PRESS RELEASE: The Yellow Wallpaper

 A combination of in-person ambulatory theatre, projection installation and a  
digital streaming experience 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: TORONTO, ON (February 1, 2023)…Based on the classic short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, The Yellow Wallpaper follows the story of A Woman – played by Kate McArthur (BWT Award Best Featured Actress, The Rear Window) – who, after showing signs of depression, is subjected to the “rest cure” and pushed into forced isolation by her physician husband. Over time she becomes increasingly consumed with the sickly yellow wallpaper that covers her bedroom walls, rapidly losing her sense of self and her grasp on reality. A biting critique on the treatment of women’s mental health when it was first published in 1892, the story remains unfortunately relevant today when a staggering number of people report a mental health decline since the onset of the pandemic, and the inability to access adequate care. 

Directed by Emily Dix (The Birds; BWT Award Best Direction, The Rear Window) and inspired by the negative impact that COVID-19 has had on those who already suffer from mental illness, this original production is set in the historic Campbell House Museum. Animation is provided by digital and VFX artist Steven Dirckze to enhance McArthur’s live performance which is displayed throughout the house via projection design by Media Producer Bria Cole, using projection technology graciously provided by Panasonic. The participation of Kate McArthur is arranged by permission of Canadian Actors’ Equity Association under the provisions of the Dance-Opera-Theatre Policy (DOT).

Audience members are invited to wander the house and experience the show from different perspectives as they interact with unique elements found in each room. The order in which they access the rooms, as well as the time spent with various elements will inform their experience of the play, and of The Woman’s madness. Additionally, a live-streaming experience will be available for audience members to watch from home via Zoom, a process which utilizes Blackmagic Design production, broadcasting, and livestreaming technology. 

This experimental production, a marked departure from Bygone’s usual chamber dramas, is made possible through funding from the Canada Council’s Digital Now grant. 

ABOUT BYGONE THEATRE 
Bygone Theatre’s goal is to promote the growth and development of independent theatre in Toronto through production, education, and outreach. We produce character-driven stories that are written or set in the early to mid-twentieth century in an attempt to connect audiences to parts of our past that remain relevant and intriguing today. Through education initiatives such as classroom workshops and student matinees, we connect younger generations to pieces of history they are unlikely to encounter elsewhere, while also fostering youth interest and participation in theatre production. Outreach initiatives connect Bygone with other historically focused groups in Toronto, further strengthening our city’s cultural heritage. Bygone’s commitment to accessible theatre is shown through our use of wheelchair accessible venues; our various ticket discounts for disadvantaged, underserved and minority communities; and inclusion of artists of all skill and experience levels both on and off stage, including training positions for those who are new to a role. 

THE YELLOW WALLPAPER 
DATES: March 3-18, 2023 | Tues – Sat, 8pm | Sat 11 & 18, 2pm, Sun 5 & 12, 2pm 
VENUE: Campbell House Museum, 160 Queen St. W., Toronto 
CREATED BY: Emily Dix, Kate McArthur and Bria Cole 
PRODUCED BY: Conor Fitzgerald, Emily Dix
Associate Producer Shreya Patel | Media Producer Bria Cole 
ANIMATION BY: Steven Dirczke | DESIGNED BY: Emily Dix 
ASSISTANT DIRECTED BY: Julia Edda Pape 
ACCESSIBILITY: Please visit http://www.campbellhousemuseum.ca/accessibility 
RECOMMENDED FOR: Ages 12+ | Mature Themes, Mental Illness 
TICKETS: www.bygonetheatre.com/tickets | SOCIAL MEDIA: @BygoneTheatre 
MEDIA CONTACT: Emily Dix | 647-343-5965 | emily@bygonetheatre.com 

The Loot Collective Presents Joe Orton’s LOOT

FOR IMMEDATE RELEASE:
MONDAY JANUARY 8, 2018

The Loot Collective Presents Joe Orton’s 1960s Farce

LOOT

TORONTO, ON (Monday January 8, 2018) – Bygone Theatre has partnered with the Loot Collective to support their production of Loot, running March 8-17^th, 2018 at the Alumnae Theatre, 70 Berkeley St., Toronto. This is a Canadian Actor’s Equity Association production under the Artist’s Collective Policy. Directed by Emily Dix.

