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Theatre

Here you will find reviews of local theatre productions the world round, with a particular focus on the Greater Toronto Area and the San Francisco Bay Area. We also review many "Digital Theatre" productions — live recordings of theatre — and explore how this new medium presents theatre productions, for better or worse. We especially focus on NTLive, RSC On Screen, and Globe Theatre On Screen productions. And we have a soft spot for modern Shakespeare productions.

Stage Kiss, Circa Theatre

Alex Heeney / July 17, 2016

Stage Kiss delights at Wellington’s Circa Theatre

Circa Theatre in Wellington, New Zealand, has staged a terrific production of Sarah Ruhl’s Stage Kiss.

Alex Heeney / June 24, 2016

Ralph Fiennes excavates Richard III’s malevolence at the Almeida

Ralph Fiennes’ titular bunch-backed toad is a man thoroughly damaged by years of abuse in Rupert Goold’s enthralling modern dress production. The production will be broadcast to cinemas around the world starting July 21.

Phedre(s), Phaedra(s)

Alex Heeney / June 11, 2016

Phaedra(s) is frustrating experimental theatre starring Isabelle Huppert

Phaedra(s) (or Phèdre(s)), a nigh four hour piece of avant garde theatre in French with English surtitles, starring Isabelle Huppert, is the centre-piece of the Barbican’s LIFT festival and coincides with a Huppert retrospective. Originally staged at the Odeon-Théâtre de l’Europe, Phaedra(s) runs June 10–18.

Much Ado About Nothing CalShakes

Alex Heeney / June 1, 2016

Much Ado About Nothing is a wonderful season opener for CalShakes’ new artistic director

Despite a rocky start with “additional text” consisting of embarrassingly bad rhyming couplets, director Jackson Gay’s Much Ado About Nothing proves a great night out at the theatre. It’s an unconventional but still hilarious take on one of the Bard’s most accessible plays.

Liasons Dangereuses

Mary Angela Rowe / February 17, 2016

Les Liaisons Dangereuses shines at the Donmar

Josie Rourke’s production at the Donmar plays up the novel’s feminist subtext while emphasizing the genuine bond between its two dissolute protagonists. The result is a surprisingly romantic take on this cynical novel.

RSC Henry V, Alex Hassell

Mary Angela Rowe / December 2, 2015

Henry V at the RSC is more Hal than Harry

Shakespeare’s Henry IV Parts 1 and 2 chronicle the growth of feckless frat boy Hal into sober ruler-in-waiting Harry. Henry V should be the culmination of that transformation: the growth of a young King into a leader. Yet the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Henry V feels more like Henry IV Part 3. Though this entertaining production is well-acted and effectively staged, Henry himself still acts like a prince and not a king. This may be Director Gregory Doran’s aim: showcase Harry’s (Alex Hassell) ongoing maturation by starting him off as green and unimposing. But Shakespeare’s original text establishes Henry as a man who wields authority: he is a “dread sovereign,” “terrible in constant resolution.”

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