Wednesday evening I battled the rain and sleet for a chance to see Yellow Face at Hart House Theatre followed by a Q&A with Tony-award winning writer, David Henry Hwang. I was not disappointed. The show is phenomenal. Both funny and touching, the play deals with serious racial issues by weaving together fact and fiction in a beautiful and engaging story. The set is simple and intriguing all at once, kudos to Akiva Romer-Segal the set designer. I loved the use of the full stage with such a differently proportioned set. The lighting by Paphavee Limkul was equally enjoyable. The lights played off the set wonderful, and took full advantage of the back cyc, adding visual depth to a very emotionally deep play.

Esther Jun, the director, did a wonderful job bringing the play to life. The actors were well chosen and played a variety of roles each, sometimes in unexpected ways. Their emotions felt real and kept you engaged, which is a testament to both good actors and good direction. The actors were all fantastic, but I want to call attention to Ben Wong who played DHH. Playing David Henry Hwang in front of David Henry Hwang must have been nerve-wracking, but he appeared to be at ease in the roll, which made it all the more enjoyable for the audience. Mr. Hwang himself commented afterwards that he did a wonderful job portraying him as both needy and self absorbed. Mr. Hwang made quite a few jokes like this throughout the question period. He was an engaging speaker, and it was interesting to hear about his journey of writing a play about himself, a mockumentary of sorts. He said he was inspired in part by Spinal Tap and too much Curb Your Enthusiasm, and the result was one of the most enjoyable plays I’ve seen in years.

With only two shows left, I suggest you drop everything and head over to Hart House to catch the show before it closes. Definitely a show not to be missed! Tickets can be bought at the box office or online at UofTTix.

Last Tuesday I had the opportunity to see Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific at the Toronto Centre for the Arts. I am not really sure what to think of it.

Before I begin, let me just say that I had never bothered to drag my butt as far north as the Toronto Centre for the Arts before, and I regret it. It’s a beautiful theatre and a gorgeous building. Should you have the opportunity to go, it is well worth suffering the 45 minute commute up to North York Centre station.

From a technical perspective, it has a huge fly space: giant wings to store the set and a fairly deep stage. The seating is equally beautiful with two balconies, comfortable chairs and great acoustics.  But I guess most people would head up north to see the play and not the space.

The question is: is this the show worth watching? The story is simple enough: it follows two couples in love in the South Pacific during the war and the troubles they face, which is mostly racism.  The two main characters fall in love at the start of the play and the rest of the story unfolds slowly. It reminds me of every 1950 war movie that I endured with my parents and grandparents as a child: entertaining but not riveting, at least not to me.

(more…)

The University of Toronto Astronomy & Space Exploration Society presents a double feature movie night this Friday November 28th.

Come check out “The Rocketeers” a movie about the space planes before the time of NASA and “The Last Empty Sky” about the development of the rocket from the 20s to the late 50s.

DATE: Friday, November 28, 2008, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

LOCATION: University of Toronto St George
Campus, Bahen Centre ,Room 1130 (BA1130)
40 St. George Street, Toronto
Campus Map here

FREE ADMISSION (students & public)

DETAILS: More info about The Rocketeers can be found here, while info about The Last Empty Sky can be found here.

To get an idea of numbers, the space society requests that you RSVP to them at this email address: space.society@utoronto.ca with subject “movie1RSVP”

Reaching for those stars? Why not learn how to see them clearly.

This Thursday come out for the 6th Annual Faces of Space (FoS) Lecture Series entitled: Stargazing 101 Workshop

Regardless of whether you are novice or more advanced, come to the workshop to learn the secrets in getting the most out of your equipment! You are welcome to bring your instruments to the workshop and use it thereafter at the observing event! (Weather permitting)

**FREE ADMISSION (students & public)
**FREE REFRESHMENTS

When: Thursday, November 6, 2008@ 7:00 PM
(Observing/Stargazing @ 9:00 PM)

Where: University of Toronto St George Campus
MecLennan Physical Laboratory, Room 102 (MP102)
60 St. George Street, Toronto
CampusMap here

Speaker: Ray Khan, General Manager of Khan Scope Centre (www.khanscope.com) will be presenting the basics of Telescopes and Binoculars.

Schedule:
7:00-8:00 PM: Stargazing101 workshop presented by Ray Khan
8:10-9:00 PM: U of T Astronomy Department Public Lecture
9:00 PM: Observing Session

Please RSVP to space.society@utoronto.ca with subject “FoS1-RSVP”.

I had the chance to see Trinity College Dramatic Society’s staging of Neil Simon’s “Rumors” last night at the George Ignatieff Theatre, and I really enjoyed myself. As a member of the theatre community for the past decade, I often shed a critical eye on all aspects of the production, from set design to lighting cues. Producing, directing and managing shows force you to look at shows in particular ways, and those habits are not easily dropped. However, with all these things working against me (and knowing I had to review the show here) I found myself taken in with the story and characters and eagerly awaiting the denouement of the plot.

I always finds it helps to have a blurb about the plot before going into the show, especially with up to 8 actors on stage, and was disappointed there wasn’t one in the program. It’s a story about a posh party being held by Charlie Brock and his wife Myra to celebrate their 10th anniversary, however these characters are never seen. When the first couple arrives they hear a gunshot and find Charlie with a flesh wound and Myra missing. What ensues next, as each couple arrives, is a swirling mess of rumors surrounding the truth about what has happened to Charlie and Myra and why.

For most patrons, what you want to know is – will I understand it? will it be an enjoyable evening? was it worth my money?

For the answer to these and more questions, read on.
(more…)

Greetings Star Gazers!

The first UofT Astronomy Public Tour is this Thursday Feb 7 at 8pm.

PhD student Kaitlin Kratter will be presenting the talk: “Siblings in Astronomy: The role of stellar binaries.” Graduate student Juan Diego Soler will then lead us upstairs and conduct the public viewing through telescope – the preliminary weather forecast is for clear conditions. If the weather is clear many interesting objects can be viewed: Mars, Saturn, the Orion Nebula, and likely Comet Holmes should all be visible through the telescope. You will also be taught to read and use astronomical sky charts for your personal viewing of your local sky.

When: Thursday Feb. 7th at 8:10 p.m
Where: MP 134 in McLennan Physics Building (60 St. George St.)
Details: Free for all.

Just a reminder, TODAY is yet another Hart House $5 lunch. This is a great way to get a yummy meal with a drink AND a dessert for cheap.

When: Wednesday, Feb 6, 2008, 11:45 AM – 2:00 PM
Where: Hart House Great Hall (main entrance, turn right, go all the way down the hall.)
Details: $5 for a delicious lunch including a drink and a dessert. Keep track of future dates for Hart House $5 lunches here.