All stories by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter on BroadwayStars

Saturday, March 25, 2023

Backstage burnout in Toronto theatre was always a thing — post-pandemic it’s gotten worse by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

It’s a problem ingrained in the very fabric of the theatre industry. There’s little infrastructure to support crucial backstage workers.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 10:00AM
Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Cliff Cardinal is a master of emotional manipulation in ‘The Land Acknowledgement, or As You Like It’ by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

But with the Mirvish title change, the show no longer dupes audiences into thinking they’re getting Shakespeare, which was part of the fun.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 11:35AM
Friday, March 10, 2023

‘Fairview’ at Canadian Stage asks white audiences to consider an alternate point of view by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Yes, you should see this scorching Canadian premiere of “Fairview,” but you should also read the play afterward.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 04:19PM
Friday, March 3, 2023

‘I know every word’: ‘Hamilton’ superfans rejoice as musical settles into Toronto run by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

The North American tour will be in town until Aug. 20 and for ardent fans of the show it’s not a moment too soon.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 10:00AM
Wednesday, March 1, 2023

How do you solve a problem like ‘Rock of Ages’? You can’t, but flashy lights and great performances don’t hurt by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

This production, though handsomely budgeted and ably sung, can’t quite overcome the fundamental inadequacies of “Rock of Ages” as a theatrical text.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 06:35PM
Friday, February 24, 2023

‘Hamilton’ is back in Toronto and it really is that good by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

We’re just now starting to see the long-term payoff of the legacy of “Hamilton” and the show’s stunning North American tour will ensure the conversation doesn’t stop.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 12:01PM

‘Hamilton’ finally embarks on an extended Mirvish run nearly 10 years after opening on Broadway by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

The show’s 2020 Toronto run was cut short due to the pandemic. Now, Morgan Anita Wood and DeAundre’ Woods lead as one of musical theatre’s most iconic romantic couples.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 11:51AM
Wednesday, February 1, 2023

After a devastating fire, Coal Mine Theatre has come back blazing by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

As opening night for ‘Yerma’ approaches, Diana Bentley and Ted Dykstra couldn’t be more grateful for the Coal Mine community’s support for their new venue.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 11:20AM

‘Okay, you can stop now’ at Theatre Passe Muraille makes art out of information overload by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Shakeil Rollock, creator, director and choreographer of “Okay, you can stop now,” says personal histories and the news cycle intersect in more ways than we might assume.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 09:00AM
Friday, January 20, 2023

Crow’s Theatre’s ‘Fifteen Dogs’ is a must-see, even for cat people by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Despite an at-times unearned length, “Fifteen Dogs” is a must-see for its performances, including Tom Rooney at the top of his game as a lovelorn poodle.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 05:41PM
Monday, January 16, 2023

Downton Abbey’s Kevin Doyle never thought he’d be an actor. Now he’s Mirvish’s leading man in a World War II play about weather by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

The TV star makes his Mirvish debut this month in “Pressure,” a British play about the meteorologists who advised Eisenhower while planning D-Day in 1944.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 05:00AM
Tuesday, January 10, 2023

‘Girls and Boys’ is a painful solo show about loss and betrayal. But for Fiona Mongillo, the play’s future at Crow’s Theatre couldn’t be mor by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

‘Girls and Boys’ made a splash in Stratford last summer, a quick jaunt from the behemoth Stratford Festival. Its upcoming remount will play at the Streetcar Crowsnest in Toronto.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 01:56PM
Sunday, January 8, 2023

‘It’s been the greatest adventure of my life’: Panto legend Ross Petty says farewell by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Petty took his final bow Saturday, bidding adieu to Toronto’s yearly Christmas pantomime after 25 years.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 04:32PM
Friday, January 6, 2023

For Ann-Marie MacDonald, a ‘Fall on Your Knees’ theatrical adaptation was inevitable by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

MacDonald says she always saw her groundbreaking novel “as a 3D experience for the reader.” Part One opens in Toronto Jan. 20.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 09:00AM
Thursday, December 15, 2022

Bad Hats Theatre’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’ is a love letter to childhood by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

This “Alice in Wonderland” is nothing short of a delight — and Bad Hats Theatre puts on a very good show.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 02:12PM

Can Christmas shopping be viewed as a form of theatre? Well, sort of by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

When retail stores deck the halls for holiday shopping, they’re using many of the same tenets of design that make theatrical productions pop, according to experts in both fields.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 12:23PM
Wednesday, December 14, 2022

