Blithe Spirit at Princess of Wales Theatre

Posted on March 12, 2015 by Edward Brain

The Noël Coward play Blithe Spirit is currently playing at the Princess of Wales theatre in Toronto as part of the 2014-2015 Mirvish season.  I attended the evening performance on March 11th.

The production stars Dame Angela Lansbury as Madame Arcati, Charles Edwards as Charles Condomine, Charlotte Parry as Ruth Condomine, Melissa Woodbridge as Elvira Condomine, Susan Louise O’Connor as Edith the Maid, Simon Jones as Dr. Bradman, and Sandra Shipley as Mrs. Bradman.  The musical interludes were sung by Christine Ebersole.  The director is Michael Blakemore.

The plot revolves the visit of a medium (Madame Arcati) to the home of a successful author (Charles Condomine) and the return of Mr. Condomine’s late wife, Elvira, as a spirit. Continue reading →

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Commonwealth Day 2015

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Edward Brain
Map of the Commonwealth of nations. Based on I...

Map of the Commonwealth of nations. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today, March 9th 2015, is Commonwealth Day in the countries that are members of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Commonwealth Day, celebrated on the second Monday of March throughout the Commonwealth, as its name suggests celebrates the Commonwealth. Continue reading →

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Blue Jays Pre-season TV Schedule

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Edward Brain

The Toronto Blue Jays have announce their list of pre-season games which will be broadcast on Sportsnet in Canada.

The following games will be broadcast on television: Continue reading →

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Leonard Nimoy has Passed Away

Posted on February 27, 2015 by Edward Brain
Publicity photo of Leonard Nimoy and William S...

Publicity photo of Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner as Mr. Spock and Captain Kirk. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Leonard Nimoy, the actor who portrayed Mr. Spock in the Star Trek franchise, has passed away at the age of 83.  The cause of death was Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Mr. Nimoy was an accomplished actor, author, and director.  However, he is fondly remembered by many as Mr. Spock, the half-human, half-vulcan in the original Star Trek series and its first six movies.

Mr. Nimoy also directed Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.  In addition, he directed an episode of Night Gallery, the 1987 movie Three Men and a Baby, and the pilot episode of Deadly Games. Continue reading →

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Singers Save Die Walküre

Posted on February 14, 2015 by Edward Brain
The Four Season Centre.

The Four Season Centre.

I attended the February 13th, 2015 performance of Richard Wagner‘s Die Walküre currently being performed by the Canadian Opera Company at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.

The performance starred Christine Goerke as Brünnhilde, in her first staged version of the work; Issachah Savage as Siegmund;  Heidi Melton as Sieglinde;  Dimitry Ivashchenko as Hunding; Johan Reuter as Wotan; and Janina Baechle as Fricka.  The performance was conducted by COC Music Director Johannes Debus, with sets by Michael Levine.  The production is directed by Atom Egoyan. Continue reading →

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2015 Inductees to Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame

Posted on February 6, 2015 by Edward Brain

The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame has announced its 2015 inductees.

The inductees are as follows:

Carlos Delgado:  Delgado has appeared once on the ballot for Cooperstown and will not be on the ballot again due to not meeting the threshold for remaining on the ballot going forward.  However, the player who leads the Toronto Blue Jays in many categories (homeruns, slugging percentage, walks, runs, total bases, doubles , and intentional walks to name only a few), and was a popular player with the Blue Jays.  He spent most of his career with the Blue Jays and is one of only six players to hit at least 30 homeruns in 10 consecutive years. Continue reading →

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Canadian Opera Company Announces 2015-2016 Season

Posted on January 24, 2015 by Edward Brain
English: Four Seasons Centre in Toronto

Four Seasons Centre in Toronto (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Canadian Opera Company (COC) has announced its 2015-2016 season.  All performances will take place at their opera house, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.

The season is a mix of familiar works, along with some less familiar works, and a world première.  A total of six operas are being performed over the course of the season.

The season breaks down as follows: Continue reading →

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Broadway and The Met take on The Merry Widow

Posted on January 18, 2015 by Edward Brain

The Metropolitan Opera performed Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow as part of its Live in HD broadcast series on January 17th, 2015.  This performance was stunning from start to finish and saw the teaming up of the best of Broadway and opera to pull it off.

The production, directed and choreographed by Broadway director Susan Stroman, starred Renée Fleming (Hanna Glawari, aka ‘The Merry Widow’), Sir Thomas Allen (Baron Mirko Zeta), Kelli O’Hara (Valencienne, the Baron’s wife), Nathan Gunn (Danilo), Alek Shrader (Camille de Rosillon, Valencienne’s admirer), and Carson Elrod (Njegus.)  The sets are by Julian Crouch, and was conducted by Sir Andrew Davis. Continue reading →

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Sir John A. MacDonald’s Bicentenary

Posted on January 11, 2015 by Edward Brain
English: Sir. John A. Macdonald

Sir John A. Macdonald (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

On January 11th 2015, Canada celebrates the 200th birthday of its first Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald.

Sir John A. was a Father of Confederation, and had been Premier of the Province of Canada prior to Confederation.

Sir John A. was born John Alexander Macdonald on January 11th 1815 in Glasgow, Scotland.  His parents were Hugh Macdonald and Helen Shaw, who moved to Kingston, in what is now Ontario, in 1820 when John A. was only five years old. Continue reading →

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2015 Inductees into Cooperstown

Posted on January 7, 2015 by Edward Brain

The Baseball Hall of Fame (Cooperstown) has announced the inductees for the 2015 induction ceremony.  For the first time since 1955, four players received sufficient votes to be inducted.

The four inductiees are Randy Johnson (97.3%), Pedro Martinez (91.1%), John Smoltz (82.9%), and Craig Biggio (82.7%)

Let’s take a look at the inductees: Continue reading →

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