Latest news with #Awoowaakii
Calgary Herald
2 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Calgary Herald
Many outstanding plays highlighted in local Betty Award nominations
With 27 nominations, Theatre Calgary is the darling of this year's Bettys nomination committee, who agreed that TC's A Streetcar Named Desire, Alberta Theatre Projects' The Seafarer, Vertigo's The Da Vinci Code, Lunchbox's Go For Gold Audrey Pham!, and Sage's Mary Stuart were highlights of the 2024/25 theatre season. Article content The Bettys, now in their 26th year, recognize excellence in the city's professional theatre houses. Article content Article content TC's musical Legally Blonde is the season's most-nominated show, having received seven nominations. In addition to being named one of six outstanding productions of a musical, Legally Blonde received nominations for actors Kelsey Verzotti, Daniel Fong and Patricia Zentilli, Rachel Cameron for direction, and another for choreography, plus Rebecca Toon for costume designs. Article content Article content Article content Legally Blonde, which is a co-production with Edmonton's Citadel Theatre, is competing with Forte Musical Theatre's Austentatious, Ammolite Opera's Proving Up, Lunchbox and Forte's Twelve Days, and Handsome Alice's Two Moons: A Folk Lullaby for outstanding production of a musical. Article content Theatre Calgary dominates the outstanding production of a play category, with nominations for Awoowaakii, A Streetcar Named Desire – a co-production with the Citadel Theatre, and The Lehman Trilogy. Also competing for this award are Vertigo Theatre's The Woman in Black, and Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers, and Little Brothers – Makambe K. Simamba's solo show presented by Verb and Handsome Alice, that originated in Toronto with Tarragon Theatre. Article content Article content This year's nominees for outstanding performance by an ensemble include Ghost River Theatre's Echoes of a Land, TC's The Lehman Trilogy, ATP's Liars at a Funeral, Vertigo's Murder on the Links, and TC's The Play that Goes Wrong, a co-production with The Citadel and The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre. Article content Article content Nominated for outstanding lead performance in a drama are Lindsey Angell in A Streetcar Named Desire, Joe Perry in The Woman in Black, Makambe K. Simamba in Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers, and both Lauren Brotman and Norman Lewis in Mary Stuart. Article content Recognized for their comedic performances this season are Karen Johnson Diamond in Verb Theatre's Every Brilliant Thing, Ashley King in Inside Out and Chromatic Theatre's Static: A Party Girl, Julie Orton in ATP's Charlotte's Web, Mera Reyes in Downstage's The Strategy of War, and Marshall Vielle in TC's Awoowaakii.
Calgary Herald
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Calgary Herald
Review: A deft touch and humour soften the serious topics in Theatre Calgary's Awoowaakii
Article content Awoowaakii is a comedy that deals with some serious issues. Article content The Indigenous characters in Theatre Calgary's latest play have sought the help of Rosie Running Eagle, an elder, to give them traditional names which reflect their personalities. When it comes to Toni Twigg, the most flamboyant of the characters, Rosie chooses a name meaning butterfly, saying Toni always brought levity and laughter with him, even in the most serious situations. This is also true of playwright Sable Sweetgrass, who keeps her show from becoming maudlin and preachy by sprinkling everything with gentle humour. Article content Article content It's a tricky situation, to say the least, because Sweetgrass has created the most untraditional of families. Chrissy Sipatsimo is a transgender woman who is raising her dead sister's son, Richie, with her friend Toni, who is a gay drag queen. Chrissy is pretty certain that Richie knows Toni is gay, but she doesn't think he knows Toni is a drag queen. This, and Richie's issues at school, are the biggest problems the little family faces until Chrissy's father, Joseph Two Guns, arrives and mistakes Toni for Chrissy. This throws the little family into complete chaos, and introduces themes of abuse, alcoholism, sexuality and residential schools. Sweetgrass wisely laces everything with the kind of humour the audience got used to in the first part of the play. Article content Article content The play opens with Toni doing a drag performance, which is a clever way to let the audience know they are in for the unconventional. It also leaves Toni in drag, and Chrissy trying to hide him from Richie. She literally sticks him in the cupboard. It makes for a raucous opening, which is what this play needs. Article content Article content Garret C. Smith throws subtlety to the wind to play Toni and has great fun doing so. He never lets Toni become obnoxious, instead keeping him mischievous. Article content As Chrissy, Marshall Vielle does all the heavy lifting. He is the heart and soul of Sweetgrass's play. He has a speech in the second half in which he explains what a mother's role is and what it means to be transgender. It's a powerful speech, and Vielle gives it the kind of conviction that earns the biggest response of the evening. Article content Jenova Calixto captures Richie's frustration, not just with his home life, but with his school. He has a beautiful speech in which he explains how Chrissy and Toni are the pillars of his life, and how he is treated at school. There is a touch of anger in how he delivers it that keeps it from being overly sentimental. He's not asking for pity, just understanding.
CTV News
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Awoowaakii delivers laughs, tears and Blackfoot reconciliation in moving Theatre Calgary world premiere
Marshall Veille, Jenova Calixto and Garret C. Smith in Awoowaakii at Theatre Calgary (Benjamin Laird)
CTV News
24-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Blackfoot playwright Sable Sweetgrass's ‘living room comedy of errors' Awoowaakii gets Theatre Calgary world premiere
Awoowaakii, a Theatre Calgary production, tells the story of a Blackfoot transgender woman and what happens when their estranged father shows up.
