Toronto – The beginning of August is synonymous with many things in Toronto – heat, Caribana, cottage weekends, the Blue Jays official elimination from playoff contention, etc. Lately, there has been one more entry to this exclusive list of summertime words – The Summerworks Theatre Festival. One of Canada’s largest theater festivals, the festival return this year is extra sweet this year since it’s funding got stripped by the man earlier this year. Thanks to a host of generous people, the festival was able to get funded privately and as a result, the festival is still on. Suck on that, Heritage Canada.
Not only a theatre festival, Summerworks has expanded to include a music lineup and this year’s music lineup is quite stellar. So without further delay, here is a quick preview.
Hooded Fang!
Wow, do I ever like Hooded Fang‘s new album Tosta Mista. Normally, I don’t usually give too much thought to local bands when local bloggers rave about them but this band’s new release is just wonderful. With classic rock odes the the diner/milkshake era from the 50s, this record has captured my attention this summer like few others have and I would totally be at their showcase Friday night if I wasn’t laying on a beach somewhere.
Bruce Peninsula!
Everyone’s favorite band named after an Ontario summer weekend destination. Bruce Peninsula was one of the hottest tickets at NXNE and even won over our writer Stacey with their lively show at the Rivoli in June. If you missed what all the fuss was about, then make sure you head over to the Lower Ossington Theatre next Thursday to check out this band in all it’s shoe tapping, head bobbing glory.
Miracle Fortress!
Here are the acts that I have seen twice this year
– Miracle Fortress
– Sheezer
– Men Without Hats
– Ellie Goulding
– Foster the People
– The Vaccines
– OMD
– Sheezer
Pretty odd list, but it’s small, which means it’s exclusive. So does that make Miracle Fortress special? I don’t know. What I do know is that Graham Van Pelt aka Miracle Fortress’s new album Was I The Wave? took the artist in a new and unexpected direction and the results has been rather positive. The new electronic world that the Montreal artist now lives in contains swirls of synthesizers and beams of lasers, some of which I hope will be projected into the tiny Ossington theatre.
Theatre!
Nobody in the history of life has ever said the words “I’m going to the theatre” and felt bad about it. You know why? It’s the theatre, it’s a play, something that has gone on since the beginning of time. Go hit up the festival and check out some plays by talented actors and actresses.
Here’s a few that look interesting
You Should Have Stayed Home – a play about one man’s detainment after the G20 fiasco from last year.
Zugzwang – a play about chess and it’s players
Lizardboy – A One Man Show – a one man tale about growing up, it’s interesting because one man shows can usually go either way.
White Rabbit, Red Rabbit – A different actor at every show will try to convey the story the experiences of the playwright from Iran.
There are many many things going on during Summerworks festival, so go check it out.
For more previews (probably with less vague terms) head over to my friend Joe’s site Mechanical Forest Sound, he knows what he’s talking about.
Also, read this blog.