“Amelie” at the Firehall Arts Centre is a full blown musical squeezed into 90 minutes. Fans of the movie get everything that they came for. It is romantic, it is heart warming, it is visually textured, layered and cosy. The cast is experienced and very talented. They transport us to the elegant streets of Paris and breathe life into characters we’d only witnessed on screen. Because the plot is familiar, watching it unfold is a comforting treat. For some this might be a bit of a letdown as it could be seen as a missed opportunity to take the original and perfect it or even better, make it weirder! I suppose I fell into the latter camp. I loved watching the wonderful actors and actresses tell me a story I had witnessed multiple times, and recreate one of my favourite cities in the world down to the most delicious details. But I don’t feel that I got anything more from the live version than I did from the film.
The set is gorgeous. Chairs, tables, chests, backdrops of clouds in a blue sky. I particularly liked the use of a big rectangular golden frame to depict exits and entrances into rooms, into lives, and into hearts. The show takes the time to build Amelie’s history and we understand her struggles with intimacy. The supporting cast works together to give Amelie’s story many dimensions. The choreography is nuanced, the costumes are thoughtful and the singing is spectacular. I wasn’t a big fan of the songs as they weren’t catchy enough for my simple tastes. Perhaps it is because of my preconceived notions about Fringe shows being edgy that I felt Amelie fell short. When I think back to the musicals that I’ve enjoyed in the past, they all gave me something, a lot of it actually, bonus stuff if you will, that I had not seen before.
If you’re a hardcore Amelie fan and wouldn’t change a thing, you will love this production. There were a lot of those fans in the audience as the show recieved a standing ovation. But if you’re a seasoned Fringer there’s a good chance you might be left wanting more.
In Operatic Panic Attack Victoria’s very own, TJ Dawe, creates a monologue so strong that it carries the audience’s attention for 75 minutes without a break. TJ is a prominent figure in Canadian theatre and when he is not on the stage he is producing, directing, and helping others do the same. TJ’s monologue style is earnest and his personality- part theatre geek, part just a really really nice guy, is endearing. His writing is also very rich in rhythm and falls more into the conversational style rather than abstract poetic.
It’s very interesting to witness TJ build a story so vividly on the pure strength of narative techniques and impassioned delivery. He jumps back and forth across his timeline. He starts with being mid-make-out in his crush, Pam’s bedroom, and bounces around to different points during his theatre degree at the University of Victoria, working as a super in Victoria’s opera productions and even goes further back when he was an altar boy at his Catholic church. TJ then reveals that he suffers from severe panic attacks and that they occur when he is presented with sexual opportunities. TJ’s monologue is funny most of the time but he is still able to get serious about his mental health issues, something he hasn’t been able to resolve till today. TJ gets emotional on stage and really bares his vulnerable beating heart for us all to see. I went in expecting to laugh at an observational stand up comedy session but came out feeling very touched and connected to TJ and his experiences with crippling anxiety.
This is an extremely well written show, a bit on the heavier side. I also feel it could have done with 10 or 15 minutes less material to keep the audience’s attention more easily. The show demonstrates TJ’s talent as a performer as he can enrapture a roomful of people with the power of his bewitching conversational storytelling.
R’n’J: The Untold Story of Shakespeare’s Roz and Jules pays homage to a classic 16th century tale of love with a contemporary 21st century spinoff. All the way from London, UK, this production is ambitious and spirited. Juliet finds out through Romeo’s cellphone that he is cheating on her with Rosaline and confronts her. The story takes an unexpected turn when Juliet realises she is pregnant and a friendship blossoms between her and Rosaline.
The set is quite simple but what is unique about this production is the clever use of video to supplement what is going on on stage. These videos are very high quality and I found myself wanting to watch more.
The fresh new take was what pulled me into the theatre for this show but my intrigue unfortunately wasn’t sustained after the first quarter. The show lacks energy and the writing isn’t as engaging as it could have been. The motivations of the characters are not convincing enough and left me confused for most of the show. I couldn’t distinguish between characters since the actors took on quite a few characters each. The production couldn’t decide whether it wanted to be married to the traditional script and language or whether it wanted to completely come over to the contemporary side. I have seen many contemporary Shakespeare productions. It’s a tough line to walk especially if you fail, as comparisons to the heavyweight original are inevitable. However, since this show picks up where Shakespeare left off, it had the full freedom to go wherever it wanted and it’s disappointing to see that it didn’t stray far from the original plot. The production could have even made the story more believable by adding more interactions between the characters. Instead it focused more on mimicking Shakespearean prose which sometimes fell flat.
I wish the production had committed to being contemporary. I wish they had picked a side and then incorporated the other side into it sparingly. Instead the production ended up being neither here nor there convincingly.
The play also wasn’t able to hold my attention especially with the monotonous delivery of the cast. There were no variations. The videos I absolutely loved and the basic premise as well.
There is a lot to be fixed in this iteration of the play but I am positive we will get another iteration from this amazing group of enthusiastic and very talented performers that will do this exciting premise justice soon.
Book your fringe shows over here!
– Prachi Kamble