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Dave Morris’ Sentimental 52 Stories Returns For a One Night Engagement

In what makes this live-theatre monologue style show special is that Dave Morris has 52 Stories to tell, and he manages to breeze through them all in a tight act!

Playing Oct 5, 2024
Georges P. Vanier Secondary
4830 Headquarters Road
Courtenay, BC

Tickets available through Eventbrite

Who needs the Bard of Avon when Dave Morris is around? After a successful run at the Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival, he’s confirmed his latest work, 52 Stories, will not be shelved, but rather be transformed into an autobiography, and he’ll bring this show back upon request and quite possibly when his book is ready to hit shelves!

Although most of his improv and Paper Street Theatre productions are offered to residents of Victoria, BC, first, there’s a handful of acts that do tour, depending on when he’s been asked to guest lecture elsewhere or hired to. His stage presence can only be described as down to earth, and the tone he uses to engage audiences with his tales is melodic. Whether he uses that in his magic act, or during an improv moment, it all depends on engaging the audience in amusing ways. And when he’s a hard core nerd, that helps a lot too!

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[Victoria, BC] All I want are Zombies for Christmas!

MET_2014_TEMPLATE_POSTER Location:
Intrepid Studio Theatre
1609 Blanshard St
Victoria, BC

Dates:
Dec 6th – Sat Dec 9th,
Dec 14th – Sat Dec 16th, 2017
Starts 8pm | $15 at the door

Tickets also available through Eventbrite

In Victoria, British Columbia the Paper Street Theatre Company‘s holiday performances often sell out. This year, they are making sure the zombie epidemic is sure to spread in their improvised show which highlights this garden city in all its haunted glory. Instead of the traditional ghosts to mark the season, they are drawing upon many decades of zombie material to form into a live show, complete with confetti blood!

Technically, the ideas come from the audiences, and they work it into their presentation. Folks in the know will be in stitches about how the Inner Harbour is linked by tunnels. In their first show, the survivors are holed up in a museum, and they are having a frightful night in it — and trying to escape the eventual invasion. This narrative will change at each show and to watch the team recreate the nuances of terror certainly proves to witness the action live all the more engrossing. To see it on celluloid can offer safety, but to have it up close — especially with the set created for this performance, the sound scape heightening the mood, the creative lighting design which feels straight out of X-Files (if not straight out of John Carpenter film). All of them combined adds to the terror. High marks go to the team of Theodore Sherman, Emma Dickerson and Don Godlovitch.

zmas group shot — Photo credit: Derek Ford Studios

Because improvised theatre tends to add humour to the situation, audiences are able to laugh along to the absurd elements randomly put in. The team — Christina Patterson, Nicole Olszewski, Brooke Cameron, Dominik Buconjic, Byron Kjeldsen, Chris Gabel, Monica Joan Ogden, Andrew Brimmell, Dave Morris, Scott Thompson and Missie Peters — certainly know their craft and are able to provide a meaningful narrative on the fly. Character driven tales are much more poignant than offering moments for viewers to laugh along. Just who will be on stage or who are the main characters or supporting will vary each day.

While the first show was not heavy on the Christmas theme, at least the day the zombies took over happened to be at Yuletide. Perhaps next time, I’ll have to shout out Santa’s Workshop to provide a more direct setting and wait for the chaos to begin. Although this company does not bring back past shows (I’m still waiting for the team to agree to bring back H.P. Lovecraft), at least I know I’ll be guaranteed to not see the same story twice. A tip must be mentioned though: the more absurd the idea is being pitched, the better the chance it will get considered to be part of the act.

This company has engaged locals since 2011 and have appeared at some events off the island. To keep up with their latest happenings, please visit their Facebook page.

