Theatre: 6 must-see plays to see in Vancouver in May
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May marks the end of the season for many of the Lower Mainland's professional theatre companies. This month's best bets feature a couple of new Canadian plays, a pair of classic musicals, a recent smash musical, and work from one of the best playwrights in the English language. They also show the strength of several Vancouver companies outside the professional mainstream.
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Where: Firehall Arts Centre, 280 E. Cordova St.
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Zahida Rahemtulla has written a timely new comic drama set on the chaotic frontlines of the 2016 Syrian refugee crisis. Can three Vancouver hotel employees find homes for displaced Syrian families in a city with almost no rental vacancies? Derek Chan directs this joint production of the Firehall, Blackout Art Society and Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre. The Frontliners also plays at Coquitlam's Evergreen Cultural Centre, May 13-17.
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When: May 8-24
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Where: Granville Island Stage, 1585 Johnston St.
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Local indie company CTORA Theatre presents the best Broadway musical of all time (Leonard Bernstein! Stephen Sondheim!) in what looks like a mammoth production. Sayer Roberts and Cassandra Consiglio as Tony and Maria lead a high-powered cast of 27. Chris Adams directs, Kevin Woo conducts the 14-piece orchestra and Susan Ouellette recreates Jerome Robbins' original choreography on Brian Ball's expansive set.
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When: May 8-25
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Where: PAL Studio Theatre, 581 Cardero St.
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Along with Tom Stoppard, Caryl Churchill is Britain's greatest living playwright and perhaps its most challenging. Director Kathryn Bracht describes Churchill's 45-minute exploration of the art of dying as 'a surrealist meditation wrapped up in her crafty, clever dialogue.' London's Time Out called it 'a gaze into the face of death that will polarize the hell out of audiences.' A Western Gold production starring six of Vancouver's best veteran actors.
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When: May 9-June 8
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Where: Metro Theatre, 1370 Marine Dr. SW
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Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Fit for the pit
There are few things punks enjoy more than arguing over what or who is or isn't punk. If nothing else, In Too Deep: When Canadian Punk Took Over the World — a new book documenting commercially successful Canadian musical exports of the early Aughts, with varied ties to the punk world — should prove to be a spirited conversation starter. Just how far that conversation goes will depend on how crusty the punks involved in that conversation are. John Woods / Free Press files In January 2025, Sum 41 perform at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg. If one grants that the artists featured in the book — such as Gob, Sum 41, Billy Talent, and Napanee, Ont.'s very own superstar Avril Lavigne — are at least influenced by punk, if not dyed-in-the-darkest-denim punk themselves, then one might consider this well-researched book a welcome addition to a growing list of Canadian music histories focused on relatively contemporary subjects. Overall, In Too Deep provides an insightful look at the music industry in Canada during the early days of the 21st century, and how online innovations such as file sharing, message boards and MySpace impacted the industry, for good or ill. While chapters on Billy Talent, who gained massive popularity in Europe, and Alexisonfire, who broke out in the American hardcore scene, cover much the same ground as the chapter detailing their careers in Michael Barclay's Hearts on Fire: Six Years That Changed Canadian Music 2000-2005, they do make for solid introductions for readers unfamiliar with either group or the punk scenes from which those Ontario bands emerged. Similarly, while devoted fans of any of these groups may or may not come across any information they were unaware of beforehand, those without much prior knowledge are provided insightful snapshots of the early histories and the big breaks of all nine artists profiled. Organized and written in much the same manner as Dan Ozzi's Sellout! — which detailed the DIY-to-superstar trajectories of American punks such as Green Day, Against Me!, My Chemical Romance and more — In Too Deep is a very readable, if only passingly critical, overview of the artists involved and an overlooked era in Canadian music history generally, where homegrown groups of misfits certainly made major international commercial splashes and commensurate influence on many big name mainstream artists coming up today. Commercial and mainstream, of course, being the operative words. In wrapping up the chapter on Sum 41, Bobkin and Feibel state that the group 'became Canada's first internationally acclaimed punk band,' although the statement isn't qualified beyond a list of sales achievements, and that the band's songs appeared in a number of Hollywood films. Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. There are many Canadian punk bands, both predecessors and contemporaries of the artists profiled here, who may not have had the sales numbers to go up against Sum 41, but whose artistic and cultural impact is much more profound. Bobkin and Feibel do pay some lip service to these contemporary groups, with brief but well-placed 'Further Listening' sidebars throughout, which feature critically acclaimed local heavy hitters such as Propagandhi — whose debut How to Clean Everything is credited by Fat Mike with establishing Fat Wreck Chords' signature sound of the '90s, a style credited by the authors to have influenced at least half the bands featured here — as well as Toronto's Fucked Up, among others. In Too Deep But the legacy of groups such as DOA and Teenage Head are given just brief nods in the introduction, while punk pioneers such as SNFU and Nomeansno, who spent decades in the punk trenches and influenced countless bands along the way (and to this day), aren't given any ink at all. Which just goes to show, you can't please everybody all the time — especially not punks. Sheldon Birnie is a Winnipeg writer and the author of Missing Like Teeth: An oral history of Winnipeg underground rock 1990-2001.