There’s no blubber in this stunning ‘Moby Dick’ at Harbourfront Centre by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

This isn’t the “Moby Dick” of your high school English classroom and these aren’t the puppets from days of Jim Henson yore.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 05:35PM
Friday, December 9, 2022

Jac Yarrow is living the dream as star of ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

From Jac Yarrow’s offstage charisma to his vocal chops, it’s clear why Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber chose him as his leading man.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 04:49PM
Friday, December 2, 2022

Revisiting ‘da Kink’: Playwright Trey Anthony on theatre, hair and Black self-love by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

“The staying power of ‘’da Kink in My Hair’ is rooted in authenticity. And truth,” says Anthony. “Everyone wants to feel seen, heard, listened to, loved, accepted.”

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 09:00AM
Thursday, December 1, 2022

Francophone stage director Marie Brassard wins prestigious Siminovitch Prize by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

“It’s especially lovely because I’ve been chosen by my peers,” says groundbreaking director Brassard.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 09:30PM
Friday, November 18, 2022

From Toronto’s street dance scene to Broadway, Bobby ‘Pocket’ Horner is making a splash by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

The Ontario native got their start in the street dance sub-genres “popping” and “locking.” When “& Juliet” came knocking, they knew it was the right project for them.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 10:00AM
Thursday, November 17, 2022

Scarborough playwright Kanika Ambrose shines a light on immigration and motherhood by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Playwright, librettist and screenwriter Ambrose has seen firsthand the barriers to immigration. “They’re unfairly skewed to people from certain regions of the world.”

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 09:00AM
Friday, November 4, 2022

‘It’ll move your soul a little’: How Andrew Broderick became Canadian Stage’s leading choir boy by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Andrew Broderick, a “Canadian Idol” alum and frequent face on Ontario’s most famous stages, leads in “Choir Boy” by “Moonlight” screenwriter Tarell Alvin McCraney.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 09:00AM
Saturday, October 29, 2022

From Toronto stages to the ‘Interview With the Vampire’ writers’ room, playwright Hannah Moscovitch is having a moment by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Moscovitch’s corporate drama ‘Post-Democracy’ premieres at Tarragon Theatre in November.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 02:49PM
Friday, October 28, 2022

Calgary native brings solo show about anti-brown racism to off-Broadway by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

“Being a Canadian expat out here in the States, I’ve seen this rise of xenophobia firsthand. And it’s felt very scary at times,” says Sundeep Morrison.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 10:00AM
Sunday, October 23, 2022

‘The Ex-Boyfriend Yard Sale’ at Soulpepper is as good as its title and just as charming by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Haley McGee and director Mitchell Cushman are a dream team, two masterminds with a penchant for controlled chaos and mess, and they’re both at the top of their game.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 10:58AM
Friday, October 21, 2022

‘Indecent’ confronts the history of Jewish theatre with style and verve by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Studio 180’s take on Paula Vogel’s gorgeous play corrects the record of Sholem Asch’s “God of Vengeance,” and it does so with heart and grit.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 01:33PM

That’s so fetch! Meet the Mirvish It girls lighting up the stage in Tina Fey’s ‘Mean Girls’ by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

“This is an age-old tale. And it’ll always be around because it will always matter,” says Jasmine Rogers on the staying power of “Mean Girls.”

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 10:00AM
Sunday, October 16, 2022

How do you translate Shakespeare into Mohawk? Ask Stratford Festival artist Wahsontí:io Kirby by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

“Ultimately, it’s all to serve,” said Wahsontí:io Kirby, who acts in “1939” and contributed Mohawk translations of Shakespeare’s “All’s Well That Ends Well.” “The spirit…

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 07:00AM
Wednesday, October 12, 2022

‘This is what theatre is supposed to be:’ How Paula Vogel’s ‘Indecent’ remembers a century of dramatic censorship by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

“Indecent” premiered on Broadway in 2017 when Vogel was 65 and had already won a Pulitzer Prize for “How I Learned to Drive.”

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 07:00AM
Friday, October 7, 2022

Child-army play ‘The First Stone’ combines the best of theatrical tradition with the worst of human obscenity by Aisling Murphy - Staff Reporter

Donna-Michelle St. Bernard’s haunting story of child slavery and community loss is unspeakably sad — and impeccably well staged.

SOURCE: Toronto Star at 02:53PM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards