Category: Theatre

Teachers (Open Hearts Theatre)

Open Hearts Theatre’s Teachers opens tonight at the Jericho Arts Centre! Time flies when you’re having fun! I’ll be performing as the lovely social studies student, Sonia. See you there! 

TEACHERS

Remember high school? Aaargh! Lockers, gym strip, cafeteria, clubs, classes English, Math, Socials, Physics, Chem, French and that door that said STAFF ROOM, where They roosted and plotted and decided on your marks? And those teachers! Well, some of them were okay, but some were downright peculiar. And then sometimes there would be a student teacher, and if you were lucky, he or she would be young and pretty cool.

Everyone has been to school, but not everyone has been inside that Staff Room. Written and directed by Barbara Ellison, Teachers is an original Canadian stage play about what goes on inside that Room, in this case, the small Social Studies book room which has become, over the years, a refuge and a cage for a group of Social Studies teachers. There is Teresa (Terri Taylor), the mother hen and organizer; there is Fred (Robert L. Duncan) known as Red Fred Department Head; and there is Maggie (Sally Clark) who has been teaching since the middle ages and has not updated her practice, or so it seems to Robert (Xander Williams), a charismatic Englishman who, possibly justifiably, feels intellectually superior to his colleagues, and who interacts with his students particularly the lovely Sonia (Stephanie Cho) — very personally.

Into this dysfunctional ménage comes a student teacher: Jo (Leah Ringwald). She is a bit older than student teachers tend to be, but she is bright and energetic and it doesn’t take her long to suss out the dynamics that are souring this department on a daily basis. She wants a job very badly; she has a monster student debt, but she has other personal reasons for needing to ace her practicum with flying colours.

How does Jo negotiate the snake pit and what is the unforeseen and terrible cost of her intrusion into this moribund group of Teachers?

For full details and tickets: http://teachers.brownpapertickets.com

Performance Dates
February 16-March 10th, 2018
Wednesday-Saturday 8-10pm
Sunday Matinee 2-4pm

Jericho Arts Centre
1675 Discovery Street, Vancouver, BC

Starring
Leah Ringwald, Xander Williams, Sally Clark, Terri Taylor, Robert L. Duncan and Stephanie Cho

Above the Hospital (Midtwenties Theatre Society)

Above the Hospital opens at Red Gate Revue Stage on Granville Island!! It has been such a joy these past few months watching our talented actors bring Beau Han Bridge’s Above the Hospital to life.  I hope you’ll come and join us in the theatre this week! Full details are down below :)

PERFORMANCE DATES: January 12-21, 7pm (doors at 6:30pm)

VENUE: Red Gate Revue Stage at Granville Island | 1601 Johnston Street

BUY YOUR TICKETS HERE & NOW!

BUY TICKETS HERE

(WARNING: This play contains strong language, depicted alcohol & drug-use, sexual content, non-toxic smoke effects, and a brief scene of violence. Viewer discretion is ADVISED for those under the age of 19.)

Newly formed Vancouver theatre company Midtwenties Theatre Society, along with Red Gate Arts Society, is thrilled to present the world premiere of their first original theatre production, Above the Hospital, from Friday, January 12 to Sunday, January 21, 2018 at the Red Gate Revue Stage.

In 2017 Trudeau-era, two lower-class Vancouver Millennials – the rational nursing student, Lauren, and her older, aspiring, musician-boyfriend, Cameron – live together in an overly priced, tiny apartment above a hospital. One night, a poor experience at a restaurant forces them to come back to their dingy abode earlier than expected. A casual evening of sex, pot and talk turns into a casual night of drinking, arguing, and reminiscing about the past, until unexpected guests arrive at their door and disrupt their stable existence, forcing them to re-examine themselves in the face of an unknown future.

Written and directed by Midtwenties Theatre’s Beau Han Bridge, Above the Hospital features performances by Tristan Smith (Posh) as Cameron, Zack Currie (This Is Our Youth) as Bo Han, Nadya Debogorski (A Game of You) as Abbey, Aaron Paul Stewart (The Flick) as Michael and debut performances from emerging artists Mira Maschmeyer as Lauren, and Emma Young as Natasha. Above the Hospital is Beau’s first original theatre production.

Director’s Statement

“I am beyond excited to debut this first-ever world premiere of Above the Hospital for Midtwenties Theatre Society”, says Beau Han Bridge, who has penned and directed the production. “Being a non-profit with the intention of creating theatre about millennials and coming-of-age themes, this original piece serves as a perfect chronicle of thoughts and societal challenges that one faces under the guise of no direction. There comes a time in your mid-twenties when the roads become nonlinear and one must make a decision as to where to go, forcing us to look back on our mistakes and plan out a future in a world that is beyond our control – the conflict that arises from this moment in time is where the drama is born, and what will be presented to audiences.”

