Wellington Oracle

-Theatre review by Lesley Buxton

I love Shakespeare. I’m an addict. All throughout high school, I proudly wore a button featuring the famous bard’s face that proclaimed “Will power” pinned to my black leather jacket. This is why I decided my twelve-year-old daughter would accompany me to Third Wall’s production of “As You Like It.” It was not a mistake. She loved it. The most remarkable thing about Charles McFarland’s production is the energy of the actors and their commitment to their roles. From the moment the first actor walks onto to the stage the air crackles with possibility and, we the viewers sense we are in for an intriguing ride.

McFarland faces the violence of the first scenes head on. The lighting is gritty and the feeling is reminiscent of an episode of The Sopranos. I congratulate him on casting Glenn Kulka as Charles, the Wrestler. Though Kulka was obviously nervous—this is his theatrical début—his physical confidence gave the fight scenes a dimension and realism seldom realized in most theatrical productions. The fight match alone is worth the price of admission. Last night the audience including my daughter got so involved they were clapping and hissing at the actors. Tania Levy and Mishka Lavigne were fabulous in this scene as Kulka’s supporters. Though they didn’t say a word their body language was wonderful. (more…)

Oracle theatre review by Wayne Current

On January 14th I saw my first-ever gay rap opera, Bash’d, at the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre. To be honest, I wasn’t at all sure what to expect from this show. Would this production be a campy comedy? A politically-driven hip hop performance? A love story?

Impressively, the performance is a compelling blend of all three.

Written and performed by Chris Craddock and Nathan Cukow, this is the story of two men Jack (Craddock) and Dylan (Cukow) who meet and fall and love as teenagers. The first part of the performance is about being a gay man in a small town, the pain of coming out to your family, and the giddy joy of finally finding real community after moving to the big city.

After the passage of the Civil Marriage Act (2005), Jack and Dylan decide to get married. Of course, despite the new law, currents of homophobic violence still run deep in Canadian society. This is made evident in an emotionally powerful scene where Jack is brutally assaulted. As the second half of the performance unfolds, we see the impact of this violent act on the couple; the fear, the anger, and then, unexpectedly, something more – a desire for revenge. (more…)

The team behind last summer’s smash hit “Countries Shaped Like Stars” at the Ottawa Fringe are set to take scenes from their next project — “Tales from the Belly of a Whale” — to  Hintonburg this upcoming Saturday as part of a salon evening at Cube Gallery on Hamilton Avenue.

We’ve discussed the amazing creative force of MiCasa Theatre before in these pages; and this time around we’ve got audio from both of the MiCasas –Emily Pearlman and Nick Di Gaetano – as they discuss the  the way the take artistic inspiration from the concept of “not being wasteful”.

The evening will also feature music from Ottawa songwriter John Gillies and spoken voice artist Kel Parsons.

Image by Johnathan Marshall

At approximately 3.00 PM on December 3 the intersection at Wellington and Hamilton was the scene of a multi-vehicle collision as a grey 4-door sedan careened through both lanes of traffic, striking two vehicles and causing a delivery truck to inflict further damage as it came to an emergency halt in the middle of the roadway. No serious injuries were reported.

The driver of the grey sedan then sped away from the scene, shedding pieces of his damaged vehicle and gas from a ruptured fuel tank as he raced down the back streets of Hintonburg. The recovered pieces included a front bumper with the license plate still attached. (more…)

-This article by Michel Frojmovic originally appeared in Spacing Ottawa on November 20, 2009

The “public-ness” of public space is a loose concept. Public sidewalks are – in principle – meant to be accessible to and enjoyed by members of the public. That’s pretty simple. However, we are less likely to appreciate that the public right-of-way extends well beyond the edge of paved roads and sidewalks. A good portion of your front lawn is probably not exactly “yours”.

Municipalities put in place carefully-worded by-laws and regulations to minimize or prevent the obstruction or privatization of sidewalks. Yet, in a higher-density, inner-city commercial mainstreet environment, these rules seem to create as much tension as they resolve.

Public space is regularly used for commercial gain. For-profit places of business regularly “use” public property, both restricting its use to paying customers, as well as profiting from the use of property it does not own. At the same time, the result is often a lively animation of the street and a general enhancement of the overall street experience.

A tour of Wellington Street West illustrates the variation in the use of public space.

