Stratford Festival Reviews

Refreshingly uncynical love story

The National Post, Robert Cushman 17/08/11 http://www.nationalpost.com/news/Dupes+dopes+drag+queens+invade+Stratford/5264500/story.html

This review looks at the The Misanthrope and Hosanna, both translated from French. "It's plain that these two love one another, and that they both lose....Molière had more invested in Alceste than in any of his other protagonists. It's not just that he played the role himself (as actor-manager, ...

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Outstanding performances not enough

Declan Kelly, The Beacon Herald 15/08/11 http://www.stratfordbeaconherald.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3258560

"Grindley seems content to play it safe and opt for a straight-up reading of the text with little in the way of interpretation or embellishment, perhaps as a sop to our long-suffering protagonist. Which begs the question, would not a little embellishment of, say, the setting only heighten the contrast ...

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Sara Topham, a scoop of vanilla ice cream, plays Célimène to perfection

J. Kelly Nestruck, The Globe and Mail 15/08/11 http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/theatre/with-this-fine-cast-molires-17th-century-masterpiece-still-resonates/article2129025/

3 Stars: " Kelli Fox is wonderful as Arsinoé, Steve Ross and Trent Pardy make brief but memorable appearances as a pair of other suitors of Célimène,...however, as its solidness is matched by a stuffiness – and actors stuck in gorgeous, but stifling costumes that seem to wear them rather ...

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Never transcends the period

Robert Reid, The Record 14/08/11 http://www.therecord.com/whatson/artsentertainment/article/578043--the-misanthrope-is-eye-pleasing-and-well-acted-but-ultimately-vapid

"Moliere continues to speak to us because our world isn’t much different than 17th-century France. Unfortunately, you wouldn’t know it from this eye-pleasing, but ultimately vapid, production."

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Smartly acted, beautifully designed and carefully staged

Toronto Star, Richard Ouzounian 13/08/11 http://www.toronto.com/article/695200--review-the-misanthrope-is-stylish-but-unsatisfying

2 1/2 Stars: Ben Carlson’s Alceste once again proves that no one can wrap his tongue around language more splendidly and his intensity is never to be denied. Sara Topham has perhaps never been more delectable than she is here as Célimène...But too often, we feel we’re in a museum ...

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Reviews for this show will be added as they become available.

27/04/10
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