Reviews

Candlelight Concerts are currently a craze the world over. But are they theatre?

Absolutely, if theatre is entertainment that also uplifts and informs and connects, and isn’t that what all theatre should do?

This concert featured the music of Queen, one of the greatest rock bands of all time. Perhaps the presentation was not what you’d expect. Four young and beautiful women dressed in white, carrying string quartet instruments, take the stage lit by what seems to be thousands of candles. What transpires is an hour of sublime and unexpected music.

In the last moments of Ordinary Days one character persuades another to look more closely at Cezanne’s Apples and see the beauty in the ordinary.  It’s a fitting end to this ultimately optimistic tale of four New Yorkers struggling with their ‘ordinary’ frustrations, anxieties, and the burdens of their pasts. 

It’s 1972 and the theatre scene in Canada has reached peak hippy. An experimental theatre group sends its young actors out to work with and observe local farmers in order to create a play based on their experiences. And so it is that naïve bohemian Miles hilariously crashes into the stable world of farmers Morgan and Angus. Morgan manages the farm but also acts as carer to Angus, who has brain damage which cost him his short-term memory. In spite of his disability, Angus is able to provide useful work around the farm.

Omega Ensemble is renowned for its forward thinking and innovative work which is defined by commissioning original compositions and collaborating with solo artists and virtuosos. Elevator music provides a superb example of this approach and highlights compositions that bring the clarinet to the forefront of the performance. This program is predominantly showcasing contemporary works that are bright, lively and often deeply moving. Elevator music is aptly described as raucous and irreverent and provides an evening of delectable pleasure.