Toronto Sun
9 hours ago
- Toronto Sun
WARMINGTON: Like a marital spat, Mr. Wonderful says Trump and Musk must kiss and make up
The Canadian star of Dragon's Den fame suggests the world's richest man should 'apologize in private' to the world's most powerful man Get the latest from Joe Warmington straight to your inbox In coming president Donald Trump met Kevin O'Leary at Mar-a-Lago over the weekend -- picture courtesy Kevin O'Leary Does X mark the spot or does the U.S. President hold the Trump card? This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Needless to say, this may have been America's loudest breakup since they separated from Great Britain in 1776. Although it looks like the bromance between President Donald Trump and his first buddy, billionaire Elon Musk, is shattered, Canadian business icon Kevin O'Leary – an acquittance of both – says don't be so sure. He actually believes the relationship is still repairable. 'So, you know, (this is the) world's most powerful man and the world's richest man. They have a lot of good reasons to fix this and they're going to,' the Shark Tank star known as Mr. Wonderful told the Toronto Sun on Friday. The only question remaining is 'how it happens?' There is certainly some work to do to put back together what got broken. For supporters of both, that was a dark day to see the Tesla and X CEO and comeback President from election defeat to assassination attempts sniping at each other. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Elon Musk is a unique individual. Think about the achievements he's made and all of the different industries he's involved in that express the technical might of America. Trump wants to be close to that. The whole administration was part of that story, and frankly, so do the… — Kevin O'Leary aka Mr. Wonderful (@kevinolearytv) June 6, 2025 Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. It was a nasty battle on Musk's X and Trump's Truth Social, where some harsh words were spoken and some troubling missives were lobbed – especially by the former special advisor to the President on the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) who posted to X, 'Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!' Musk did not elaborate on what he meant by that, but with the notorious Epstein client list so far not making it to the public's eyes about who went to his private island where underaged girls were sex-trafficked, or who travelled on his Lolitia Express airplane or attended his Manhattan home, the shot raised a lot of eyebrows. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Trump told the press he's 'disappointed in Elon' who is a 'man who has lost his mind' and he's 'not particularly' interested in speaking with him. Time to drop the really big bomb:@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT! — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025 This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. It's understandable how such a betrayal would make Trump untrusting in the future. But O'Leary, who knows and respects both men, said talking at some point is something they should do. 'Elon's a very eclectic individual,' said O'Leary, who was also on FOX News and CNN on Friday. 'He's out there as you know and he's beyond genius status and has tremendous executional skills as evidenced by everything he's achieved – and Trump knows that.' 'A lot of what America does right in space (with SpaceX) comes from Elon,' O'Leary said. 'What he's doing with Neuralink is extraordinary, obviously Starlink is a global phenomenon in terms of what it's done. It helps Ukraine in the war. Those are all benefits for Trump and he knows it.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Read More But what he said about the Epstein file was, by most observers' accounts, a low blow and a bridge way too far for a dispute over a spending package called the 'Big Beautiful Bill.' 'I think Elon is probably going to have to apologize in private for the Epstein stuff,' O'Leary said. 'That was over the top.' Under normal circumstances, it would be hard to come back from something like that. But O'Leary believes these two men must try – for the good of America. 'You know, these guys have huge egos,' O'Leary said. 'They got into a pissing match, like a bad date.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. @elonmusk sometimes gets angry and spiteful and lashes out. And sometimes he apologizes. He should do that tonight to @realDonaldTrump like he did in this case — stuff happens. Elon's greatest gifts come from his integrity and passion. 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But he believes the Musk mea culpa must be made to Trump privately first before it's released publicly – something that should be decided on by the President. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. False, this bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it! — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025 This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'I think the right move now is a private meeting with Trump, or a private phone call and let Trump do the lead on how they work it out,' O'Leary said. 'That would be the way Trump works and would be a better outcome for Elon. In watching Trump operate up close, that would be better. Wait for Trump to return the call that Elon has put out and saying let's talk.' In high stakes politics or business, O'Leary said it's important to 'make sure' what you are saying 'is the truth' because 'if you start speaking untruths, you were going get into a lot of trouble.' President-elect Donald Trump walks with Elon Musk before the launch of the sixth test flight of the SpaceX Starship rocket Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024 in Boca Chica, Texas. Photo by Brandon Bell / The Associated Press Musk has lashed out at people before and had to apologize. The key, O'Leary said, is to 'try not to get emotional' in politics or business. 'I think Trump was trying to hold back and he doesn't hold back too often,' O'Leary said, adding Trump, however, knows Musk is a 'unique situation and what he represents is unique.' Time will tell if they patch this feud up – but O'Leary, who is hoping to buy TikTok, sure hopes they do. 'I don't think it's a good idea that these two have this spat,' O'Leary said. 'It's not good for the country.' jwarmington@ Olympics Columnists NHL Toronto & GTA Editorial Cartoons
Winnipeg Free Press
13 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Zoo welcomes pack of five grey wolves
The Assiniboine Park Zoo is welcoming a new addition with the recent arrival of a pack of five grey wolves. The addition of Chinook (male, seven years), Gigi (female, seven years), Comet (male, three years), Stella (female, three years), and Virgo (female, three years) comes after the passing of Bear, the last member of the zoo's original wolf pack, in March. The wolves arrived from the Greater Vancouver Zoo on Thursday. 'Grey wolves are an iconic Canadian species that can be found across the country, including right here in Manitoba,' said Dr. Chris Enright, Senior Director of Zoological Operations, Assiniboine Park Zoo. 'Unfortunately, fear and misunderstanding have led to instances of human-wolf conflict and, in some cases, overhunting. Educating people about the critical role keystone species like wolves play in their ecosystems and why they should be protected is an important part of what we do here at the zoo.' The grey wolves are the latest in a long string of new animals to be introduced to zoo visitors since last fall, including three red pandas, a great horned owl and and scarlet ibis, among many others. The zoo is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