SYNOPSIS

England, 1965; Only hours before her intended burial, the late Mrs. McLeavy is removed from her coffin by her son, Hal (Kevin Forster), and his best pal, Dennis (Kenton Blythe), who have together just robbed a bank and need the coffin to stash the loot. The boys try to hide the corpse from the recently widowed McLeavy (Patrick Young) and his deceased wife’s nurse, Fay (Sarah Thorpe), but with Inspector Truscott (Scott McCulloch) hot on their heels, their plan quickly begins to unravel. Absurdity abounds in this dark, 1965 farce that examines attitudes surrounding death, police integrity, and the Catholic church.

ABOUT THE CAST

Patrick Young is Mr.McLeavy in “Loot”.

Patrick Young (Mr.McLeavy) has had an extensive career on and off stage, and may be best known in Toronto for his work at Sheridan College, where he founded the joint actor training program with the University of Toronto Mississauga. He is the author of 4 award-winning biographical plays, and has an extensive directing resume. Past acting credits in Toronto include Flicks, The Relapse and the original production of Automatic Pilot.

 

Scott McCulloch is Inspector Truscott in “Loot”.

Scott McCulloch (Truscott) has had a career spanning over 30 years, 100 plays and nearly 50 films. Recent credits include the immersive production Hogtown at Campbell House, the Wolf Manor Theatre production of Three Sisters, and the Thought For Food production of The Trial of Judith K for which he received a Broadway World Toronto nomination of Best Performance by a Male in a Featured Role.

Kenton Blythe is Dennis in “Loot”.

Kenton Blythe (Dennis), was most recently seen in the Toronto Fringe hit, Grey. Other stage credits include the Starvox Entertainment production of Evil Dead: The Musical, and a stint at the Shaw Festival, where he was seen in Juno and the Paycock and Cabaret. You may also remember Kenton from Bygone Theatre’s 2013 production of Dial M For Murder.

Sarah Thorpe is Fay in “Loot”.

Sarah Thorpe (Fay) is a multi-talented theatre artist and a core creative member of Soup Can Theatre. She created and performed in the award-winning one-woman show Heretic, a modern retelling of Joan of Arc, in 2015, and has more recently been seen in Toronto Fringe Hit, Behold! The Barfly! and Gut Girls at Alumnae Theatre.

Kevin Forster as Hal in “Loot”.

Kevin Forster (Hal) is a graduate of the Ryerson Theatre School and has been featured in several productions at the Lower Ossington Theatre, including The Buddy Holly Story, Always ABBA and The Little Mermaid. He has also performed at Hart House Theatre and in the Toronto Festival of Clowns.

Jonah McGrath is Meadows in “Loot”.

Jonah McGrath (Meadows) is a recent graduate of the Brock University Dramatic Arts program. Recent credits include Play by Samuel Beckett, The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny and Chekov’s The Man in the Case.

ABOUT THE DIRECTOR

Director/ Producer, Emily Dix.

Emily Dix is a founding member and the Artistic Executive Director of Bygone Theatre. As a producer, she has worked with Tarragon Theatre and Theatre 20, and has produced all of Bygone Theatre’s productions to date. She got her start directing at the University of Toronto, working on shows such as the Hart House Theatre production of The Night of The Iguana as an assistant director, and directing a number of shows for the campus colleges. Bygone Theatre directing credits include; His Girl Friday; Vaudeville Revue; Wait Until Dark; Rope; Dial M For Murder and Doubt: A Parable. In addition to directing, Emily does the costume design for all of Bygone Theatre’s productions.

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
Thursday March 8 – Saturday March 10, 8:00pm
Tuesday March 13 – Saturday March 17, 8:00pm
Saturday March 10, Sunday March 11, Saturday March 17, 2:00pm matinee

Tickets: On-sale now. Available at https://loot.bpt.me

Media Contact: Producer Emily Dix, Emily@bygonetheatre.com, 647-343-5965
Twitter: @BygoneTheatre |FB: Facebook.com/BygoneTheatre |Insta: @BygoneTheatre

For group sales, press access or to request accommodation, please email Emily@bygonetheatre.com.

 This production is being produced by The Loot Collective and is being supported by
Bygone Theatre.

Toronto’s Top 10 Lost Vaudeville Theatres

In planning for Vaudeville Revue we’ve learned a lot about Toronto’s former Vaudeville theatres that have disappeared over the years. Whether they were converted into something for a new use or demolished altogether, the are very few Vaudeville palaces still standing in our city today.

Here’s a look at some of the greats that have been lost over the past century.

1. Shea’s Hippodrome

Shea’s Hippodrome – 440 Bay St., Toronto

When Shea’s Hippodrome opened in 1914 it was Vaudeville theatre in Canada was was quickly deemed one of the top 4 in North America. Sadly, this colossal beauty had a short life;  the Hippodrome was demolished in 1957. For an interesting story about its very unique and very expensive Wurlitzer Organ, check this out.

