dee arr's 2009 theatre review & Public opinon poll.

In 2009 dee arr assisted @ : 88 performances; 66 presentations from 65 productions, presented in over +12 houses. This years' official review will have: 1 retro-mention; 1 special mention; 6 honorable mentions; A Top 12; Maybe even a bottom 3. The plays that have been selected were announced on air, Radio Centre-Ville 102.3FM Arts Notebook. You too can participate and vote for you own favorite play from this list, and maybe even win a prize too, see details below.

Dee Arr’s rules of official rules of engagement:
Must be presented in the greater Montreal area.
Produced between Jan. and Dec. 2009.
Have had at least three public presentations to a paying audience.
Dee Arr has been invited as a guest: VIP and/or Media.
Not produced by home base company PVSP, or directed by Davyn Ryall.

What motivates dee arr's decisions : The play; The direction; The overall production quality; Technical elements; The performance (s); Emotional connection; Resonating effects.

Honorable Mentions in no particular order:
The Sputniks - C (Special retro Honorable mention)
Till We Meet Again - OPH (Honorable mention, Touring production.)
Cherry Docs – TSC (Honorable mention, play & performance.)
Hippies & Bolsheviks - FSS (Honorable mention, play & performance.)
Brazil Nuts – Fringe / JFLC (Honorable mention, 2009 pick of the Fringe.)
Suburban Motel series: (Honorable mention, productions.)
Haunted Hillbilly - S (Honorable mention, production.)

2009 TOP 12:
Afterlife - G TOP #12
Pillowman - TSC / TOP #11
Die Roten Punkte – C / TOP #10
The Real Inspector Hound – ML / TOP #9
Haunted – SJ / TOP #8
Paradise Lost – TSC / TOP #7
Haunted House – S / TOP #6
Over the River and Through The Woods – S / TOP #5
Educating Rita – S / TOP #4
Tryst – S / TOP #3
Souvenir – MM / TOP #2
Shirley Valentine – C / TOP #1

Listed in approximate production order:
1. Die Roten Punkte – C TOP #10
2. The Sputniks - C (Honorable retro mention)
3. The Ballad of the Young Offender - C
4. Can You See Me Yet? - P
5. The Real Inspector Hound – ML TOP #9
6. Shirley Valentine – C TOP #1
7. Buried Child - S
8. Alan's Search For The Best Girl In Montreal - S313
9. One Man Show For My Brother - P
10. Gone fishing -with Trout Stanley - TSC
11. Haunted House – S TOP #6
12. Tempest in a Tea Pot - ML
13. Doubt - C
14. Tshepang - LC
15. Blessed Are They - SJ
16. The Assumption of Empire - ML
17. Tryst – S TOP #3
18. Age Of Arousal - C
19. Paradise Lost – TSC TOP #7
20. Over the River and Through The Woods – S TOP #5
21. Cherry Docs – TSC (Honorable mention)
22. Hair - MH
23. With Bated Breath - C
24. My Child - ML
25. Death And The Maiden - ML
26. 3 Ways To Handle A Telemarketer - Fringe venue.
27. Fucking Stephen Harper – Fringe / ML
28. Cobra III – Fringe / JFLC
29. Penumbra – Fringe / MAI
30. The Importance of Being Earnest – Fringe /MAI
31. Afterlife – Fringe / G TOP #12
32. Brazil Nuts – Fringe / JFLC (Honorable mention)
33. Dance Animal – Fringe / JFLS
34. Perverts – Fringe / LC
35. My Pregnant Brother – Fringe / G
36. Westmount Theatre Community Group - Edward Albee play
37. Bunbury: Importance of Being Earnest/L'importance d'être Constant - TSC NE
38. I AM I - P
39. Souvenir – MM TOP #2
40. Speak Truth To Power - GC
41. Suddenly, Last Summer - P NE
42. Rock, Paper, Jackknife - C
43. Till We Meet Again - OPH (Honorable mention)
44. Inherit The Wind - S
45. Haunted – SJ TOP #8
46. Pillowman - TSC TOP #11
47. Mysteriously Yours - TO NE
48. True Love Lies - TO NE
49. In Piazza San Domenico - C
50. Suburban Motel series: RISK EVERYTHING - ML (Honorable mention)
51. CRIMINAL GENIUS - ML
52. THE END OF CIVILIZATION - ML
53. FEATURING LORETTA - ML
54. ADULT ENTERTAINMENT - ML
55. PROBLEM CHILD - ML
56. Transpotting - P
57. In Extremis: The Story of Abelard and Heloise - MH
58. Speed-The-Plow - TSC
59. Death And The Maiden – C
60. Educating Rita – S TOP #4
61. Hippies & Bolsheviks - FSS (Honorable mention)
62. Jimmy - C
63. Haunted Hillbilly - S (Honorable mention)
64. Cabaret - MN
65. My Christmas In New York – TSC

