Category Archives: Reviews

08.26.16
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[Victoria Fringe Festival 2016] SMUS Shake It Up with Disney’s Camp Rock!

CAMP-ROCK_4CLOCATION:
St. Michaels
University School
3400 Richmond Road
Saanich, BC

SHOWTIMES:
Fri Aug. 26 – 7pm
Sat Aug. 27 – 2pm
Sat Aug. 27 – 7pm

Sometimes it is tough to decide on what to take on as the first Victoria Fringe Festival presentation for the 2016 season. This year, the decision was a no-brainer and I had to see the results of what St. Michaels University School (SMUS) Summer Musical Theatre program produced. The folks involved always deliver a quality educational curriculum to teach the next rising stars the basics while having fun at the same time. On opening night, they put on the musical version of Disney’s Camp Rock.

This show highlights the musical stylings of bands like The Jonas Brothers and the modern sounds of the past decade. Like ’em or not (every generation has their favourite musicians), those who grew up with them had a rollicking time with this production. Opening night was not without a few chuckle-worthy moments, gaffes included; the group was able to roll with it and continue on. They also helped each other out on stage when lines were forgotten and I believe that’s the heart of what this program extols than to provide a higher calibre show other local professional theatre schools like Canadian College of Performing Arts works on. I’ve seen their production of Little Shop of Horrors years ago, and that was a memorable show to which I grinned like a Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland when rubber bands were shot towards audiences!

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08.24.16
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Rating Cowichan Bay Seafood’s Fish n’ Chips at The Market

cowichan bayCowichan Bay Seafood
Victoria Public Market
#12 – 1701 Douglas St.
Victoria, BC
(778) 433-4385

E: Like the tides that swish through a bay, I’m always finding myself returning to the Cowichan Bay Seafood outlet in the Victoria Public Market. After some time in operation, they have put together a fine smörgåsbord of products for folks to buy to take home to cook or dine in. Although a touch pricey, when compared to oysters bars offering a happy hour of a buck a shuck, there’s more variety here when they are offered at $1.50 per! I had some wonderful raw and fruity oysters from Paradise Oysters (located on Baynes Sound). The name is apt because, with the celery vinaigrette, they were the perfect appetizer to begin with until my Lingcod Fish n’ Chips arrived.

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08.17.16
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It’s Blazing at Sizzling Tandoor

static1.squarespace637 Johnson St.
Victoria, BC
(250) 388-5450

E: The fire is spreading over at Sizzling Tandoor but the question of which operation James and I should hit, the original Johnson location or Uptown Shopping Centre (to which my buddy hates visiting) meant only the first operation should count. At least we’re finally managing to hit most of the restaurants that line along Johnson Street. Now the trick here is if I can convince my buddy to swallow another pepper whole?

J: I’ve been to the Sizzling Tandoor before after they opened. I knew the owners and they invited me to come in and try their wares. Unfortunately I was a wimp when it came to Indian cuisine. The result was barely touched food and a terrible shame I could not get rid of. But since that incident I have vowed to learn to eat and appreciate as much Indian cuisine as possible. There are foods I still can not touch but my progress is good. I have even built a tolerance to spicy food. It may surpass the great Edmundo.

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08.10.16
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Identifying “Sour Grapes” is Not Easy; Documentary Premiere @ VanCity Aug 12

Sour-Grapes-Rudy
August 12
Vancity Theatre
1181 Seymour St.
Vancouver, BC

  • Spoiler Alert

Not to be confused with the 1998 comedy, there’s a new Sour Grapes. This documentary is touring the festivals and art house theatres and it had its world premiere at Hot Docs. It is now making its way to Vancouver for its official Western Canadian Premiere, opening August 12 at Vancity Theatre in Vancouver. The City of Victoria had a prestigious showing during Feast, Food and Film with local winemakers de Vine offering tastes of both this sparkly film and local cheeses.

This feature by Jerry Rothwell and Reuben Atlas slowly but surely examines the personality behind one of the world’s greatest wine frauds. Rudy Kurniawan was not caught until March of 2012 where he was indicted for allegedly selling fake wines at auction. Many bottles made in the Burgundy region of France were relabelled and sold as expensive wines, like Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and Clos St. Denis.

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08.10.16
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[Vancouver, BC] Going Back in Time with The Templeton

Templeton3The Templeton Restaurant
1087 Granville St.
Vancouver, BC
(604) 685-4612

E: Lining Granville Street are numerous eateries of various design. When James wants to go cheap, he certainly knows how to find ’em, and sometimes I feel reluctant to go the route of just the basics, ma’am. In a diner that’s been around since the 20th century (the 1940s), that’s not too much of a bad thing.

For a late night snack, I can appreciate The Templeton for what it is. But I will have to give James the evil eye for not being willing to put up with the lineups at the Fritz European Fry House cause I was tempted by the New York style presentation of what looked like delicious fries… the only deterrent was my appetite since James could eat a whale, and I was thinking of splitting the order.

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08.05.16
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Marx Mayhem Still Reigns in Blue Bridge’s Animal Crackers

AnimalCrackersPosterAnimal Crackers
Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre
August 2-14, 2016

J: It was a night at the opera for Ed and I. Okay, not really, but it was a night at the theatre to watch the last musical the Marx Brothers (Groucho, Chico, Harpo, and Zeppo) ever performed. After Animal Crackers the brothers turned their attention to Hollywood and the movies, the rest as they say is history. It is somehow fitting Animal Crackers is being performed at the Roxy, a former movie house in Quadra Village.

This musical written for the Marxes by George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind with music and lyrics by Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby, was originally performed on Broadway in 1928. The play finds high society’s Mrs. Rittenhouse (Samantha Currie) hosting a party for famous returning African explorer, Captain Jeffrey Spaulding (R.J. Peters). But what is meant to be a proper social gathering soon turns into one filled with high jinks, chase scenes, and deception when a valuable painting of “After the Hunt” by Beaugard goes missing.

Henry Wishcamper pared-down Kauffman’s work so it could be performed easily off-Broadway and with a much smaller cast, but amazingly this show has a 4-piece orchestra. I hadn’t been to a show at the Roxy in a long, long time. It was good to return even if there was no longer a projection screen at the back of the building.

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