2. The Standard (The Strand, The Victory, Victory Burlesque)

The Standard – Corner of Spadina & Dundas, Toronto

The Standard opened in 1921 as a Yiddish theatre and remained a centre of Toronto’s Jewish community until it was converted to a cinema in 1934 and renamed The Strand. In 1941 it was rebranded again, this time as The Victory, part of the Twentieth Century Theatre chain. In 1961 it became the Victory Burlesque, one of only 3 burlesque houses in the city. While the building still remains, the theatre closed its doors permanently in 1975.

3. Shea’s Victoria

Shea’s Victoria – 83 Victoria St., Toronto

 

The Shea Brothers opened their second theatre, Shea’s Victoria, on the corner of Richmond and Victoria in 1910. This 1800 seat theatre included a projector so that films could be screened in addition to live theatre performances.

4. The Uptown

The Uptown Theatre – Corner of Yonge & Bloor

Loew’s Uptown Theatre opened in 1920, a 3000 seat sister theatre to The Pantages (currently the Ed Mirvish Theatre). This one as well was created for both cinema and Vaudeville. In 2001, new regulations required the theatre to become wheelchair accessible, something that would have cost about $700 000. Despite community outcries, the theatre was demolished in 2003. Sadly, the ill-advised removal of a structural beam lead to its accidental collapse and resulted in the death of a 27 year old man.

5. The Belsize (Regent, Crest)

The Belsize – 551 Mount Pleasant Road, Toronto

The Belsize Theatre opened in 1927, another venue for theatre and film. Unlike many on this list, The Belsize didn’t turn from live theatre to film, but the other way around. In the 1950s the only theatre of note showing live theatre was The Royal Alexandra (who showed primarily American shows and tours) and many felt that a place was needed to showcase Canadian theatre. In 1953 the venue ceased showing films and was renovated and reopened as The Crest, a live theatre venue. In 1971 films began showing again and in 1988 it was again renovated and reopened, this time as The Regent, a movie theatre that still stands today.

6. The Runneymede

The Runnymede – 2225 Bloor St. West, Toronto

The Runnymede Theatre opened in 1927 as an “atmospheric Vaudeville”house, the first of its kind in Toronto. The venue was meant to make you feel as though you were transported to somewhere magical and exotic; the ceiling was painted blue and bulbs were lit up like stars, silver and blue lights were projected to give the feeling of clouds. By 1999, the theatre was no longer profitable, even as a 2-screen cinema. The building was purchased by a Chapters Bookstore, and in the conversion they kept and maintained much of the interior. Today, it is the location of a Shoppers Drug Mart, and while it still features much of the original trim and interior facade, there’s something very sad looking about its current appearance.

7. Capitol Theatre

The Capitol Theatre – 2492 Yonge St., Toronto

The Capitol opened in 1918 and showed Vaudeville acts and silent films. By 1933, the theatre was converted to show only films. The theatre closed its doors in 1998 and remained empty for several years, before finally being purchased, undergoing major renovations and reopening as The Capitol Event Theatre. While the seats were removed and a bar installed, much of the original ornate interior remains, much like it does at the Runnymede.

8. Academy Theatre

The Academy – 1286 Bloor St. W, Toronto

The Academy opened in 1914, a smaller venue than most on the list with only 410 seats. It’s not known when exactly the theatre stopped showing Vaudeville acts, or when it stopped operating as a cinema, but it is likely to have occurred sometime after the 1960s. The venue still stands, though has not operated as a theatre in years.

9. Variety (Arcadian) Theatre

The Arcadian (formerly Variety) Theatre – 8-10 Queen St. East

I have significantly less information on this theatre, but it housed in a building built in the late 1880s, and was likely built before the 1920s. In the late 1920s its name was changed to The Arcadian, and it seems that by the 30s it was a cinema and no longer live venue. The theatre closed in 1954 and for some time had a retail show that used the old sign. However, it has since been demolished.

