Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Toronto, November 18, 2011 - After playing to sold-out crowds and receiving unanimous critical and popular acclaim, VideoCabaret is announcing that The Life and Times of Mackenzie King, the latest re-imagining of playwright Michael Hollingsworth's acclaimed The History of the Village of the Small Huts cycle, is set to close December 11, 2011.
As shows are selling out quickly, VideoCabaret urges the public to book early! Call the box office at 416-703-1725 and visit www.videocab.com for more information.
The magical black box style, extravagant costumes and biting wit of this latest installment have captured audiences and reviewers since first taking to the stage November 2. In two fast-paced acts, six actors transform into over 40 characters-including power-brokers, war vets, socialites, communists, gangsters, work-camp hobos, crystal ball readers, booze-smugglers, fascists and other Canadians-to tell the story of Canada's most eccentric and enduring Prime Minister in a production that spans the Roaring Twenties and Dirty Thirties, and resonates powerfully in our boom/bust times.
What critics are saying about The Life and Times of Mackenzie King:
***/4 "... extremely funny, dark and light at once ... it's a pity Hollingsworth's shows aren't permanently in rep, so we could find out what happens next right away."
- J. Kelly Nestruck, Globe and Mail
***1/2/4 "It's a riotous, caricature-filled, cartoon-epicŠ wonderfully satirical, a biting comedy of manners where megalomania and greed are the order of the dayŠ. It's virtuoso stuff."
- Robert Crew, Toronto Star
"a smashing evening, with the usual complement of dazzling quick-changes of both costume and character, magnificently exaggerated wigs and costumes, pinpoint lighting, and spectacular action on a tiny stage."
- Robert Cushman, National Post
"Brilliant! The King is dead. Long Live VideoCabaret!.... Daring and clever! Just what theatre should be! Seething satire, brilliant characters - Canadian history was never this much fun!"
- Gloria Martin, 680 NEWS
"Some people can't wait for Christmas every year - me? I can't wait for the next Video Cabaret production! If you haven't seen a performance by this stellar ensemble you need to do it now."
- Jaymz Bee, JAZZ.FM91
****/5 "an engaging, funny tour de forceŠ. like Brecht directing a British comedy of mannersŠ. comedic timing is spot on."
- Jordan Bimm, NOW Magazine
VideoCabaret presents
The Life and Times of Mackenzie King
The History of the Village of the Small Huts, 1918-1939
Written and Directed by Michael Hollingsworth
Starring Paul Braunstein, Greg Campbell, Richard Alan Campbell, Mac Fyfe
Jacob James, Linda Prystawska
Associate Director Deanne Taylor o Lighting and Set Andy Moro o Costumes Astrid Janson
SM/PM Andrew Dollar o ASM Laurie Merredew o Props Brad Harley o Wigs Alice Norton
Music Brent Snyder o Sound Design Jake Blackwood, Brent Snyder
Sound Operator Jake Blackwood o Stage Hand Patrick Wilkie
Producer Jim LeFrancois
NOW PLAYING TO DECEMBER 11, 2011
Schedule: Tuesday - Saturday, 8pm, Sunday 2:30pm
VideoCabaret at The Cameron House, 408 Queen Street West (just west of Spadina), Toronto
Tickets: Previews, Tuesdays & Wednesdays $20,Thursdays & Sundays $30, Fridays $35, Saturdays $40
Box Office: 416-703-1725 For more information: www.videocab.com
2011-11-18
Toronto: “The Life and Times of Mackenzie King” will close December 11