C = Centaur = 10
S = Segal = 7
ML = MainLine = 7
TSC = Theatre Saint-Catherine = 6
P = Players = 5
MY = Moyse Hall = 3
G = Geordie = 3
SJ = St-James = 2
MAI = 2
JFLS = 2
MM = McCord Museum = 1
FS = Freestanding Space = 1
TO = 2 Toronto production.
NE = Not eligible.

YOU CAN VOTE NOW: For your favorite local production from the above list of plays. Listed in an approximate order of their production date from earliest to latest. Write the assigned number and or title of the play from this list that you most preferred in 2009.

Be sure to indicate your name and e-mail address if you want to be eligible to win a prize for participating. With the submission of your vote you will have a chance to win a great prize* (Selected by a draw January 1st, announced January 2nd, after 12pm). *A one year subscription membership (30$ value) as an individual member to QDF. One submission per e-mail address.

TO VOTE: Submit your vote through this blog by leaving your nomination in the comments; or e-mail your vote to info@villagescene.com

CONFIDENTIALITY: All personal information received, including your vote, are all retained with the strictest level of confidentiallity.

VOTE DEADLINE: All submissions to vote for your favorite play must be received no later than Thursday, December 31st @ midnight.

My Christmas In New York, some egg, plenty of nog.

Every Christmas hundreds of Québecois flock to Manhattan to sell Christmas Trees. Adam Manduski, a fledgling poet, did exactly this with a complete stranger, Charlot Corbeil, in 2007. They immediately realized a methadone clinic nearby caused an endless stream of junkies and thieves to pass by there stand. What followed next can only be described as a Christmas anti-miracle, a junky jaunt, a methadone ballet, a Fraser fir fairy tale, from knife fights to precious jazz, they learned a lot about themselves, and craziest of all is the fact that it’s all true. Based on the experimental literary journal My Duane Reade Cloister by Alain Mercieca, this Christmas play is for all the real poets.

This production is truly a mixed bag from Santa. A potpourri of: English and French dialogue, some improve, some scripted- text, some poetry, some humour, some drama, some intellect, and a lot of heart felt great performances from the talented cast. It is less of a play however, and is more of an over-extended 'sketchy' improve on an SNL holiday season special. It features a parade of 'questionable' yet 'captivating' characters from all walks of life; some of whom will either warm the cockles of your tender little hearts (especially those that are two sizes too small) or freeze your x-mass balls off. The central character, that of gritty New York City, the city that literally never sleeps, is captured to the extent that the sights and sounds are palpable. The stage-space set up is changed, the set design is adequate, and the costuming and the props are all utilized to help create an atmosphere that transports the audience to the world of the volatile Big Apple.

The sound was at times a bit wacky, either too low or too loud, as was the microphone. Some music queues were also rough and sporadically dispersed. The premise of the story is solid, where the production falls short is in the transitions that are too rough and unpolished. What is needed is some 'fiction' interspersed with the 'non-fiction' to smooth out the storytelling 'poetic' segments and a little more scripted text and less improv to turn this into a full play. -That and a workshop with a dramaturge, and then hand it over to a qualified director to re-mount.

