The city of Victoria, BC has many theatrical events to cover the gamut of what has gone missing. This year, no live production is taking place at The Castle. Whatever the reason is for the change up in them thar hill, perhaps some things are best not said. The board of directors have something else planned (please read part two of this guide in a two days time). However, the joy of visiting this haunted abode during this season will not be the same.
Mary Shelley‘s Frankenstein is truly getting top billing this year with many similarly themed shows. To know that the Rocky Horror Show will keep on rocking Intrepid Theatre goes without saying. Atomic Vaudeville always puts on a stellar show and Griffin Lea exudes one key aspect of why audiences are in love with this tale, in either the theatrical or cinematic form. As for other events, this alphabetical list shows Halloween style performance theatre is very much alive:
Throughout the years, Paper Street Theatre have always shown that they have a lot of fun on stage.
Location: Victoria Event Center 1415 Broad St.
Upcoming Dates:
Aug 28 8:30 pm
Aug 30 7:15 pm
Aug 31 7:15 pm
Sep 02 3:45 pm
Throughout the years, Paper Street Theatre have always shown that they have a lot of fun on stage. Whether that is during the Victoria Fringe Festival, at Gottacon (now defunct) or at Intrepid Theatre‘s own studio, I discovered them through An Improvised Quentin Tarantino back in 2013. They made a sequel in 2016. The latter could have been sooner if not for the nature for how Fringe Festival shows are selected, by lottery. Afterwards, I saw their Improv Dungeons and Dragons show twice. When looking at their upcoming season, I’m excited to see how they will be playing with the Zombie genre come Christmas and pay tribute to Ray Bradbury. Not to be forgotten, Agatha Christie is also going to be improvised.
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
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
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?
The love for Harry Potter has never waned for many a fan, and people of all ages lined up Saturday night for the midnight release of J.K. Rowling’s look at the adult life of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. No spoilers are going to be offered about this book, as it’s fresh in this author’s hands who decided not to look at any info online leading up to this release. While I would love to see the play, not everyone can afford to travel to London just for a show. As much as I’d like to, well, if only magic was real so I could apparate there!
Bolen Books at Hillside Centre in Victoria held its own celebration, and they had the Paper Street Theatre Company, an improv theatre group and the University of Victoria Valkyries Quidditch Club, playing a short game, to entertain 400 folks here for this book. A local stage magician appeared to entertain the masses with his tricks and may have been the same person who demonstrated his talent previously at Cherry Bomb Toys. Unfortunately he disappeared before I could get his name! The enthusiasm was everywhere and the excitement shows we still love the boy who became … well, an adult. Now a new generation is going to the school and I suspect the tale will be about him growing up under the shadow of a very famous father. At the same time, the energy is there for another item of note. All three Pokemon GO teams were vying for control of the virtual gym that existed at the bookstore. The battle was intense, and even I tried to participate. The battle for wireless is just as competitive as my cell could not decide between Telus and ShawOpen.
The city of Victoria, BC has many theatrical events to cover the gamut of what has gone missing. This year, no live production is taking place at The Castle. Whatever the reason is for the change up in them thar hill, perhaps some things are best not said. The board of directors have something else planned (please read part two of this guide in a two days time). However, the joy of visiting this haunted abode during this season will not be the same.
Location:
By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)
By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)