Theatre Kingston Archive

Poster for Bottle Tree Productions' 'Surely, Sherlock'. Text reads: "Bottle Tree Productions Surely, Sherlock Starring all of your favourite sleuths aboard The Disoriented Express! Book by Anne Marie Mortensen & Daniel Smith Music and Lyrics by Michael Capon"

A Witty Mystery: ‘Surely, Sherlock’

  • Bottle Tree Productions
  • Festival
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

Who committed the crimes? No one knows. Welcome to the Disoriented Express. Surely, Sherlock is a witty musical written by Ann Marie Mortensen and Daniel Smith with lyrics and music by Michael Capon. The musical is a parody of the 2017 hit movie, Murder on The Orient Express, and is being performed at the Baby Grand Theatre in the 2023 Kingston Fringe Festival as part of the 2023 Kick and […]

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Poster for 'Sometimes I Love You, Always'. Text reads: "The Kick and Push Festival Art Sanctuary Presents a Basement Production of a veces te quiero siempre Sometimes I Love you Always Written and Directed By: Booth Savage Starring Janet-Laine Green With Booth Savage "You know, you really shouldn't let just anyone into your home. These days you can never tell." THURSDAY AUG 03 8:00 PM VENUE 2 CONFEDERATION FRIDAY AUG 04 4:00 PM VENUE 2 CONFEDERATION SATURDAY AUG 05 2:00 PM VENUE 2 CONFEDERATION SUNDAY AUG 06 4:20 PM VENUE 2 CONFEDERATION"

A Muffin You Can’t Refuse: ‘Sometimes I Love You, Always’

  • Festival
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

One rainy night, 70-year-old Mary Louise (Janet-Laine Green) invites an Internet friend (Booth Savage) over for coffee. (You can tell they’re in their 70s because they say “Internet friend”.) She wastes no time stripping him of his wet clothes, dressing him in her husband’s hand-me-downs, and interrogating him within an inch of his life. In the time it takes for his things to dry, the situation goes from weird to […]

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Poster for "Menno-Morphosis" A drawn figure is seen with butterfly wings against a blue background. Text reads: "MENNO-MORPHOSIS How to become a secular mennonite in 500 years or less. Written and performed by Sandra Banman Directed by Catherine Hume."

A Mesmerizing Memoir: ‘Menno-Morphosis’

  • Festival
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

So, you’re 50 years old and sobbing under a desk at work. Where do you go from here? If you’re Sandra Banman, you’ll crawl out and craft a beautiful memoir. Presented with gentle wit and a generous spirit, Menno-Morphosis is a one-woman show written and performed by Banman and directed by Catherine Hume. It takes a lot to grow up and out of a strict Mennonite family in Manitoba. Banman […]

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Alex Boese rehearsing 'Birthmarks' Photo is in black and white.

Alex Boese and Michael Catlin Talk ‘Birthmarks’

  • Artist
  • Festival
  • Interview
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

Recently, I had a chance to sit down with performer Alex Boese and director Michael Catlin to chat about their upcoming play Birthmarks, which will be playing at Kingston Fringe. The play was written by Canadian playwright Alexandria Haber and follows Alex’s character, Kate. Birthmarks follows Kate as she tries to get over a tragic loss in her life while also trying to reconcile the relationship with her mother whom […]

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An Irish flag with a red maple leaf in the centre. Below a girl rides her bike. Text reads: "Theatre Kingston EEN By Rosemary Doyle"

Help, I’m turning into My Grandmother! ‘EEN”s Journey through Generations

  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston

It’s a classic clash of generations: Canadian high school grad Tanya arrives in Ireland and is flabbergasted by her grandmother’s seemingly backwards lifestyle. Mary, Tanya’s Nan, is set in her ways— she prefers to cover the electric stovetop with a tablecloth and cook her meals on a fire, so-called progress be damned. Over a long summer filled with uphill bike rides, intercultural misadventures, and cups of tea with a mysterious […]

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Photo of Rosemary Doyle.

“Like having a perfect conversation,” Rosemary Doyle on Playwriting

  • Artist
  • Interview
  • Playwright
  • Theatre Kingston

Last weekend, I sat down with playwright Rosemary Doyle to learn about her writing process. We were joined at the kitchen table by a vivacious three-year-old who had endless questions for me (who am I, why did I ring the doorbell, why does my skirt have sparkles, can I twirl, can I watch her twirl, too?!). Faced with this hard-hitting preschool journalism, my conversation with Doyle was conducted in quick […]

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Three men appear. Two are in are dressed in suits. One man is is wearing a cowboy hat. Text reads: "Theatre Kingston THESE DEEDS Written and Directed by CRAIG WALKER"

‘These Deeds’: A Masterclass in Staging Historical Fiction

  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston

Craig Walker’s These Deeds is one of those shows that feels rewarding as you watch it. Historical fiction as a genre has this charming quality about it—ever feel “in” on the plot when a historical figure pops up in a Tarantino movie? That feeling is what Walker is able to draw out of the audience. The play follows Walker’s fictional characterizations of author Bram Stoker (George Masswohl), actor Sir Henry […]

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A green park bench in the outdoors. The purple ring surrounds with wording 'THE DUCK VARIATIONS' and 'The Duck Variations by David Mamet' also appears above the bench. Below the bench reads: 'The Duck Variations is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com'

Two Men on a Park Bench… David Mamet’s ‘The Duck Variations’

  • Festival
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

Who knew that ducks, friendship, and existentialism could coincide into a single theatre performance? These elements came together in a heartfelt conversation between two men in a recent performance of The Duck Variations. bEST Theatre Company’s The Duck Variations that played at the Grand Theatre as a part of the Kingston Fringe, produced by the Kick & Push Festival, was an existential and meandering conversation between two men on a […]

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A monastery with a sign in front that reads "MONASTIC AREA DO NOT ENTER" that is bordered with a purple circle that reads "SAILING TO THE MOON"

‘Sailing to the Moon,’ Contemplating the Monastery

  • Festival
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

“What can we gain by sailing to the moon if we are not able to cross the abyss that separates us from ourselves?”- Thomas Merton Presented at Theatre Kingston’s Fringe Festival, Color and Light’s Sailing to the Moon follows a young, wandering man named Tom (Thomas Cherney) who is trying to understand the value in pursuing monastic life in a forest. Injuring his foot on his journey to the monastery, […]

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A logo titled ' The Murderous Mansion of Mr. Uno' with a dark, creepy mansion that has two lightning bolts striking it.

‘The Murderous Mansion of Mr. Uno’: A Slick and Stylish Escapade

  • Festival
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

Lovers of Clue, and Murder by Death will be sad to know that they missed out on  Kingston Fringe’s The Murderous Mansion of Mr. Uno presented by The Not So Amateur Amateurs. The story is one you’re likely familiar with. Think Agatha Christie or “closed circle” stories like And Then There Were None. But what makes it exceptional, is the ensemble of young artists that made it happen!  The play […]

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Studio 013’s ‘R.E.D.’ ⁠— Proof That “Easy” Doesn’t Mean “Good”

  • Festival
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

A one woman, one robot, one act show set on a space station, R.E.D. is the frugal producer’s dream show. But the cracks start to show almost immediately.

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I Wish ‘Gone’ Would Never Go

  • Festival
  • Kick & Push Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • Theatre Kingston
  • TK Fringe

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.

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