Moving Theatre
October 24, 2015
Joshua Chong It gets interesting when you take a play, put it outdoors and stretch it out over 3 kilometres. Even more so when each scene is written by different playwrights. Some may call it original, others may call that weird. My Lakeshore My Home (MLMH), produced by Sirius Theatrical is one of these plays. Performed in partnership with the City of Toronto and the Etobicoke-wide year long festival Cultural Hotspots, it is a festival in itself which celebrates the diversity of the people who call the Lakeshore their home. Cultural Hotspots is a City of Toronto initiative which aims to showcase the heritage, creativity and culture of a specific community each year. I was fortunate …show more content…
Evidently, I was the odd one out. Coming from North Toronto, this gave me an outsiders look at how a community could come together and create such an original performance. The entire cast and playwrights were amateurs with the exception of four actors. The majority of the scenes were written at workshops hosted by the Toronto Public Library for newcomers to Canada. The play is filled with scenes about personal poignant experiences on immigrating to Canada, or simply relocating to the Lakeshore and calling Etobicoke home. As the mini festival is a walking outdoor performance, many local businesses and area residents participated in the performance, hosting scenes on their front porch or inside their restaurant, coffee shop or art gallery. A true sense of community was in the air. It made me feel like I was a local resident who just lived just around the corner. It felt great to hear everybody talking about the upcoming performance and all the local businesses displaying the production poster. What makes this production so authentic is the spontaneity. It feels so real to have the scenes pop up randomly during the walking tour of the Lakeshore. It is fitting as after all, all the scenes are real. Whether they are past experiences or stories passed down from generations, we can somehow connect to it …show more content…
There is no set, minimal props, lighting or sound design. As our city is the stage, many things can happen during the performance. A family of ducks might waddle past a scene on the boardwalk, or a cyclist may go by during the monologue. The director has no control over what may happen during the scene, but this is what makes every show so unique. Unlike a regular show where every detail is meticulously planned, the feel and character of each performance is influenced by the unscripted events from the environment. Everything that happens can change the mood of the scene. Some balmy weather can further intensify the sadness in a scene; the planes that land and the boats in the marina can bring out the hustle and bustle of Toronto. Nonetheless, in order to achieve a professional production that is somewhat consistent from show to show, some aspects must be meticulously organized and planned. For example, it is daunting to move a group of thirty actors from scene to scene when the performance is spread out over 3 kilometres. At each moment, the director needs to know where each and every cast member is located. It makes it more challenging when some actors are used to a brisk walk, while others treat it like a leisurely Sunday
October 24, 2015
Joshua Chong It gets interesting when you take a play, put it outdoors and stretch it out over 3 kilometres. Even more so when each scene is written by different playwrights. Some may call it original, others may call that weird. My Lakeshore My Home (MLMH), produced by Sirius Theatrical is one of these plays. Performed in partnership with the City of Toronto and the Etobicoke-wide year long festival Cultural Hotspots, it is a festival in itself which celebrates the diversity of the people who call the Lakeshore their home. Cultural Hotspots is a City of Toronto initiative which aims to showcase the heritage, creativity and culture of a specific community each year. I was fortunate …show more content…
Evidently, I was the odd one out. Coming from North Toronto, this gave me an outsiders look at how a community could come together and create such an original performance. The entire cast and playwrights were amateurs with the exception of four actors. The majority of the scenes were written at workshops hosted by the Toronto Public Library for newcomers to Canada. The play is filled with scenes about personal poignant experiences on immigrating to Canada, or simply relocating to the Lakeshore and calling Etobicoke home. As the mini festival is a walking outdoor performance, many local businesses and area residents participated in the performance, hosting scenes on their front porch or inside their restaurant, coffee shop or art gallery. A true sense of community was in the air. It made me feel like I was a local resident who just lived just around the corner. It felt great to hear everybody talking about the upcoming performance and all the local businesses displaying the production poster. What makes this production so authentic is the spontaneity. It feels so real to have the scenes pop up randomly during the walking tour of the Lakeshore. It is fitting as after all, all the scenes are real. Whether they are past experiences or stories passed down from generations, we can somehow connect to it …show more content…
There is no set, minimal props, lighting or sound design. As our city is the stage, many things can happen during the performance. A family of ducks might waddle past a scene on the boardwalk, or a cyclist may go by during the monologue. The director has no control over what may happen during the scene, but this is what makes every show so unique. Unlike a regular show where every detail is meticulously planned, the feel and character of each performance is influenced by the unscripted events from the environment. Everything that happens can change the mood of the scene. Some balmy weather can further intensify the sadness in a scene; the planes that land and the boats in the marina can bring out the hustle and bustle of Toronto. Nonetheless, in order to achieve a professional production that is somewhat consistent from show to show, some aspects must be meticulously organized and planned. For example, it is daunting to move a group of thirty actors from scene to scene when the performance is spread out over 3 kilometres. At each moment, the director needs to know where each and every cast member is located. It makes it more challenging when some actors are used to a brisk walk, while others treat it like a leisurely Sunday