Hey folks, before we get into the many, many things happening in Edmonton’s theatre scene this week, I want to take a moment to talk about the 35 Postmedia layoffs in Edmonton this past week, which were part of 90 Postmedia layoffs across the country. Mack Male has a very accessible summary of how the layoffs affect Edmonton on his blog, Mastermaq. The Journal and the Sun lost a lot of good writers and editors in the cuts, but I’m very glad theatre writers Liz Nicolls and Colin MacLean will still be writing for Edmonton audiences. While the fact that we’ve retained two of our premier theatre writers in town is a bright spot, I think it’s a fair assessment of the announcement overall, to call it a sad day in journalism not just in Edmonton, but in the country. Together, bloggers and journalists work together to build a picture of what’s happening in our communities and it’s unfortunate we’ll be losing some of those voices as Postmedia continues to work on adapting its revenue model.
- Opening this week:
- The Chinook Series kicks off this week, runing January 27 – February 7! There are so many movement and theatre shows in addition to salons and masterclasses that you really just have to go to Chinook’s website for all of the details. For the Canoe Theatre Festival portion of the shows, check out my preview interviews with the artists from:
- Love in the Margins
- Miss Katelyn’s Grade Threes Prepare for the Inevitable
- Crash
- Ursa Major (which is not technically part of Canoe, but is presented by Workshop West at the same time)
- Mouthpiece
- Plus, an interview about Canoe Theatre Festival overall with Workshop West Artistic Director and Director of the Canoe Theatre Festival, Vern Thiessen
- If you can believe it, we have not one but two festivals running over the next couple weeks – Alberta Aboriginal Arts will also be presenting the Rubaboo Arts Festival January 27 – February 6.
- Check out Alberta Aboriginal Arts’ website for full details, but I’m going to throw a particular shout out to the show Huff by Cliff Cardinal. I haven’t seen it yet, but my friend who’s just as into theatre as I am saw it a few days in Calgary and has called it a ‘must-see’ and the reviews I’ve read agree with her.
- ‘Black by Krystle Dos Santos runs at the Citadel Theatre January 28 – 30 in The Club.
- Edmonton Opera’s Carmen appears for three nights only at the Jube – January 30, February 2 and 4.
- The Chinook Series kicks off this week, runing January 27 – February 7! There are so many movement and theatre shows in addition to salons and masterclasses that you really just have to go to Chinook’s website for all of the details. For the Canoe Theatre Festival portion of the shows, check out my preview interviews with the artists from:
- By now you’ve probably heard that the Citadel Theatre’s Artistic Director Bob Baker is stepping down after 17 years at the helm, but if not, here is the Citadel’s news release.
- I must have missed the news that Jill Roszell is no longer with Fringe Theatre Adventures.
- What It Is Podcast released another great episode, this one interviewing all the parties involved in The Chinook Series, as well as the folks from Ursa Major.
- It’s not too late to support Ursa Major‘s Indiegogo campaign!
- In more Ursa Major news, check out Savanna Harvey’s interview with Beth and Megan Dart on her YouTube channel, The Pretentious English Major.
- The Alberta Playwrights’ Network’s 2016 Playwrighting Competition is open! Submissions will be accepted until March 31, 2016.
- If you haven’t gotten your nominations for the Mayor’s Celebration of the Arts in yet, you have less than 24 hours to do so! Nominations close today, January 25 and the process is super simple!
- This news is a few weeks old, but January 13 was the one year anniversary of the fire at the Roxy. People tweeted their #RoxyMemories and you can still go check them out if you haven’t already.
- Broadway Across Canada released their 2016/2017 season, which includes The Book of Mormon, Kinky Boots, and Newsies, among other shows.