The Theatre Review ~ Aida

Seen: - 28th April 2012

Rating: - 5/5

Aida was truly inspiring. My heart broke. It was amazing. The best performance I have seen with Vancouver Opera. The entire cast was phenomenal (especially Aida’s father)!! The settings outdid themselves. The costumes. The atmosphere. What a way to end the season. 

Wow! I don’t really know what else to say but WOW! Thank you Vancouver Opera, Thank You!

The Theatre Review ~ American Idiot

Seen: - 20th April 2012

Rating: - 5+/5

I came across this production by accident. I was on a bus tour around LA and I saw posters for it and managed to get tickets to the closing night. It was phenomenal! 

Van Hughes stole my heart. He was a ball of fire, adroitly capturing the young man’s zest for life and his dangerous appetite for excess. Every time he appeared onstage he was spellbinding. As St. Jimmy, a charismatic drug dealer, Joshua Kobak offers an intriguing mix of charm and sleaze - you could not help but feel Billie Joe’s vibe coming off him. Tunny (played by a Canadian, Scott J. Campbell), who impulsively joins the army and suffers serious injuries in Iraq, projects a sweet vulnerability when his voice is on pitch he is completely amazing! 

The setting, the music it was just everything I dreamed it would be. 

The Theatre Review ~ Iris

Seen: - 14th April 2012

Rating: - 5+/5

A dream comes true. I stepped foot inside the Kodak Theatre! Not only that I got to see Cirque de Soleil! After seeing a scene from the production on the Oscars in February I was desperate to see it and so booked tickets as soon as I arrived in LA. It was a gorgeous production. Visually spectacular. My favourite scene was a film noir set, an atmospheric view of a city at night, with action of every sort taking place behind the windows. Gangsters fought and shot at each other, while springing from roof to roof via soaring, trampoline leaps and then they climb poles to heights far too high above the stage without nets and drop back down as they are shut! 

The music, players are positioned in boxed seats on either side of the stage — are fantastic adding intense emotional seasoning to every scene especially with the Noir scene. 

The love story between Buster and Scarlett was adorable. Buster being gorgeous. But Scarlett’s solo scene on her balancing stuff was rather a low point in the show! 

Sorry! All in all WOW!!! 

The Theatre Review ~ Billy Elliott

Seen: - 13th April 2012

Rating: - 5/5

I was so excited to get to LA and see so many shows I wanted to see. One being Billy Elliot which I did not hesitate to get tickets too. I knew the show well so I could not wait to see it. Ty Forhan was a Canadian playing Billy Elliot which was really cool! He simply astounded me. His dancing, singing and accent was wonderful! The other accents were off-puttingly bad (especially Tony). Grandma was a bit awkward at her acting but her solo piece was beautiful. The dances were striking in their mixture of dance styles and storytelling. Little female ballet students weave in and out of surprising formations with miners and policeman. 

It is wonderfully well executed, totally modern, yet steeped in musical theatre tradition. You leave with the wonderful feeling of happy fulfillment, tears of joy streaming down your face! A True Musical!