Stage presence

>>Houdini gets musical, Shakespeare invades the parks and All Grown Up lures you off
the island this packed theatre season

BROTHERS IN MAGIC: Houdini, The Musical

by NEIL BOYCE

An unusually busy summer is coming for anglo theatre in and around Montreal. People interested in the performing arts get a brief pause now as Festival TransAmériques winds down and the havoc of the Fringe and off-Fringe fests have yet to begin. A good time to plan for the dog days. Here’s some of what will be happening…

The Just for Laughs festival presents Taking Over, a one-man play written and performed by Obie Award-winning actor Danny Hoch. He’s a multi-charactered dervish, morphing into nine different roles as he depicts a city in transition. Opens July 8 at Centaur Theatre. Info at www.hahaha.com or www.centaurtheatre.com.

Theatre sneaks into another Montreal fest with the remount of Houdini, The Musical at the Montreal Jazz Festival. If you don’t count those great burlesque shows at the Fringe and MainLine in recent years, it’s the first full-blown musical produced in English in Montreal in a long while, and follows a successful run at the Segal last February. Featuring period jazz from John Roney and his sextet, this revamped-for-the-jazz-fest show about the storied magician is on from June 27–July 5 at Théâtre Outremont.

Repercussion Theatre’s anticipated revival of last year’s hit Scapin the Schemer has been scrapped over funding delays from Heritage Canada. A great pity, but the talented company presses on with their mandate to bring Shakespeare to the masses in parks around the island. This summer features The Tempest, directed by Paul Hopkins, with Arianna Bardesono co-directing a concurrently running La Tempête.

Shows at the Old Port on July 23 and in Parc Lafontaine on July 25 highlight the English-language performances, continuing to August 17, while French-language shows include the season opener at the Old Port on July 22 and in Westmount Park July 27. The full schedule will be available on their Web site, www.repercussiontheatre.com, by mid-June.

GUERRILLA TACTICS

The Infringement Festival, bête noire of the Montreal Fringe, began as a tempest in the tiniest of teapots over a scrap about comping a journalist to a show. Their withdrawal from the Fringe in 2004 has already used up a lot of ink, so... enough already.

They do seem to be thriving, though, as the fest returns for a fifth season of ultra-low-budget theatre and pranksterism from June 5–29, at many undesignated spots around the Plateau and elsewhere. A schedule of events is available online at www.infringementfestival.com

Hudson Village Theatre has a new angle on grabbing theatre-goers with a chartered train set to deliver Montrealers to the wilds of the country on June 21 for their opener, a ’60s musical pastiche covering the lives of three women entitled All Grown Up. The train departs Lucien l’Allier station, with a stop in Beaconsfield. Tickets for the 2 p.m. or 6 p.m. performance include a return ride, onboard five-piece Dixieland band, snacks and a drink—all for 50 bucks. Info: (514) 287-7866, or escapadesentrain@amt.qc.ca. More about the rest of their season at villagetheatre.ca.

Bishop’s University’s Jubilee Theatre tours Edward Albee’s dark, absurdist comedy Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?, with stops in Montreal on June 5 at a mysterious “Private Venue,” (info: (514) 703-3110), and from June 10–14 at les 3 Minots (3812 St-Laurent).

The tiny powerhouse that is Théâtre Ste-Catherine will host events at the Montreal Fringe and Just for Laughs festivals, and continue their long-running Sunday Night Improv shows throughout the summer. Info and schedule at www.theatrestecatherine.com.