Featuring: TJ Harris, Sandi Armstrong, Simon Chavarie, Jacqueline Sawatsky, Joe McLean, Maité Sinave, Catherine Moreau, Vincent Dow, Dayv Luciak, and Alain Mercieca, Production Design: Marie-Josée Houle. Lights & Sound: Dayv Luciak.

My Christmas In New York is presented by le nouveau international. December 9th to 19th at 8pm. @ Nouveau Théâtre Sainte-Catherine Information 514-284-3939 or lenouveauinternational@gmail.com

WILKOMMEN TO THE CABARET @ Monument Nat'l.

The 2009-2010 season of public performances of the NTS graduating class is an excellent opportunity to catch future artists of the Canadian stage in action just before the beginning of their professional careers. Graduating actors, playwrights, directors, designers and production personnel work year round with professional guest directors to present a varied season that will hone the skills and talents of these new artists.

The 2010 English graduating class of the National Theatre School of Canada (NTS) presents the second production of its 2009-2010 season. Cabaret, directed by Jillian Keiley, Ludger-Duvernay Theatre of the Monument National, 1182 St. Laurent Boulevard, 8pm December 8 - 12, 2009.

One of the most beloved musicals of our time, the original 1966 Broadway production of Cabaret won eight Tony awards of the ten for which it was nominated. Seven years later, Bob Fosse's film adaptation repeated that feat with Oscars at the Academy Awards. Cabaret was revived on Broadway in 1987, then again in 1998, each time garnering more awards, more critical acclaim and greater audience devotion.

Based on John Van Druten's 1951 play I Am a Camera, which in turn was adapted from the novel Goodbye to Berlin by Christopher Isherwood, Cabaret depicts nightlife at the seedy Kit Kat Klub and revolves around the relationship between 19-year-old English cabaret performer Sally Bowles and Cliff Bradshaw, a young American writer new to Berlin. Their story unfolds against the backdrop of the social upheavals afoot in Germany at the time, the tragic consequences of which audiences are all too aware — unlike the characters they are watching.

About This Production: What A Difference A Decade Makes: Director Jillian Keiley sees Cabaret very differently.

That audience omniscience has always disturbed director Jillian Keiley. "I love this play," she said, "but I’ve always thought it engages the intellect more than the heart, and I think that’s because of the way it has been staged; in every production I’ve ever seen, the audience has that superior vantage point." Her solution to this was simple: set the action a decade later. It’s not 1931, it’s 1941. The Nazis aren’t beginning to gain a following; they’ve been in power for eight years, which makes everyone who worked at the Kit Kat Klub a fugitive from the law. When the Emcee sings the opening number, "Wilkommen," he sings it as an invitation to all the dissidents, deviants and demimondaines of his cabaret to come out of hiding and reunite in song and dance and safety in numbers. Once everyone has gathered in the bombed ruin that used to be their nightclub, the story they agree to perform, to entertain each other, is that of Sally and Cliff.

Keiley promises, despite this radical shift in perspective, to stay true to the text, not a word of which has been altered. As such, Sally Bowles, who never left Germany, is one of the fugitives at large, and plays herself. "The actors create everything," Keiley explains. "Instead of a series of scenes interspersed with cabaret numbers, what audiences witness is performers ‘improvising’ the story they tell each other, but in this production, they DO know how it all ends." That, Keiley believes, ups the poignancy of the story for the audience: "They’ll leave with more than just a sense of historical inevitability."

The production has a great multipurpose stage design that is very functional and well utilized to the hilt by all characters. Costumes and set are also very well designed and multipurpose. A very creative use of the space, which is in the 'big' stage at the Monument. Lighting at times was not clearly illuminating faces however, therefore loosing some expression. For some, but not all, of the play it was difficult to hear some of the dialogue which is surprising since the performers are wearing microphones; This was particularly evident with some of the songs especially those sung during act one.

