For the  Ottawa Citizen. Photo: Andrew Alexander  “I am Sean Harkin and I am someone!” declares a young and seriously troubled character at an early point in Marie Jones’ tragicomedy Stones in His Pockets.

It’s a brave declaration of selfhood by this youth who, in that moment, speaks for so many of his fellow countrymen in contemporary Ireland. And, like other attempts by those countrymen to drag themselves from the mire of economic dislocation, cultural appropriation and defeatism, Harkin’s proclamation is doomed to be little more than words.

All of which makes Jones’ play, shrewd and frequently very funny, ultimately a dark meditation on her native Ireland. That juxtaposition of comedy and tragedy demands subtle intensity and focus in a production if the play is to strike its intended sparks. That doesn’t always happen in this show, which opens The Gladstone’s new season.

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The novel by Chaim Potok deals with a question of Jewish philosophy and would seem to be a subject better suited to prose than to the theatre. Aaron Posner’s adaptation, heavy with explanations and literary language, tries to clarify the conflict within the young Asher Lev . There is the religious tradition in which he was raised: Hasidic Judaism, an ultra-orthodox form of Judaism which is also linked to the mystical tradition of the Kabbalah and fundamental belief in the laws as set out in the Torah. He however, wants to live in the world of the imagination: he wants to be an artist.

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Playwright Norm Foster. Photo by Alan Dean. Perhaps playwright Norm Foster was waiting for a train when the idea of a script about five people in the waiting room of a train station occurred to him. Perhaps Canada’s most prolific playwright devoted more time to turning Jasper Station into a musical in cooperation with composer and lyricist Steve Thomas than is obvious from the very stilted first act of this play with music, first presented in 2001.

Act II has a little more substance — just a little — but, in general, the story line of Jasper Station is wafer thin, the songs are forgettable and the characters range from one-dimensional to foolish. And weak material, however well presented, remains weak.

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Photo: Paddy Vargas. One of the most satisfying aspects of the annual Puppets Up International Puppet Festival in Almonte is its carnival atmosphere. For two days, the main street is full of puppets, face painters, clowns, street musicians, craft tents, cotton candy and visiting families. Their view may be of a lanky stilt walker dancing to a rock ‘n roll ditty from one of the street entertainers, a pint-sized smiling version of Spiderman with his face immaculately covered in scarlet and black make-up, puppets chatting from one of the balconies or the midday parade of the entire puppet contingent. Store windows decorated with painted stage drapes and filled with puppets get into the act too and many of the townsfolk are involved as volunteers.

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The Classic Theatre Festival’s declared mandate is “presenting the classic hits of Broadway and the London stage” and there is no doubt that Mary, Mary falls within the defined requirement.

This romantic comedy was one of playwright Jean Kerr’s two biggest hits. (The other was Please Don’t Eat the Daisies.) Chalking up a four-year run in the early 1960s, Mary, Mary, was one of the longest running Broadway plays of the decade.

The issue is that, while it may have seemed fresh and innovative half a century ago, the script, with a stilted first act weighted down with exposition, now gives the impression of being well past its best-before date.

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Jason Lehner in Oleanna.  When Oleanna appeared in 1992, audiences were perplexed. Whether it was the David Mamet’s powerful   film scenario, or the stage production which we also saw at the NAC around that period, audiences could not quite figure out what Mamet’s position was.  Was this an angry backlash against a dogmatic feminist movement which is portrayed as a form of Fascist inquisition through the actions of a vindictive student trying to get back at her prof?  Or is this professor getting what he deserves?

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First of all let’s be clear. As it stands, this production by Odyssey Theatre has very little to do with Marivaux . The characters have the same names but they are essentially types inspired by the commedia dell’arte that one could find in much theatre of the 17^th and 18^th Centuries. The plot dealing with servants and masters who switch identities is also a theatrical convention that can be found in Moliere, in Marivaux, In Goldoni, in Beaumarchais .

It is true that at each period, the social significance of the switching changes and that is something this adaptation has confused rather badly ..but no matter. Marivaux ‘s theatre is essentially characterized by a certain style of performance (which has nothing to do with this show) and a style of language called Marivaudage (which has even less to do with this show)

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Kaufmann Photography . The 1000 Islands Playhouse has a winner with their lively production of LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS. Although I’ve seen the show a number of times, it was quite a while ago and I’d forgotten how clever and funny it is, especially Howard Ashman’s lyrics. Alan Menken’s tuneful soft-rock score fits beautifully with Mr. Ashman’s book and lyrics about a man-eating plant.

Robin Fisher’s adaptation of Jack Boschman’s original set has dilapidated brick walls of scrim that either become transparent or slide back to reveal Mushnik’s Skid Row florist shop. To the right and left are alleys with more brick building fronts and stoops. The changes to the shop in the Renovation number are fun, especially the floral print cash register cover.

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Time travel and genre fusion seem to be two of the sports in this Game of Love and Chance.

A mix of a 16^th -century form of physical theatre of Italian origin with the work of an 18^th-century French playwright, best known for his focus on language, adapted/rewritten to use current language and North American slang by performers in 19^th-century costumes may or may not be successful, depending on the skill of the mixer (director/adaptor).

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PHOTO.Lionel Patrick Kerman.

l.Bulle Ogier et Madeleine Renaud

R.Marie Christine Barrault, Guila Klara Kessous

Marguerite Duras’ Savannah Bay was performed at Cambridge’s Loeb Drama Center (home of the American Repertory Theatre) on February 21 in honor of the centennial of Jean-Louis Barrault’s birth. In the cast were the well-known French stage and screen actress Marie-Christine Barrault and her young disciple Guila Clara Kessous. Mme Barrault is the niece of actor-director Jean-Louis Barrault and his wife, actress Madeleine Renaud. During their lifetimes, Barrault and Renaud reached the pinnacle of theatrical success in France, forming their own company in 1946. As artistic director, and for many years leading actor, Barrault not only drew from a broad repertory of classics – French and otherwise – but introduced new and experimental works, many of which gained renown. The company’s tours brought the best of French culture to the wider world.

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