"Something Rotten", Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

Gord and I saw Something Rotten (part of the Stratford Festival) this afternoon.

The Bottom brothers, two struggling playwrights in Renaissance London, need a hit. That’s easier said than done when your chief competition is local rockstar William Shakespeare. The Bottom brothers’ plan? Write the world’s first musical!

It was at the Festival Theatre.

Gord and I

The Festival Theatre store

Gord and I (and William Shakespeare)

"Death of a Salesman", Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

Gord and I saw Death of a Salesman (part of the Stratford Festival) this afternoon.

A father’s hope, a family’s heartbreak 

An aging commercial traveller chases a fading dream of success, blind to the illusions that have shaped his life and shattered his family. As memories blur with reality, his desperate pursuit of worth reveals the quiet tragedy of a man out of step with the world around him.

It was at the Avon Theatre downtown.

Gord and I

"Dirty Rotten Scoundrels", Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

Gord and I saw Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (part of the Stratford Festival) this afternoon.

We took the Stratford Festival bus there and back … thanks, Doug!

It was at the Avon Theatre (downtown on Downie Street).

Gord and I

IT WAS JOY, IT WAS SUBLIME, A SPLENDID WAY TO EARN A DIME. 

 Lawrence Jameson is no stranger to the high life—he’s lived it for years by separating lonely rich ladies from their fortunes in a swanky Riviera town. When he and his chief competitor in the con business, Freddy Benson, make a bet to swindle an heiress out of $50,000, the professional scoundrels soon discover they may not always be the smartest people in the room. Inspired by the hit 1988 film Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, the musical comedy earned 11 Tony Award nominations for its hilarious hijinks and frivolity—beautifully reminiscent of an earlier age.

It was really good … funny and risqué. Similar but different from the movie, which I love. 

"Something Rotten!", Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

Gord and I saw Something Rotten! at the Festival Theatre (part of the Stratford Festival) this afternoon.

The Bottom brothers, two struggling playwrights in Renaissance London, need a hit. That’s easier said than done when your chief competition is local rock star William Shakespeare. The Bottom brothers’ plan: write the world’s first musical! This rollicking song-and-dance extravaganza, nominated for ten Tony Awards during its smash Broadway run, sends up the Bard and Broadway and everything in between. Best of all, it can be enjoyed without CliffsNotes!

I'm not a fan of Shakespeare so hadn't been interested in seeing this. My friend, LeeAnn, has seen it many times and kept bugging me to see it. So we finally did ... and I'm glad we did.  It was very funny and clever. There was lots of singing and dancing. The performers were very good and none were weak.

"Hedda Gabler", Tom Patterson Theatre, Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

Gord and I saw Hedda Gabler this afternoon. It's at the Tom Patterson Theatre in Stratford, ON, and part of the Stratford Festival. We took their festival bus there and back (thanks, Philip!).

Gord

Me

The view from the café

"La Cage aux Folles", Avon Theatre, Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

I saw La Cage aux Folles this afternoon. It's at the Avon Theatre in Stratford, ON, and part of the Stratford Festival. I took their festival bus there and back (thanks, Trevor!).

Georges, the manager of a drag club in St. Tropez, decides to “play it straight” when his son arrives with his fiancé and her ultra-conservative parents. Albin, the club’s star performer and romantic partner to Georges, is dubious about the plan. The ensuing clash unravels truth and consequences with heartwarming grace. Gorgeous and funny, La Cage aux Folles has been delighting audiences since its Broadway première in 1983, when it won six Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Fans of the Oscar-nominated film The Bird Cage (inspired by the French play the musical takes its name and inspiration from) will rejoice in seeing familiar characters on the stage!

I love The Bird Cage!

It was campy and over-the-top and fun! The costumes were colourful and fabulous.

"Spamalot", Avon Theatre, Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

Gord and I headed on the festival bus to Stratford today to see Spamalot at the Avon Theatre.

Monty Python's Spamalot offers up a hefty share of irreverence in a hilarious spoof of the story of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table as they go in search of the Holy Grail. This outrageous musical comedy by Eric Idle and John Du Prez, lets us look at our flaws and foibles and in doing so allows us to laugh at the things that make us human. Setting: Medieval Britain and a little bit of France.

We've seen Spamalot a few times and this one didn't disappoint. It's funny and goofy and an excellent production.

"Chicago", Festival Theatre, Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

Gord and I headed to Stratford today to see Chicago.

In the Roaring Twenties, aspiring chorus girl Roxie Hart and fading vaudeville star Velma Kelly each face trial for murder. Both as cynical as they are sexy, the two women compete for the services of shady lawyer Billy Flynn, who promises to make them media celebrities and win them acquittals. With its killer score and all-new knock-’em-dead dance numbers, this deliciously lurid tale of adultery, murder and justice as showbiz packs some serious heat.

It is at the Festival Theatre in Stratford and is part of the Stratford Festival.

It's been a while since I've been to Stratford so I was looking forward to heading down for the day. And I wasn't disappointed ... Chicago was really good!  It was lively and fun and funny and the crowd loved it.  All the actors, singers and dancers did an excellent job!

The Festival has a bus that runs between Toronto and Stratford a couple times a day depending on the amount of plays going on and we took that.  It's about $30 down and back and it was nice to have someone else do the driving, especially coming back with the rain and wet snow.

"The Rocky Horror Show", Avon Theatre, Stratford Festival, Stratford, ON

The Rocky Horror Show is one of my favourite musicals.

The musical tells the story of a newly engaged couple getting caught in a storm and coming to the home of a mad transvestite scientist, Dr. Frank-N-Furter, unveiling his new creation, a sort of Frankenstein-style monster in the form of an artificially made, fully grown, physically perfect muscle man named Rocky Horror, complete "with blond hair and a tan".

I've seen the play a few times plus I've watched the movie more times than I can count.  It's playing at the Avon Theatre as part of the Stratford Festival.

There is a photo op in the lobby so, of course, I jumped in.

I think this was a fun production and the actors did an excellent job ... it was lively and funny.  It is not for children or the easily offended as the language was expressive and there was touching and grabbing of female and male parts.  In addition to some people in the audience yelling out, there were a couple plants yelling to the actors, which was funny and at times raunchy.  The actors paused and responded back in kind.

What I found was missing, though, was the sexual power of Frank-N-Furter.  That's probably the problem of seeing as many times as I have.  Though amusing, I thought the actor playing him came off more like a pouting drag queen.  If you watch the Tim Curry in the movie version, you'll see what I mean re what was missing in this character.  A couple of the musicals I've seen have been able to capture it also.

The audience loved this musical and I'd recommend it.