WalkLeft, the Podcast

“Everyone loves a dance party.”

It’s hard to argue with that statement from Brandy Leary, the Artistic Director of Anandam Dancetheatre. And, frankly, who would want to refute that? Chances are, if you’re listening to this podcast, you aren’t that person.

The upcoming Dance Party is the first of a new presenting series that promises to be an intimate and funky evening and, after you hear Brandy talk about it and check out Anandam’s website, you’ll discover that it sounds like that’ll be an easy promise to keep.

And if you can’t make it in person, the performance will be live streamed. Nifty!

Nina Kaye is the Artistic Director of Unspoken Theatre Company and a self-described impresario.

LOVESICK, an evening of theatre shorts working with darkly romantic themes, features the work of local female playwrights and will take place at a different venue each night.

You can find more details here.

Neoteny Theatre‘s first production is a double-bill of plays exploring monogamy and infidelity: Overruled by George Bernard Shaw and Romance by Neil Labute.

There must’ve been something in the air during the recording of this episode because, while the director Carly Chamberlain(also Neoteny’s Artistic Producer) and assistant director Susan Bond had fascinating things to say about their plays, their rehearsal process, dramaturgy, and direction… the one-liners were just irresistable.

There are more details and behind the scenes peeks here.

It was a pleasure to chat with Michael Goldlist and Zachary Florence about WORKhouse Theatre‘s upcoming production, set in Toronto on the ever-contested border of adolescence and adulthood.

In addition to sharing a glimpse into the world of Gwen Powers, they expressed some thoughts on making theatre that are definitely worth a listen.

Rarely Pure Theatre makes a return appearance on the podcast with their next production, The Pillowman. The play’s director, Ryan Quinn, and two of its cast, Spencer Robson(who recently became the company’s co-artistic director) and Davydd Cook, talk about the show and the benefits and challenges of working with individuals with whom one went to theatre school.

The show has a short run in a small venue, so tickets are limited.

You can also check out a trailer for the show here.

If Jack Kerouac and Jackie Kennedy met… it just may have gone down the way playwright Jim Christy imagines in his play, Jackie and Jack, which is being presented by Back Burner Productions.

The play’s director, Guy Doucette, and producer, Michael Orlando(whom you may remember from the episode about Theatre Lab and The Other Houdini) recount how they each first came into contact with the play and their work leading up to this production.

Ashley Gibson is an active performer and blogger whose first solo show is about more than shining a light on herself and her own talents. Her objectives for a multi-faceted project this February include honouring her mother’s memory and raising awareness and encouraging dialogue about mental illness.

In addition to a performance on February 22nd, featuring a range of pop and

Proceeds from the show’s ticket sales will be donated to the CAMH Foundation.

Alanna Stone and Lauren Toffan of Half-Pint Theatre may be small, but they’re also mighty. A Night of Shanley brings two of John Patrick Shanley’s tales of the Big Apple – Women of Manhattan and Welcome to the Moon – to Hogtown.

…and, as an added bonus, stay tuned after the episode for a couple of amusing moments that ended up on the virtual cutting room floor.

Friend and fellow Monkeyman, Leeman Kessler has invited friends to viewings of Conspiracy – in its movie form – for years. This year, one day before the anniversary of that film’s depicted event(The Wannsee Conference), he’s presenting a free reading of the script as it was adapted for the stage.

A very special guest, the author of the script and teleplay, Loring Mandel, will be in attendance and will be taking questions after the presentation. Far less impressively, I, your humble podcast host, will be one of the readers.

We’d all love to see you there.

Individually, Tim Lindsay, Jeremy Knowles, and Seth Drabinsky are all forces with which to be reckoned. It’s only when their powers combine, however, that the magic of Breathe.Feel.Love can occur.

There were 10 interviews before this one… so it’s appropriate that, by talking about a show that’ll rock as hard as Hedwig and the Angry Inch, WalkLeft, the Podcast has gone to 11!