anthropic Traces is about the water, in which it concerns: movement, borders, and gatekeeping. Through war, displacement, and governing bodies, many of the characters experience displacement. The piece has so many different stories for all walks of life to relate to. Though it was not for me to speak back to, I still wanted to speak about the work with friends.

Too Much Information Improvised was a part of the 2022 Kingston Fringe, produced by the Kick & Push Festival. It is performed by two real life exes, Paddy MacDonald and Steph Haller. The allure of the work is the fact that they used to be in a romantic relationship with one another, so the expectation is that maybe there is fighting, and lots of tension. It was a lovely surprise that there was not, like none at all, unless the performance called for it.

While the show is clearly intended for a younger audience, there is an undeniable charm in Anne Marie Mortensen’s writing and the performances from the teenage actors. 

There is no more nuance in this production, no deeper message, nothing else of note. If you are looking to see ‘The Music Man’ as it was staged originally in 1957, you’re in luck. There weren’t really any risks taken or boundaries pushed, and sometimes that’s what audiences are looking for, fine! But I would’ve been happy to see this talented creative team take on something that has the potential to be more relevant.

Something is brewing at Agnes Etherington’s former home. Correction: something is rising, proofing, marinating, braising, and burning at the Agnes.

If you’re like me, you’ve never been to a variety show, but what I’ve learned is that they’re really just talent shows for grownups. But unlike the ones from grade school, these acts are polished, professional, and perhaps… a little promiscuous.  I was able to catch drag artist Dare de LaFemme’s third and most recent show in Gananoque at the Royal Theatre Thousand Islands on July 2nd. The evening was […]

It is always the moments that derail an activist’s life that are remembered the most, and Hey Viola is a reminder that Viola Davis was a real person. It is also the most entertaining history lesson I’ve ever had.  This Thousand Islands Playhouse production (co-created by Krystle Dos Santos and Tracey Power, dir. Power) is a transformative experience filled with history, music, and advocacy. Transporting audiences to 1950’s Harlem, New […]

If you didn’t catch it at The Grand Theatre, the recent run of Kong’s Night Out showed that a lot can happen in a hotel room in New York City on the eve of a Broadway performance. This Domino Theatre production utilized a fixed set, and used this constraint as a method to explore complex narrative structures. The performance gave form to the world of Broadway in the 1930s and […]

Drawing inspiration from artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat and situations of action painting, Corbett’s gestural method was engaging to watch and experience as an audience member. By loosening the boundaries that often exist between mediums in art, the performance invited the audience to think of the crossovers that can happen when mediums collide.

“If I hear another friggin’ theatre thing where someone tells me that we’re all family, I will just run, turn the other way and run. The interesting thing: I was not met with that kind of language with SPAF, but I was definitely met with the actual feeling of being a part of the family. The amount of people that lived around the park that actually offered me their actual bed to rest in during the festival, or their bathroom to use, or food to make like—I have never been a part of an arts event, a theatre event, that extended that kind of awareness of neighborhood.”