News & Reviews Archive

Phil Perrin, Judy Tetlow, and Harold Potter performing in 'A Bench in the Sun'.

Canes and Comedy: ‘A Bench in the Sun’

  • Domino Theatre
  • Review

Have you ever been curious to follow two childhood friends into their retirement home? Well, now you can. Kind of.   Ron Clark’s A Bench in the Sun is a tale of two old friends who now live in a seniors’ home together. Every morning they meet on their bench in the sun and discuss life’s tumults and vexes with the other. Dialogue is endless and quarrels are persistent as the […]

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Autumn-Joy Dames, Kelsey Verzotti & Laura Caswell in Bittergirl the Musical 2023

‘bittergirl’ Brings Back Memories

  • Review
  • Thousand Islands Playhouse

You just got broken up with. How would you feel? Angry? Betrayed? Bitter?  bittergirl is a musical comedy that was originally a play created by Annabel Fitzsimmons, Alison Lawrence, and Mary Francis Moore. Throughout the musical, audiences follow three unnamed women titled A, B, C, and performed by Autumn-Joy Dames, Kelsey Verzotti, and Laura Caswell, as they each go through a breakup. The three women find companionship in each other […]

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Two individuals hugging in nature. One is dressed in traditional Indigenous wear.

Experiencing the Cedar Island Residency

  • Festival
  • Indigenous Theatre
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • The Kick & Push Festival

On Tuesday, August 15th I was invited to see the first viewing of the Cedar Island Residency performance taking place the following day. I was not told much about the performance, giving me a feeling of nervous excitement. This is the first performance I have ever attended where I did not have much information about it beforehand. The only thing I was told was to meet at the Kingston Marina […]

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Performance of 'La Bulle'. Photo in black and white.

Bubbling with Magic: ‘La Bulle’

  • Corpus Dance Projects
  • Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • The Kick & Push Festival

Feeling curious about seeing a mime roam the ins and outs of a giant translucent bubble? See La Bulle in Kingston this weekend.  La Bulle is a mime show produced by CORPUS Dance Projects and is being presented at the Kick & Push Festival by the Kingston Theatre Alliance and Le Centre Culturel Frontenac.  The show follows a lonely mime, Pierrot (David Danzon / Guy Marsan; the performer at the […]

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Poster for 'A Perfect Bowl of Pho'. There is red background. Music notes with the shows title on top appear in a wave. A bowl of pho eating itself is seen. A cartoon of a bull singing is seen.

Pho Sure, You’ll Like it a Lot

  • Festival
  • Kingston Theatre Alliance
  • Review
  • The Kick & Push Festival

A deliciously funny show. A Perfect Bowl of Pho is a meta-musical created and written by Nam Nguyen, music composed by Wilfred Moeschter, and directed by Steven Hao. The story is centered around a procrastinating University of Toronto student, Nam, performed by Chris Vergara. The story follows Nam as he struggles to write a musical about… I think you guessed it… Pho.  A meta-musical is a play within a play. […]

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Poster of 'One Night Only'. A man looking distressed and exhausted holds his arm in the air. Text reads: "duhdumduhdum productions presents ONE NIGHT ONLY WRITTEN AND PERFORMED BY NICHOLAS EDDIE WRITTEN BY: NICHOLAS EDDIE DIRECTOR: SEPEHR REYBOD PRODUCER: NICHOLAS EDDIE ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: ADRIAN CHEVALIER"

‘One Night Only’ is One Not to Forget

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

An experience I don’t think I will ever forget. One Night Only is a one man show written, produced, and performed by Nicholas Eddie, directed by Sepehr Reybod, and assistant producer is Adrian Chevalier. An audience follows Eddie throughout the night as he is faced with a challenge which can only be completed in the following morning.  This review has mentions of suicide. This show felt like an experience rather […]

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Poster for 'Krapp's Last Tape' A man is seen sitting on a couch with no pants on.

Brilliant Beckett: ‘Krapp’s Last Tape’

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

Krapp’s Last Tape is a one man show written by the legendary playwright Samuel Beckett and is being performed by Jim Garrard at the Baby Grand Theatre in Kingston. It’s a story about isolation, regret, and accepting one’s fate. Audiences follow Krapp, a 69 year old man as he listens to an audio recording of his 39 year old self.  Krapp is an elderly man who appears to be on […]

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Poster for 'Creeping Murmur; Poring Dark". A creepy mansion is pictured. Text reads: "John D. Huston Creeping Murmur; Poring Dark "I nearly jumped out of my skin" CBC Winnipeg ****1/2"

Spirited Storytelling: ‘Creeping Murmur; Poring Dark’

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

A peculiar parlour game, a sauce salesman, a ghost ship, and a little girl behind a door. In Creeping Murmur; Poring Dark, John D. Huston transforms an unassuming hotel conference room into a site of spectral thrills. Though breakfast had barely settled in my stomach by the time I took my seat, I was immediately transported to a late-night world of chilling tales by Huston’s wry, lively storytelling.  Huston presents […]

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Poster for 'Are You Catching What I'm Throwing?' An orange ball is seen against a dark backdrop.

Charming and Clever, ‘Are You Catching What I’m Throwing?’

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

Have you ever felt like you didn’t belong? Like you couldn’t find “your people”? Are You Catching What I’m Throwing is a one man Circus Theatre Show performed by William Alex Larson. The show follows a man as he discovers his passion for juggling. An audience follows him through the highs and lows of this passion and in the bigger picture, the highs and lows of being accepted by society. […]

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Poster for 'The Fronge Festival' Texts reads: "the fronge festival August 3-13 Improvised plays from six Canadian Fringe Festivals tickets at kingstongrand.ca"

The Unforgettable Fronge Festival

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

No, it’s not a typo—The Fronge Festival is a festival within a festival at TK Fringe, and it’s one of the funniest shows I’ve seen in Kingston this year.  The concept is simple and absurd: at each performance, the audience is offered a list of Fringe shows from another Canadian city and gets to decide which ones the Fronge’s troupe of improvisers will ad lib. Director Kyle Warne performs alongside […]

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Poster for Blue Canoe's 'Happy Days'. A jukebox is pictured and text reads: "Happy Days A New Musical"

It’s a Jukebox Musical… It’s ‘Happy Days’

  • Blue Canoe Productions
  • Review

Lovers reacquainted, dance numbers galore, and perhaps some Grease-inspired attributes? It’s Happy Days: A New Musical, based off the TV show Happy Days, with book by Garry Marshall, and music and lyrics by Paul Williams. Produced by Blue Canoe, the young folks of this charming show are leaving their hearts on the stage.  Massimo Recupero starts the show off strong, delivering the first lines of the production with energy ablaze. […]

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Poster for 'The ADHD Project'. A woman stands against a chalkboard in colourful clothing and the chalkboard is covered in drawings.

It’s a Superpower: ‘The ADHD Project’

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

Intimate and uplifting, The ADHD Project will captivate an audience as Comedian/Storyteller Carlyn Rhamey explores the ups and downs of living her life with ADHD. Through compelling storytelling, she recounts the moment she received her diagnosis, her challenges with bullying, and finally her acceptance of her newly embraced “superpower”.  Before the show starts, instead of waiting offstage, Rhamey talks to the audience. She cracks jokes and welcomes the audience. I began seeing […]

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