Coming to Victoria, BC! Improvised Murder Mysteries for Halloween & Zombie Xmas

paperstreet Location:
Intrepid Studio Theatre
1609 Blanshard St
Victoria, British Columbia

Showtimes:
Agatha Christie
Oct 25th – 28th 8pm| $15 (Eventbrite)
Z-Mas | Dec 6th – Dec 9th & Dec 14th – Dec 16th 2017 8pm | $15

Halloween is fast approaching and Victoria, British Columbia based Paper Street Theatre Company is hosting two scary themed events. In the month of October is an A Murder on Paper Street, an Improvised Agatha Christie — with plenty of mayhem to explore — and on December, it will be Zombies! For some folks, both seasons are the best time to tell spooky stories by the ebb of a misty night.

Nobody has to lose their candy or spill their cups of eggnog here, while cackling gleefully at what this team of performers — Dave Morris, Byron Kjeldsen, Missie Peters, Scott Thompson, Chris Gabel, Nicole Malcolm, Christina Patterson, Dominik Buconjic and Brooke Cameron — will offer on stage.

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Ed’s 10 Nerdy Picks of the 2016 Victoria Fringe Festival (and these Artists Tour Worldwide!)

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

A few fond favourites are back at this year’s Victoria Fringe Festival, and in my picks, I hope to do more than a few “Dick Tricks” to get to each venue spread around the city to get my theatre nerd on. This year is special as this event is celebrating its 30th anniversary! I’m betting there will be cake, and a whole lot more surprises! In order to feast upon the entire list, I do recommend that for locals, to check out the opening ceremonies which takes place at Centennial Square. An entire preview will take place then and if that is not enough to salivate the taste buds, perhaps drinks will be offered too (at cost). This preview night will take place August 24th.

In the following, I offer my selection in what caught my eye and hope you can join me. If not at this particular festival, then perhaps at another Fringe that’s closer to where each person lives. This unique style of theatre can be found nearly worldwide. From Vancouver to Edinburgh (where it first started), this small-scale production offers a better, if not intimate, experience.

Passes can be bought at the Intrepid Theatre’s office on 1609 Blanshard or online through Ticket Rocket:

ON THE FRINGE (DOCUMENTARY FILM)
BROKEN TURTLE PRODUCTIONS

DATES:
Sep 3, 2016

LOCATION: Victoria Event Centre (Fringe Venue 1)

Still don’t know what Fringe Festivals are about? Well, this documentary should tell all! This video documentary began as a chronicle of artists doing the Canadian Fringe Festival circuit and it evolved from there. It goes on a road trip and shows what life is like on the other side of the stage! Best of all, this screening is by donation! All you have to do is present your badge.

6 QUICK DICK TRICKS:
A DIRK DARROW INVESTIGATION
RACING SLOTH PRODUCTIONS

DATES:
Fri Aug 26 – 5:00pm
Sat Aug 27 – 8:00pm
Sun Aug 28 – 10:00pm
Wed Aug 31 – 8:00pm
Fri Sep 2 – 9:45pm
Sat Sep 3 – 2:00pm

LOCATION: The Roxy Theatre (Fringe Venue 7)

I’ve chatted with Tim Motley in the past about his previous shows, and I’m glad to see that he’s coming back to show a few new magic tricks along with a noir narrative to appease the Sherlock Holmes in me to solve. Not every show is going to be exactly the same, as audiences can sometimes trip him up. The laughs are great, and I’ll be in line to see what he has up his sleeve for this year.

AN IMPROVISED
QUENTIN TARANTINO 2 –
THE PLAYFUL 8

DATES:
Thu Aug 25 – 6:45pm
Fri Aug 26 – 10:15pm
Sat Aug 27 – 2:30pm
Wed Aug 31 – 10:15pm
Thu Sept 1 – 8:15pm
Sat Sept 3 – 8:45pm

LOCATION: Victoria Event Centre (Fringe Venue 1)

The first time I saw Paper Street Theatre‘s show, I laughed myself silly. With a title implying that this sequel of sorts is inspired by the latest Tarantino movie, I have to wonder what can go wrong. I suspect a basic plot will keep the night merrily moving along, but as for what happens, feedback from audiences will dictate the performance. Dave Morris leads his ensemble cast and I wonder if how fast the eight will get whittled down to one?