So that was a swell UNDERCURRENTS festival, wasn’t it? Terrific shows like SPIN, MUCH ADO ABOUT FECKIN’ PIRATES, PUNCH-UP, LOVE+HATE, FAR & NEAR & HERE, MARATHON, AIR, JERK IT and UN CABARET TRENDY-TRASH SIGNE LES POIDS PLUMES (which I apologize profusely for missing…I suck very terribly) made for one hell of a good time out at Arts Court, the new home of Undercurrents. Next up there, I believe, will be the return of May Can Theatre‘s revitalized HAPPINESS(tm) as the next phase of the TACTICS series. Can’t wait to see how the gang has transformed this piece, which was terrific to begin with.

So if there’s no new show review, what’s with this post? Well, that’s kind of the point. As many of the folks reading this may already know, I’ve been slowly getting into the performance and creation part of Theatre here in Ottawa…even now I’m in rehearsals for Chamber Theatre’s production of THE HAIRY APE, and in early production of a new Fringe show, HANNAH & GEORGE, with my own Strange Visitations team. And over the last 2 weeks, while I was struggling to finish a workable 1st draft of said show, and kept having to put it aside to write reviews for Undercurrents, I came to a very clear, if sad, realization. And that’s that I can’t keep writing reviews.

Don’t get me wrong, I still want to (and plan to) get out to see as much theatre as possible, for the rest of my life. And hopefully along the way, do what I can to promote said shows on this very blog, which I have every intention of continuing in one form or another. But the mental resources dedicated to crafting and writing show reviews, meagre as mine are, just can no longer be spared if I’m going to give my new work…the actual creating of theatre…the attention it needs. To say nothing of just how weird it’s gotten, reviewing people who are now friends, and even peers. It will mean the decidedly unpleasant reality of (gulp) passing on free tickets, and wish me courage there, gang, because it won’t be easy. But I just wanted to kind of publicly make this announcement, pretentious as it is, that I’m ending this chapter of my online life for the foreseeable future. And it’s been grand, you guys, it’s been just grand. The amazing shows and performers I’ve seen in the last 5 years are beyond my abilities to properly describe (but feel free to scroll back through the archives and read my attempts to do just that), and it has been my honour and privilege to share my love of their work with a larger audience here. The lot of you have made a lonely loser like me feel very, very welcome, and I can’t thank you enough for that. I hope we continue to grow and hang out together as I wobble down this scary new fork in the road, trying to find my way. Peace, love and soul,

Kevin Reid (and Winston)