Of course placing ten performers into the main roles and chorus of a play with an ensemble that is usually produced with double that quantity is always a challenge. Added to that challenge is having to fill those roles with only the students in the class. For the better part these balance out quite well, however some roles cast are a little less convincing unable to surmount this unavoidable challenge. Since we are so familiar with many of the cherished characters, either having seen the production numerous times on stage or on screen in the Oscar winning film, it is challenging to overcome the typical type casting images we hold in our memories. Also, these are actors, not necessarily the triple threats (act, sing, dance) that would normally be up to fill these parts. However most of the songs essential to the play are well performed despite this additional challenge. The music played by the on stage band of actors was very enjoyable and it was very interesting to see how the accompaniment to the piano by many of the performers was cleverly integrated into the action with humor and precision. What was most lacking was in the realm of choreography, with only a minimal amount attempted. I would have like to see more attention to this element.

Where I had the most difficulty with this production of Cabaret was with the attempt to change the period in which the story takes place. In act one this was somewhat more transparent but as act two commenced it became clear that a time change didn't work. You can't change history, even when adapting a text, changing the time period of a story and not changing the text to match is difficult enough, but one can not do that and not directly effect the historical facts too. The Nazi's were in power in Germany, and the war was already in progress, with many countries already occupied by 1941. Much of the dialogue and references that apply to 1931 just do not work when applied ten years later.

CAST: Nathan Barrett, Simon Bracken, Brandon Crone, Leah Doz, Will Greenblatt, Chala Hunter, Ron Klappholz, Meilie Ng, Thomas Antony Olajide, Gia Sandhu.

DESIGN/PRODUCTION TEAM: Nancy Perrin (Set Design), Veronique Boileau (Costume Design), Kate Sandeson (Lighting Design); William Fallon (Sound Design); Kira Maros (Production Manager), Nicole Olson Grant-Suttie (Technical Director), Kai Yueh-Chen (Stage Manager). Photo: Leah Doz; credit Maxime Côté.

Tickets: $9. available at the Monument-National Box Office (1182, St. Laurent Blvd.). Call (514) 871-2224. (A $3.25 handling fee applies to tickets reserved by phone.)

HAUNTED HILLBILLY @ Segal Center Studio to Dec. 20th.

Sidemart Theatrical Grocery presents the much anticipated musical adaptation of Derek McCormack's novel The Haunted Hillbilly, an episodic and eerie carnivalesque thrill-ride. Play by Graham Cuthbertson, Songs & Music by Matthew Barber, Directed by Andrew Shaver. The supurb cast of 8 actors: Daniel Brochu (Erskine Mole) Patrick Costello (Hyram Woodside) Gemma James-Smith (Audrey Woodside) Greg Karmer (Nudie) Trent Pardy (Pastor Ray) Alexis Taylor (Bobbi) Jackie Torrens (Lil Molly) Kyle Gatehouse (Dr. Wertham); The very enjoyable stage band: Matthew Barber, Joe Grass, Julian Brown. Great light & colorfully creative set design by Sarah Yaffe; Playfully fun costume design by Susana Vera; Sound by Jesse Ash.

The play is a cowboy carnival caper, complete with country music and plenty of Gothic sleaze. Hyram Woodside in his quest to become the greatest star in country music has his life turned into an out of control carnival ride by Nudie a bloodsucking couturier who sees only one thing in Hyram: everlasting fame and fortune. When Hyram finds the successful life on the road too lonely he strays from Nudie's grasp in a desperate attempt to secure his own happiness. The consequences are Nudie's jealousy compels him into an un-holy war against Hyram and all the unfortunate souls that are close to him. The story evolves with magical poetic cadence as Nudie then breaks the career of the country legend Hyram (aka Hank Williams). Like many of the other characters in the play they're based on real people. Nudie 'The Carnival Couturier' characters name is a twist on 'Nudie, the Rodeo Tailor', a real-life figure perhaps best known for dressing Elvis Presley. In this spellbinding world, the gay fashionista also happens to be a vampire. GO C IT!

The Haunted Hillbilly was named a book of the year (2003) by both the Globe & Mail and the Village Voice, and was nominated for a Lambda Award for Best Gay Fiction.

Performances: Dec. 7 - 10, 12 - 17, 19, 8pm. Matinés: Dec. 13 PWYC, 20, 2pm. Tickets $20.