Placing a couple of tables and a few chairs on the sidewalk is a relatively innocuous use of public space. The absence of a railing or permanent patio and the obvious transitory nature of this use make it quite benign. In this sense, it is a simple and harmless way of enhancing the street and adding to the level of public interaction. However, without the appropriate permissions and fees, it is also an illegal encroachment of pedestrian access to sidewalk space, and an unfair commercial gain at the expense of public property. It is worth regulating this type of use? (more…)

-By Heather Marie Scheerschmidt

“To make the best possible show, the work has to be rigorous, it has to have attention to detail, and it has to have a desire for excellence.” We’re sitting in Emily Pearlman’s living room and Nicolas Di Gaetano is talking about the idea of do-it-yourself (DIY) theatre. “Even if it is fucking DIY punk kids putting on a show where they do all the lights themselves, it still has to be excellent…you have to put your best foot forward even if your best foot only cost $300.”

MiCasa, the theatre company Nick and Emily formed in January, is part of a renewed cultural interest in DIY art forms. DIY is about controlling the means of production, producing independently and, well, learning to do things yourself. The roots of DIY are punk, which is why there is often something edgy or avante garde about DIY art. And punk has an important influence on the kind of work Emily and Nick do together as MiCasa.  “I play a lot of instruments, and I love being in bands…I want to run a theatre company like a band” Nick laughs, “not only is it hip and cool but it’s the only way I know how to do things!” (more…)

-Oracle theatre review by Sterling Lynch

Chamber Theatre Hintonburg’s production of The Mechanicsville Monologues, written and directed by Donnie Laflamme, is a collection of monologues that tell the — sometimes interlocking — stories of people and places firmly rooted in Mechanicsville.

There is much to be admired in this production but it is hampered by an uncertainty of intention. The production wavers like a drunk between a desire to mirror the history of this neighborhood and a desire to glorify its many myths.

On the one hand, there are monologues which seem genuinely illuminating about the history of Mechanicsville.

For example, “Taxi Driver”, expertly performed by Robert Reynolds, is almost pitch perfect. As soon as this guy wandering through the Carleton asks, “Someone order a cab?” I know I’ve met him before — probably picking up my grandmother — and, thanks to the story he tells, I feel I learn something about him and this community.

On the other hand, there are a number of monologues which fail to ring true.

For example, Will Somers plays the part of a lovable doofus who tells us the story of how he was busted for soliciting sex from an undercover police officer. The performance is comically entertaining, but the piece feels like a sketch and his character is a caricature. If I’ve ever met this guy before, it’s only on television. (more…)

The planning partnership that held the community workshop in October to come up with ideas for a more pedestrian-friendly, better-designed Parkdale Avenue has produced a short questionnaire that local residents can fill out in order to add their opinions into the results of the process.

The survey really does only takes a few short minutes, even though instead of strictly just “checking boxes”, respondents are encouraged to give subjective responses such as “what are your three favourite places along Parkdale, and what do you like about them”.

The results of the survey will be presented on 2 December 2009 at the Parkdale United Church (429 Parkdale Avenue). The evening will begin at 5:30pm with a meet-and-greet session, followed by a formal presentation of the plan at 6:30pm.

-Oracle theatre review by Wayne Current

On Thursday November 5, I was pleased to attend the world premiere of Ottawa native Hannah Moscovitch’s new work The Children’s Republic at the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre. The play tells the story of Janusz Korczak, a Polish-Jewish pediatrician and celebrated children’s author who runs a remarkable orphanage in Poland.

Korczak was a visionary who believed that an orphanage should be governed like a democratic adult community. Under his guidance, the orphans participated directly in the governance of their orphanage. This included the establishment of a “children’s court” to which everyone including the teachers and staff were accountable.

The first half of Moscovitch’s play introduces Korczak (Paul Rainville), his assistant Stefa (Kate Hurman), and the orphans. It becomes apparent that while the wards of the orphanage experience their share of conflicts, these are resolved with kindness and fairness. This is contrasted with the second act, which is much darker and takes place after the Nazis invade and occupy Poland.

(more…)

- by Heather Marie Scheerschmidt (Cross-posted from Culturemagazine.ca)

This November, the Ottawa School of Speech and Drama (OSSD) in partnership with the Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC) presents a new play about children struggling to make sense of a world descending into chaos, and the man who teaches them to believe in themselves. Children’s Republic, by Hannah Moscovitch, explores the life and work of Dr. Janusz Korczak, a Polish-Jewish physician, author, educator and dedicated advocate of children’s rights.

The inspiration for this new work is another man known for his generousity towards children, Ottawa businessman Leon Gluzman. Now in his nineties, Gluzman lived in Dr. Korczak’s orphanage in the 1920s, before immigrating to Canada in 1929. His childhood connection to Dr. Korczak had a huge impact on his life and the contributions he has made to his community. One of those contributions was to help the Ottawa School of Speech and Drama construct a new arts facility in his Westboro building. As they got to know one another, Mr. Gluzman shared with OSSD Artistic Director Amanda Lewis the story of his childhood and his experiences with Dr. Korczak. Together they realized the story would make for an interesting play. (more…)