Author: Iris Winston

A writer, editor, reporter and theatre reviewer for more than 40 years, Iris Winston has won national and provincial awards for her fiction, non-fiction and reviews. A retired federal public servant, she has seven books in print and writes regularly for local, regional, national and international newspapers and magazines, including Variety and the Ottawa Citizen. Iris lives in Almonte.
Don’t Dress For Dinner: a dinner date not worth keeping

Don’t Dress For Dinner: a dinner date not worth keeping

By |

Don’t Dress for Dinner  By Robin Hawdon

Adapted from Marc Camoletti’s French farce Kanata Theatre

Directed by Peter Williams

The kindest comment about Don’t Dress for Dinner is that it makes Marc Camoletti’s better known sex farce Boeing-Boeing look good. Although playwright Robin Hawdon’s adaptation/translation of Camoletti’s 1991 formulaic repeat was a West End success in its early years, it is very much a poor sibling. It’s also a reminder that without superb performances and first-class timing the sexual fling fantasies of yesteryear belong in the past. They are just not particularly funny in 2018. …

Read More Read More

The Virgin Trial: blending of historical fact and modern dress is noteworthy

The Virgin Trial: blending of historical fact and modern dress is noteworthy

By |

 

Photo Andrew Alexander

The Virgin Trial By Kate Hennig. GCTC  Directed by Eric Coates

Violence, political and religious intrigue and power seizures were the norm through much of the Tudor era. From peasant to prince, marriages were economic unions focused on increasing land holdings and influence.

Rumours swirled around those in power, those who sought power and those about to be imprisoned in the Tower of London for interrogation and torture. Perhaps they were guilty. Perhaps, they had merely chosen the wrong side at the moment. …

Read More Read More

Two paws up for Sylvia

Two paws up for Sylvia

By |
Sylvia Photo Maria Vartanova

 

Sylvia By A.R. Gurney,  Ottawa Little Theatre

Directed by Chantale Plante

Full disclosure first: The bookcase by my window has a full row of dog books with a day-by-day dog calendar on top. My dog is sitting on a chair beside me as I write and, of course, I talk to her (and to my cat – fairness in all things) all the time.

So, I have no trouble accepting A.R. Gurney’s premise in his 1995 play Sylvia that the other woman in Greg’s life has four legs. …

Read More Read More

Cloudburst: a tribute to lasting love

Cloudburst: a tribute to lasting love

By |
Cloudburst    Photo Maria Vartanova.
Maureen Quinn McGovern (Stella), Arlene Watson (Dotty)

 

By Thom Fitzgerald, TotoToo Theatre.  Directed by Sarah Hearn

Stella and Dot have loved each other for 31 years. Now in their 70s, they are threatened with separation when Dot’s granddaughter decides that “for her own good” Grandma should be moved to a retirement/nursing home, which also handles final arrangements when death comes knocking. …

Read More Read More

Angel Street: Taut delivery of evil by gaslight.

Angel Street: Taut delivery of evil by gaslight.

By |
Angel Street, Jessica Cherman, Jeffrey Aarles. Photo: Jean-Denis Labelle

Angel Street (Gaslight)  By Patrick Hamilton, Classic Theatre Festival Directed by laurel Smith

Gaslighting is a form of psychological abuse that makes victims question their sanity.
The term was adopted after Patrick Hamilton’s 1938 play Gaslight, set in Victorian England in 1880, became an enduring hit after premiering in London.

Two years later, it played in New York as Angel Street (and launched Vincent Price, who played the villain, towards stardom). Then came two movie versions with both titles in use. (The 1940 British movie was called Angel Street, while the 1944 Hollywood version, starring Ingrid Bergman and Charles Boyer and introducing a young Angela Lansbury was Gaslight.) …

Read More Read More

Mrs Warren’s Profession: a beautifully rounded and entirely believable characterization

Mrs Warren’s Profession: a beautifully rounded and entirely believable characterization

By |
Photo: Jean-Denis Labelle
Perth Classic Festival

 

Mrs. Warren’s Profession By George Bernard Shaw at the Classic Theatre Festival.   Director: Laurel Smith

The world’s oldest profession, though ubiquitous then and now, was apparently unmentionable on stage. This is why Mrs. Warren’s Profession, though ready for production in 1894, was banned for several years in Great Britain and first performed in New York in 1905 for one night only, followed by arrest warrants for several of those involved with the production. …

Read More Read More

Time for a dead script to be laid to rest

Time for a dead script to be laid to rest

By |
Photo Maria Vartanova  An Unexpected Guest

 

The Unexpected Guest By Agatha Christie, Ottawa Little Theatre. Directed by Alain Chamsi

The script of The Unexpected Guest is almost as dead as the body on stage for most of the first act.

The 60-year-old whodunit by Agatha Christie has many of the usual ingredients: a dark and stormy night; a limited number of suspects; several apparent reasons for killing the very nasty victim; a little intrigue; one surprise and a smattering of sex.

The other ingredient is the extreme wordiness of the script, as various combinations of two of the characters spell out the puzzle. On paper, The Unexpected Guest might seem an interesting jigsaw. On stage, it limps along, despite Ottawa Little Theatre’s attempt to deliver a solid tribute to Christie as a playwright. The problem is The Unexpected Guest is no Witness for the Prosecution or Mousetrap (still continuing its legendary run in London’s West End). …

Read More Read More

There’s Always Juliet: pleasant entertainment akin to a romantic novel on a sunny beach.

There’s Always Juliet: pleasant entertainment akin to a romantic novel on a sunny beach.

By |

 

There is always Juliet.  Photo: Jean Denis Labelle

 

There’s Always Juliet by John Van Druten. Classic Theatre Festival, directed by  Laurel Smith

Is instant attraction enough to last a lifetime or will the flame of being in love fizzle and die? Will the gap between two cultures be too wide to overcome? Is the spark of meeting someone different simply an antidote to a rich girl’s boredom?

These are just some of the questions that John Van Druten raises in his 1932 romantic comedy There’s Always Juliet, but, as quoted in the program note about the prolific playwright, his works “do not evoke lengthy critical ponderings.”  Instead, Van Druten, best known for such works as The Voice of the Turtle and Bell, Book and Candle, focuses on entertainment with a solid background of observation of human nature and social behaviour. …

Read More Read More

OLT: Political Correctness Moves Over for the Fun of Farce

OLT: Political Correctness Moves Over for the Fun of Farce

By |
Move Over Mrs Markham.   Photo:Maria Vartanova

Move over Mrs Markham By Ray Cooney and John Chapman

Ottawa Little Theatre  Directed by Venetia Lawless

The name of playwright Ray Cooney has been closely associated with farce since he first appeared in the famous Whitehall farces with Brian Rix in the 1950s and 60s. His familiarity with the genre encouraged him to present his own brand and one of his comedies, Run for Your Wife, ran for nine years in London’s West End, with some 17 of his other farces notching up long runs and many of them showing up regularly around the world, particularly in community theatres.  …

Read More Read More

Mamma Mia! Fun for All at Orpheus

Mamma Mia! Fun for All at Orpheus

By |

Photo by Alan Dean. Music and lyrics by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus  and some songs with Stig Anderson

Book by Catherine Johnson  Originally conceived by Judy Craymer

Orpheus Musical Theatre Society  Directed by Shaun Toohey

Thank You For The Music…and the performances, energy, lighting, colour and overall fun of Mamma Mia! The Winner Takes It All in terms of enjoyment and packed houses with this Ottawa premiere — especially when the production is of top quality as delivered by the Orpheus Musical Theatre Society. …

Read More Read More