Credits for Above the Hospital:

Playwright & Director: Beau Han Bridge
Managing Director: Stephanie Cho
Assistant Director: Jesse Ajohn
Performers: Mira Maschmeyer, Tristan Smith, Zack Currie, Nadya Debogorski, Aaron Paul Stewart, & Emma Young
Set & Lighting Design: Beau Han Bridge
Stage Manager: Dakota Vegh
Tech Manager: Mariessa McLeod
Dramaturgy: Tiffany Mo

For more information, please visit the following platforms:

Website: www.mtstheatre.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/mtstheatre
Instagram: www.instagram.com/midtwentiestheatre
Twitter: www.twitter.com/MTStheatre

PRESS LINKS

Vancouver Sun – http://vancouversun.com/entertainment/local-arts/millennials-cope-with-artistic-aspirations-financial-hardships-in-above-the-hospital/amp?__twitter_impression=true

Delta Optimist – http://www.delta-optimist.com/entertainment/midtwenties-theatre-society-brings-above-the-hospital-to-vancouver-stage-1.23136524

VancouverPresents – https://www.vancouverpresents.com/theatre/millennials-living-above-the-hospital/

DailyHive – http://dailyhive.com/vancouver/vancouver-arts-shows-january-2018

CiTR 101.9FM “Dave Radio” – http://www.citr.ca/radio/dave-radio-with-radio-dave-on-the-radio/episode/20180105/

MyVanCity – http://myvancity.ca/2018/01/02/hospital-midtwenties-theatre-society-red-gate-arts-society/

Review Vancouver – http://www.reviewvancouver.org/previews.htm

Miss604 – https://miss604.com/2017/12/win-tickets-to-above-the-hospital.html

Dim Sum Diaries (Fabulist Theatre)

I had the pleasure of performing as Jenny in Fabulist Theatre’s Dim Sum Diaries this past week. The event was a fundraising dim sum dinner along with a live reading of Mark Leiren-Young’s Dim Sum Diaries at Pink Pearl Restaurant. The play was originally written as a radio show for CBC radio in the 1990s and it’s the first time Mark Leiren-Young has allowed it to be performed since then!

Dim Sum Diaries is a show is based on five people and their perception of how Vancouver has changed since the influx of immigrants from Hong Kong in the 1990s. I played Jenny, a woman who immigrated to Vancouver from Hong Kong.

After eating of a lovely dinner of BBQ pork buns, sticky rice and har gow to name a few, the evening finished up with a talk back with myself and the rest of the cast, our director Mary Littlejohn and the author Mark Leiren-Young. It was such a treat it was to meet and hear Mark share his journey with Dim Sum Diaries. Thank you for allowing us to perform your show Mark!

A special thanks to all my family and friends who came out to support me <3.

“Hey, good for you Lise. You win the cigarette…Let’s go again.”
-Mark Leiren-Young (Dim Sum Diaries #3 Mah Jong)

The Water Seller

The Water Seller (Seven Tyrants Theatre)

Two more sleeps til showtime! I’m excited to be performing in a concert presentation of a musical called The Water Seller this weekend and wanted to share the news! I’ll be singing and playing the violin and the tenor sax in the show. The concert features several talented musicians performing live.

Seating is limited to 70-75 per evening so I would suggest purchasing tickets early if you’re interested in attending. Hope to see you there!

The Water Seller

THE WATER SELLER
A Concert Presentation

Selections from a new
Revolutionary Rock Opera
By Daniel Deorksen

Featuring
Emily Cheung, Soprano
With music performed by Two Apple Tobacco & special guests
Presented by Seven Tyrants Theatre

March 31, April 1, 2 & 7 at 8 pm
Studio 1398, Granville Island
Tickets $15
Tickets available at the door or online at
https://squareup.com/store/seven-tyrants-theatre/

Based loosely on Bertolt Brecht’s classic play “The Good Woman of Setzuan”, The Water Seller takes audiences on an operatic journey through 25 years of Chinese history, from 1934 to 1959, telling the story of the Communist rise to power through the lens of one small village in Sichuan province and its ill-fated inhabitants. The new Revolutionary Rock Opera by composer Daniel Deorksen will be performed here in concert setting, featuring soprano Emily Cheung and a jazz-rock orchestra made up of members of Vancouver band Two Apple Tobacco with guest vocalists and instrumentalists. There will be a bar serving beer, wine and treats.

Musicians
Emily Cheung, Ingrid Cheung, Stephanie Cho, Daniel Deorksen, Kayla Deorksen, Jessica Harvey, Jordan Kling, Cate Richardson, Varya Rubin, Kurt Schindelka, Vern Shewchuk & Greg Valou

More info at
www.seventyrants.com
www.twoappletobacco.com