Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Toronto, ON – ‘Live from the Annex’ is pleased to announce its Tuesday, July 7 line up. Guest artists include Ron Pederson (MC), Gavin Crawford (Comic Artist), Chris Funk - The Wonderist (Magician), Two Juliets (Sketch), Everyone Loves Marineland (Musical Artists) and Jayu (CSI member profile) with host Annex Improv troupe Brunswick Stew and Asher Ettinger (keyboard accompaniment). The show runs 8 p.m. – 10 p.m., and takes place in ‘The Garage,’ at the Centre for Social Innovation - Annex location, 720 Bathurst Street, Toronto. $15 tickets are available on a first-come, first-serve basis at www.livefromtheannex.com. Follow on Twitter #LFTAnnex and Facebook. For information, call (416) 619-4621 or send an email to livefromtheannex@gmail.com. The comedy and music show is broadcast live to the world-wide web via Dailymotion.com/YouAndMedia.
“We will be performing excerpts from ‘XOXO: The Relationship Show,’” say ‘Two Juliets,’ the SpringWorks Festival (Stratford) People's Choice Award 2014 winner. Meghan Chalmers & Franny McCabe-Bennett perform monologues, songs, scenes, poems, dance and tell stories: “We can't wait to see how much we can fit from our 60-minute show into ten minutes for ‘Live at the Annex’!” In 2015, they broke into the sketch comedy scene at the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival and completed a residency with Yuk Yuk’s Comedy Club. Their upcoming ‘Two Juliets’ shows include two fringe festivals (Toronto and Winnipeg).
‘Chris Funk - The Wonderist’ has some famous admirers in the world-renown ‘Penn & Teller,’ not only calling him “Irresistible!," but also inviting him to join them in Season 2 of their show, ‘Fool Us’. Magician Chris Funk entertains across North America with his blend of intuition, influence and illusion. “Super pumped to be performing at Live from the Annex! No idea what I’ll be doing,” he says when asked which magic he is planning, “But I do know you’ll be wow’d!” Upcoming shows in July and August include three fringe festivals (Toronto, Winnipeg and Saskatoon).
Ron Pederson is the master of ceremonies on July 7. He is a multiple award-winning Canadian actor, improviser, and producer, as well as a director. His television credits include ‘MadTV’ (FOX, 3 Seasons Canadian Comedy Award Nomination Best TV Performance), ‘Insecurity’ (CBC) ‘The Late Late Show’ (CBS), ‘SideKick’ (YTV) and ‘Degrassi’ (CTV). An acclaimed actor/improviser, he has appeared with theaters and festivals in Canada, the United States, Germany, Norway and Holland.
Gavin Crawford is a multiple-award-winning actor/comedian best known for his work on CBC’s ‘This Hour Has 22 Minutes’. Upcoming on July 1 as part of the city’s fringe festival is the premiere of his newest work, ‘"Friend" "Like" #Me,’ or as Crawford describes it, a “clickbaiting spiral of characters we all know and love (and love to hate) from our lives off and online.”
Fresh off the success of sketch shows ‘Everything is Fine’ (Top 10 Comedies of 2014 - Torontoist) and ‘Panacea’ (NNNNN - NOW Magazine), ‘Everyone Loves Marineland: A Disco Musical Comedy’ is about fame, greed, and a lot of chlorine. “We are excited to be showcasing two of our most high energy numbers,” says writer Marshall Lorenzo, “Featuring some top notch, up and coming comedy and musical theatre talents, directed by Shari Hollett: Guy Bradford, Gillian Bartolucci, Kris Bowman, Maren Sigson, Nicky Nasrallah, Marshall Lorenzo, Allana Reoch, Ted Hambly, Laura Tremblay, Shakura Dickson and Chelsea Larkin.”
Rounding out the program is ‘Brunswick Stew,’ Annex Improv’s Performance Ensemble, under the direction of Brian G. Smith and teacher Lisa Merchant: Joe Amero, Kate Hodgson, Victoria Kucher, Tony Lee, Steve Lyon, Laurie Murphy, Denise Pinto, Winter Tekenos-Levy, Kelli Thompson, Paul Wensley and Sasha Wentges with Asher Ettinger on keyboard. Joining these improvisers onstage during the show are surprise guests from the professional Improv community and audience members.
Not only a cabaret series promoting Toronto comedy and music artists, ‘Live from the Annex’ also showcases the work of social innovators. On July 7, ‘Jayu’, a non-profit organization using art to share human rights stories is being profiled from the stage.
‘Live from the Annex’ shows take place the first Tuesday of the month (July 7, August 4; September 1; October 6; November 3; and, December 1, 2015); doors open at 7:30 p.m., with curtain at 8 p.m. Refreshments are offered for sale before, during and after intermission by ‘Cookie’ Martinez. Hummus and chips are provided gratis.
The series is produced by Sasha Wentges (Mea Culpa), Laurie Murphy (MARRAM Mktg & PR) and Brian G. Smith (Annex Improv & YouAndMedia) with support from sponsors and partners including Dailymotion, Centre for Social Innovation, Analytical Engine Interactive and Beaus Beer. For ‘Live from the Annex’ video, see bit.ly/LFTAnnex_FILM.
Photo: Ron Pederson. ©2014 Toronto Stage.
2015-06-18
Toronto: "Live from the Annex" announces its July 7 comedy and music artists