Well, after a wasted week in which I got nothing done (I’m feeling more than a little grim about the future of this blog, lemme tell ya, but more on that later), I figure the very least I can do is pump out a wee spot of Foofarah to entertain the ten or twelve of you my utter sloth hasn’t driven permanently away.  With the promise that I’m gonna try and actually SEE and REVIEW some plays this coming week, despite a hectic schedule of drudgery that’s cramping my ‘style’ but good.  And some of those shows might be some of these:

– IN THEATRES THIS WEEK:

STONES IN HIS POCKETS From 730 Productions, at the Gladstone.  Last week for Irish goodness from John P.Kelly, Zach Counsil and Richard Gelinas!

THE SECRET MASK at the GCTC.  Also final week for this gem from Rick Chafe!

HAY FEVER at the Ottawa Little Theatre.  OLT’s 100th season opener continues!

PRIVATE LIVES from Kanata Theatre, at the Ron Maslin Playhouse.  Second week for Kanata’s take on Noel Coward.

SNAPSHOT from Gruppo Rubato, at the GCTC Studio Space.  Yay, GR is back!  A can’t miss event.

DELUGE from Theatre de Trillium, at la Nouvelle Scene. An amazing company, and sure to be an amazing show.

DOG SEES GOD from Red.Collective, at Club SAW.  The Reddies do Peanuts courtesy of Bert Royal, and you want to be there.

CINEMASSACRE at Theatre Rene-Prevost. A second run for the popular French comedy!

And one More…

FRESH MEAT:  A while back I got the opportunity to head out to the cozy One-Drink-Minimum bar, not too far from Arts Court, for a special media preview evening for an exciting upcoming event, namely the much anticipated FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL running from the 28th to the 30th of this month at the Pressed Cafe on Gladstone.  The festival, produced by Jonah Allingham of BackPack Theatre (recent Ottawa Theatre School graduate to boot), promises to showcase six of the coolest, squinkiest up’n’coming theatre companies the city has to offer.  I got to see some cool stuff that night, and talk to some especially cool people, and I left more excited than before about the newest mini-festival Ottawa Theatre has to offer, which I expect will become the best thing to happen to O-town since UNDERCURRENTS.  Don’t believe me?  Check it out:

That’s wee Tess Mc Manus, who sang us a bee-yoo-tee-ful Irish song (Not ‘Irish Rovers’ Irish…the other kind of Irish song) to preview her show TALES SHE TELLS.  At least, that was the title last time I talked to her.  Tess’ recent one-woman debut DONKEY DERBY was a breath of fresh air across the Fringe circuit, and I’m definitely looking forward to what she’s cooked up next.  After her, Jake William Smith (coming off the successful remount of Fringe hit SPACE MYSTERY…FROM OUTERSPACE! at Arts Court) gave us a tiny taste of his new one-manner THE HENCHMAN’S SURVIVAL GUIDE, directed by May Can Theatre’s Cory Thibert.  And speaking of May Can…

Their latest is DUSK AND DAWN, starring the above-pictured Madeleine Boyes-Manseau and Cory Thibert, which I’m seriously jazzed about.  This one’s directed byMay Can co-founder Tony Adams, who talked a bit about the show.  As did Mike Doiron of Dead Unicorn Ink. on their contribution to the festival, Sylvie Recoskie’s CAUTION: DO NOT FEED THE MERMAIDS, which they promise will be a bit of a thematic departure for the young company. And of course, producer Jonah Allingham was there to preview his latest piece, SUMMER OF ’34.

Following Backpack’s mandate of providing uniquely Canadian stories, this show looks to be a pretty genuine slice of Canuck lore, riding on the momentum of the Fringe sleeper IN WAVES.  Hosting the festivities and finishing off the evening with a round of their high-octane improv were local heroes GRIMPROV, who will be reviving some of their more fan-fav’rit ‘lab’  improv styles for the festival.  You can’t kill a lawyer!

Every show in the festival is only 20 minutes long, with beer and paninis readily available throughout the evening.  I’m disheartened that I won’t be able to go on opening night (stoopid work!), so I hope this wee mini-preview will make it up to the gang!  And guys, don’t think I’ve forgotten…Dinosaurs on the Moon.  I expect great things.

ANTI-SOCIAL:  I’ve been a touch of a loner for many years now.  It’s not an intentional thing, it’s…just sort of how I turned out. Quite honestly, I don’t really care for it, it gets in the way a LOT, but I don’t seem to be able to quite kick it, and lately it’s been getting worse.  The other day I had to go on a staff boat cruise, and it felt like a living Hell. Granted, if you’d heard the music the DJ was spinning, you might agree with me, but being trapped on that cramped space with dozens of total strangers was driving me absolutely mental (which is how I must have looked, trying my best to sit as far apart from everyone as I could the entire time).

But like I say, lately things seem to getting a bit out of control.  Last week, anytime I wasn’t at work, I was home alone.  I skipped seeing the two shows I’d planned on seeing, because I figured if I was going to BE alone, might as well do it at home.  I’m making that decision an awful, awful lot these days, and I’m getting into some pretty bad habits.  Most noticeable among those is the obvious fact that I don’t update this site anywhere near as much as I used to, and it ain’t because there’s not enough to write about.  Not to mention that historically, I tend to use my self-isolation as an excuse to drop out of things…I worry sometimes that I’ll start using it as an excuse to drop out of all this.  Theatre, blogging, the whole shebang.  It really, truly is NOT healthy, this looming apoptostic state.

Which is why I’m REALLY looking forward to next Monday, even though I’m sure I’m  going to try and talk myself out of it at the last minute (DO NOT LET ME).  The superstars at Crush Improv, and in this case in particular Ken ‘The God’ Godmere, is running a short improv workshop before the next ‘Bout Time show at the Elmdale, and come Hell or high water, I’m-a gonna be there.  I most definitely need to remind myself that I’m still capable of playing with others (it’s probably quite telling that I dropped out of the ‘Talking Theatre’ podcast after only 1 episode).  And the extra-incentive/terror that Ken will be choosing two of the workshop contestants to join him on stage as his improv team that very night, well…no promises, folks, but I really need to scare myself right about now.  In a good way.

That’s about it for this week, I think…festival promotion and painful honesty is more than enough for one post, and I’ve got TIME TUNNEL to watch.  Hope to see you out at the theatre this week, I really do.  I n the meantime, here’s the theme song to the next show I really want them to release on DVD and soon, THE MAGICIAN:

Peace, love and soul, everyone,

The Visitor (and Winston)