News & Reviews — Kingston Theatre Alliance

I spent last evening exploring Theological Hall and finding theatre in unexpected places. In partnership with Theatre Kingston, Queen’s students in DRAM 339 present the inaugural TK Theo Fringe, a showcase of short solo works that celebrate the style and format of fringe theatre.  Over the course of the two-day mini fringe festival, I’ll be catching as many shows as I can and writing about them in the little pockets […]

Virtual reality is a relatively unexplored area of technology that can take you to worlds beyond your imagination. This past week I have had the pleasure of attending the PXR Conference run by Single Thread Theatre Company and Electric Company Theatre. It is a ten-day hybrid conference that showcases the best of Virtual Reality (VR) and how it can be used as a tool for interactive experiences. The conference begins […]

About last night…  The Last Night at the Cabaret Solitaire is a musical comedy revue directed by Grahame Renyk. As the DAN School of Drama and Music’s Fall 2023 Drama Major, this high-energy production is a collaboration between over a hundred Queen’s students—30 in the cast and band, and many more behind the scenes.  A show tailored to its ensemble, The Last Night at the Cabaret Solitaire fits these multi-talented […]

What happens when you put aflamed earthlings onstage? Well, they obviously need to perform inflammatory rants. Inflammatory Earthling Rants with Help from Kropotkin is a moving performance by Vermont-based Bread and Puppet Theater. The show is a commentary on the political landscape of today. It touches on broader topics of genocide, government, and the importance of speaking up on major issues while specifically delving into current events such as the […]

Lizzy is a first-time volunteer at a long-term care home. Bea, the overworked nurse in charge, doesn’t hold much regard for the new technique that Lizzy wants to explore: talking to the residents with dementia, and, more specifically, asking questions to help them find their way back to themselves.  Talking Matters by Marina Engelking and Merrill Swain is a tender and informative exploration of dementia that urges viewers to think […]

Having a choice is the basis of humanity, the purest expression of one’s free will. And what happens if this seemingly straightforward and essential expression is taken away from one’s self?  Blood River is a riveting play written by Kingston-based playwright Chloë Whitehorn and directed by Kingston-born Rosemary Doyle. I attended the world premiere of the show in the Baby Grand Theatre on Wednesday night. It is a play that […]

Segismund (Trevor Procyk) has spent his entire life imprisoned in a cell by his father, King Basilius (Emma Smyth). Now, Basilius has decided to let him live in the palace as a prince—but if anything goes wrong, Segismund will be sent back to his cell and told that it was all a dream. Trippy, right?  Life Is A Dream (Spanish: La vida es sueño) is a play from the Spanish […]

Just in time for horror season, Domino Theatre is back with classic mystery Dial M For Murder. Written by Frederick Knott in 1952 and adapted for film by Alfred Hitchcock in 1954, the play has an enduring legacy as a sinister, sophisticated psychological thriller. Wealthy English socialite Margot Wendice (Leanna Williams) is entangled in a love affair with American crime writer Max Halliday (Dylan Chenier). This doesn’t go over  well […]

Job Description The Associate Artistic Producer acts as the second and primary collaborator to the Artistic Producer, and will collaborate on organization administration, scheduling and operations, document and/or policy refinement / creation, grant writing, strategic planning, human resources as well as proposing initiatives that develop both organization and the regional theatre  sector. This is a contract leadership position with potential to shift to employee position in 2024. Key Relationships Responsibilities […]

Have you ever had a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with someone? Did they have such an impact that it changed the course of your life forever? Once is a Tony Award Winning Musical based on the 2007 Oscarwinning film of the same name. In its opening, we are introduced to an unnamed struggling Dublin musician portrayed by Tyler Check. On the verge of giving up on music altogether, fate brings him to […]

Have you ever seen a barber shop which is also a pub turn into a comedy club? Neither have I until last Wednesday.  It was a beautiful brisk Wednesday evening. The sun was setting on Kingston as me and a few friends finished a wine night and started our walk. Morale was high as we headed to Hair of the Dog Barber and Pub for their Monthly Comedy Night. It […]

A humorous and intriguing play that will leave one thinking about it for days to come. Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes is by Canadian playwright Hannah Moscovitch, and revolves around Jon, a famous writer and professor, and Annie, a 19 year-old student of his fan of his work. The play is portrayed through Jon’s point of view and throughout the course of the performance his and Annie’s relationship grows […]