Sunday, April 15, 2007

Be Noble and Get Some Parasites in Your Life/

Hi everyone. This is your long lost blogger here, finally back after being bogged down by the six-day work week (which I secretly love) and opening a show (which went very well).

This will be very, very quick, because I am meeting two fantastic people for breakfast in 26 minutes and I have to make my hair look less like wet fur and more like...wet hair.

Here's the thing: my friends at Unspun Theatre did a show a few months ago which was creative and amazing and fantastic. But it was incredibly disconcerting to find out that there was hardly anyone in the audience. We are having the same problem with Noble Parasites, and when I ask around the theatre community, the general consensus is that tiny audiences are now the norm.

I am concerned that people don't go to the theatre in Toronto any more -- really concerned -- because the arts in this country seem to be in real trouble. If even Lord of the Rings has trouble staying afloat in this city, what does the future hold for the rest of us? I don't know enough about politics to blame anyone in particular (!) but I think it's a really, really sad state of affairs. Being flat broke, I understand that high ticket prices could be one of the factors keeping people away from the theatre. So could bad weather, better TV, no money going into the arts, etc. but I really hope it changes soon. Noble Parasites, on at Theatre Passe Muraille right now, is a mainstage show at a major theatre in the theatre capital of Canada....and we had fifteen people in the audience last night. Eleven the night before. Ten the night before that.

So...I am sending out a plea!! If you're broke like me, come and see Noble Parasites TODAY at 2pm. It's pay-what-you-can (same as next Sunday and the Sunday after that) so you can enjoy a funny, smart show for a price you can handle. If you're not interested in Sci-Fi (even though the play also addresses some very pressing issues in the world today and is FUNNY!), then please go and see SOMETHING ELSE! SOMETHING LIVE! SOMETHING WONDERFUL! There are tons of shows happening in Toronto right now by up-and-coming companies that represent the future of Canadian theatre. Just pick up a NOW or EYE magazine to find out what's on.

I sound like a salesperson...maybe I should look into vaccuum-selling for my next career...hmm...

See you soon, I hope!

K.
p.s. The make-things-huge button seems to be gone. My title looks so lonely and small and green up there.