For those of you lucky enough to be in Vancouver in the next few weeks, there are a myriad of events happening as part of the Cultural Olympiad. This is my personal recommendation list.
I'm most excited to see Dance Marathon on the list. My thoughts on it are here.
I saw Fear of Flight last year when Factory Theatre brought in Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland. It takes place on a plane and its mix of sound, movement and text is stunning.
I've heard amazing things about Nevermore. This is from Catalyst Theatre in Edmonton. I saw their Blue Orphan the last time I was in Adelaide and was stunned by their visual style. Nevermore is coming to Toronto after this and I'm looking forward to seeing it.
BASH'd: A Gay Rap Opera has played Toronto a few times. I saw it at Theatre Passe Muraille and it's a wonderful mix of storytelling and music, with a dash of surrealism thrown in. I don't know one person who has seen it who didn't rave about it.
China is by the wonderful Australian photographer/performance artist William Yang. I've seen his previous work, Shadows, at the Six Stages festival and loved how he integrated the photos and storytelling. This piece is about his four trips to China.
Robert Lepage is bringing Blue Dragon. I haven't seen this one but any Lepage is worth seeing.
K’NAAN & Tinariwen. I love K'NAAN and this sounds like it's going to be a fantastic show.
Where the Blood Mixes. I didn't see this one but it won a boatload of Doras, so I feel safe in recommending it.
Another one I didn't see but heard amazing things about: Dis/(sol/ve)r by Toronto Dance Theatre.
This isn't a recommendation but something I'm really curious about, Michael Sakamoto: Sacred Cow. If anyone sees it, can they tell me about it?
And while not officially part of the Cultural Olympiad, my good friend Tyler Yarema is going to be in residence at Ontario House at the Concord Pacific pavillion throughout the Olympics. He's playing from 6-8pm every night. Check him out and tell him I sent you!
I'm most excited to see Dance Marathon on the list. My thoughts on it are here.
I saw Fear of Flight last year when Factory Theatre brought in Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland. It takes place on a plane and its mix of sound, movement and text is stunning.
I've heard amazing things about Nevermore. This is from Catalyst Theatre in Edmonton. I saw their Blue Orphan the last time I was in Adelaide and was stunned by their visual style. Nevermore is coming to Toronto after this and I'm looking forward to seeing it.
BASH'd: A Gay Rap Opera has played Toronto a few times. I saw it at Theatre Passe Muraille and it's a wonderful mix of storytelling and music, with a dash of surrealism thrown in. I don't know one person who has seen it who didn't rave about it.
China is by the wonderful Australian photographer/performance artist William Yang. I've seen his previous work, Shadows, at the Six Stages festival and loved how he integrated the photos and storytelling. This piece is about his four trips to China.
Robert Lepage is bringing Blue Dragon. I haven't seen this one but any Lepage is worth seeing.
K’NAAN & Tinariwen. I love K'NAAN and this sounds like it's going to be a fantastic show.
Where the Blood Mixes. I didn't see this one but it won a boatload of Doras, so I feel safe in recommending it.
Another one I didn't see but heard amazing things about: Dis/(sol/ve)r by Toronto Dance Theatre.
This isn't a recommendation but something I'm really curious about, Michael Sakamoto: Sacred Cow. If anyone sees it, can they tell me about it?
And while not officially part of the Cultural Olympiad, my good friend Tyler Yarema is going to be in residence at Ontario House at the Concord Pacific pavillion throughout the Olympics. He's playing from 6-8pm every night. Check him out and tell him I sent you!
Comments
And I'm glad I'll get to see the Michael Sakamoto show - thanks for the info!