Home - tessaperkins.ca

Down an East Van rabbit hole at the Panto

East Van Panto: Alice In Wonderland | Theatre Replacement | The Cultch | York Theatre and online | November 24, 2021 – January 2, 2022

The evil Queen of Hearts, Jess Cheetos, owns a “super giant evil online store” that threatens to put East Van shops out of business, the White Rabbit sells cell phones, the Cheshire Cat (Amanda Sum) is a busker, Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dumb are transit police officers, and the Mad Hatter presides over a leftist tea party on Commercial Drive. It’s Alice in Wonderland like you’ve never seen it before, full of local East Van references and political commentary.

Lights is a relatable story about how families care for each other

Lights | Touchstone Theatre | Firehall Arts Centre | December 2 – 12, 2021

“Do not let me stare at a picture and think it’s a window,” says Nancy (Susinn McFarlen) to her son. She worries that her Alzheimer’s will get so bad she’ll be placed in a dementia village where people look at pictures and think it’s the outside world. This concern for her future and resistance and denial of her condition is at the heart of Lights, a moving mother-son story about taking care of each other.

Circus in a world out of order

Out of Order | The 7 Fingers (Les 7 doigts) | The Cultch online | March 18 – 21, 2021

“The world is upside down, the circus is out of order,” the words on screen share a sentiment of loss along with the black and white footage of an eerily deserted big top. What is the purpose of art without an audience? The question hangs on screen, allowing us to reflect as we settle in to watch this virtual show from our homes.

PuSh Festival forges ahead with partner presentations including ancient forest experience

PuSh International Performing Arts Festival | January 28 – February 20, 2021 | Online and Performance Works

It’s been a challenging year for the PuSh Festival as it grapples with organizational and leadership changes in the midst of a pandemic. But as one of Vancouver’s diverse, interdisciplinary winter arts staples, the festival is forging ahead this year with a reduced program focused on partner presentations.

In the stars: Red Sky Performance’s Trace is a stunning display of embodied Indigenous knowledge

Trace | Red Sky Performance | DanceHouse, Full Circle First Nations Performance, and SFU Woodward’s Cultural Programs | SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts | November 24 – 27, 2021

Inspired by Anishinaabe sky and star stories, Trace is a powerhouse of athletic choreography and dynamic motion. Explosive live and recorded music, including throat singing, accompanies the six dancers who often move as one being.

Ballet BC returns to the stage with an exciting presentation including three world premieres

Unfold and Give | Medhi Walerski, Ethan Colangelo, Lesley Telford, Company 605 | Ballet BC | Queen Elizabeth Theatre | November 4-6, 2021

Ballet BC’s first live presentation since the start of the pandemic features three world premieres from Canadian choreographers along with a North American premiere from artistic director Medhi Walerski. The collective title of the evening, Unfold and Give, has little concrete significance but is a nice change from the usual generic “Program 1” type titles.

Chutzpah! 2021 dance program

Chutzpah! Festival 2021 | Dance program | Norman and Annette Rothstein Theatre | November 6-18, 2021

Shay Kuebler’s Momentum of Isolation was the highlight of Chutzpah!’s 2021 dance program. The piece, which was shown in progress at Dancing on the Edge in 2020 and again in 2021, has evolved into a full-length work full of themes of loneliness, isolation and disillusionment with the modern world. It seems to be the perfect timely pandemic creation, but development began in 2018 with inspiration from the UK appointing the first Minister Loneliness.

Rubberband’s Ever So Slightly brings bold contemporary dance back to the DanceHouse stage

Ever So Slightly | Rubberband | DanceHouse | October 21 – 23 | Vancouver Playhouse

Rock music, blinding lights, coveralls, and momentous movement. There is nothing slight about Rubberband’s Ever So Slightly. The show marks a bold return to live performances at the Vancouver Playhouse and DanceHouse’s first live show since March 2020 when Rubberband’s visit was cancelled.

Collectives, collaborations, and commissions at Dancing on the Edge

Ryan Jackson and Anya Saugstad in The Threshing Floor. Photo courtesy of Beau Bridge.

Dancing on the Edge Festival | Firehall Arts Centre and various venues | July 8 – 17, 2021

The 33^rd Dancing on the Edge festival endured a second year of programming live performance during a pandemic. Thankfully, as with last year’s festival, there were several live performances in addition to a diverse film package available online. The festival is known as a sort of testing ground for new works or works in progress and this year’s offerings also included many collaborations and collectives as well as COVID Commission works that received funding from the festival.

Proximity feels far away on screen

Proximity | Joshua Beamish/MOVETHECOMPANY | The Dance Centre, presented with PuSh International Performing Arts Festival | streaming online | February 25 – March 11, 2021

Watching dance on screen is a very different experience from watching it in person in a theatre. A recording of a performance on stage has to overcome that barrier of the screen mediating the experience, but a dance film that has been designed for the medium doesn’t struggle in the same way.

Notice: Undefined property: JPagination::$pagesTotal in /home/t0uaw77o3bu9/public_html/templates/meembo-blue/html/com_content/featured/default.php on line 76