10. Madison Theatre (The Midtown, The Capri, The Eden, Bloor Cinema, Hot Docs Cinema)

The Madison Theatre – 506 Bloor St. W, Toronto

The Madison has had more renos and new names than most on this list. It originally opened in 1913, an early Picture Palace that also featured Vaudeville acts. In 1940 it was demolished and rebuilt as The Midtown, a cinema; all that remained of the original building were the two side walls. Movie attendance declined in the second half of the 20th century, and in the 1960s it was under the new management of the Famous Players chain and renamed the Capri. In 1973 it was again re-branded, this time as The Eden, and the theatre switched from playing mostly double-bills to a heavily censored “adult”films. Come 1979, Famous Players closed The Eden and re-opened it as The Bloor Cinema, now offering first-run, family-friendly entertainment. Soon the theatre introduced memberships and classic theatre runs, and eventually became a part of the Festival Theatre circuit. In the late 2000s the theatre had a bit of an uncertain future (read more here), but eventually it was bought, renovated, and re-opened as what it stands as today; The Hot Docs Cinema.

Think we missed some important former Vaudeville theatres? Tweet us your suggestions; @BygoneTheatre #VaudevilleRevue

Want to learn more about Toronto’s theatre history? Check out this amazing blog, where I sourced a lot of our material; Historic Toronto.

We may not have a Vaudeville house to perform in, but we’ll have historic acts on our stage and artifacts and more history like this in our lobby; join us for Vaudeville Revue, June 22-24th, Alumnae Theatre. Tickets on sale now.

Vaudeville Revue – June 22-24, 2016

Retro Christmas Countdown – Crazy Vintage Recipes

Every family has their own Christmas traditions, and chances are, they include some much-loved recipes. However, for every delicious pie there is that dreaded fruit cake or failed potato salad that family members choke down once a year so as not to hurt anyone’s feelings. Imagine the difficulty in doing that, however, when the popular recipes of the day looked like this!

Ok, I kind of get it…candles, Christmas, those sort of go together. But somehow looking at those I don’t find myself thinking of candles…also, maybe it’s just me, but bananas never exactly screamed “xmas” to me.

In keeping with our candle theme here’s one dish that does something incredible; turns me off from food even more than the previous one. It’s like someone had spent years plopping that cranberry sauce out of the can and thinking, it needs something extra, and then one day, eureka! We can mix it with mayonnaise and light it on fire! I mean, the lighting it on fire part isn’t a bad idea…

Oh goody! More of everyone’s favourite Christmas treat; bananas! But now we’ve perfected them by ADDING MEAT.

Now, on top of generally just being against eating anything that smiles at me, I feel like “seafood” and “mousse” are two words that shouldn’t really go together. Gotta appreciate that great presentation though, the bed of greens and 3 awkwardly places tomatoes really give it that je ne sais quoi.

Despite it’s bizarre appearance, I feel this may be the most normal meal on the list. I think those are cornflakes that have been sort of “candy-fied” and topped with what I assume are mints. Worth the effort? Not really. But much less likely to give you nightmares or gut rot than most of this list.

There were just too many lovely jello creations to choose from, I couldn’t narrow it down to one. Really, all you need to know is that jello used to be SO popular they made vegetable flavour, and that it wasn’t uncommon to serve as part of the main course. Now, admittedly, my Grandmother always serves jello with Christmas dinner, I think it’s a rural Ontarian thing, but THANK GOD it’s cherry flavoured and I’ve never been forced to choke down shrimp and olive jello.

I think the name says it all. “Bacon pudding” is even worse than “vegetable jello” in my books. Fun Fact: this comes up looking the exact same way it does going down.

Last, but certainly not least, this piece de resistance that certainly does take the crown. I think what really makes it for me is that, they seem to have sliced the sausages lengthwise so that they can curve up around the dish, rising up so support that lovely pile of…I guess it’s some sort of sauerkraut…I’d love to see someone try and serve this without the whole thing falling apart, almost as much as I’d love to watch someone eat it without falling apart themselves.

Did you like this post? Check out other blogs like Bad Jelly (where they make and try some of these fabulous creations) and The Gallery of Regrettable Food. Have you ever tried anything this ghastly? Tweet us your pictures or stories to @BygoneTheatre #RetroFood.

-E.

Vintage Christmas Printables

In need of some last-minute decorations or gifts? Check out these sources for great vintage printables and hand-make a card, gift tag, wreath or garland. Be sure to tweet pictures of your creations to @BygoneTheatre! Click on the images for links to the original sites.

Graphics Fairy has hundreds of Christmas printables.

 

Vintage Holiday Crafts features many turn-of-the-century Christmas cards

 

Beautiful gift tags from Christmas Charisma.

 

True to its name, Free Pretty Things For You has some adorable prints, a bit more modern and colourful than the others, plus ideas how on to use them!

 

Miss the kitschy-fun wrapping paper of yesteryear? No fear! Aunt Peaches has some scanned so print to your hearts content.

 

Enjoy!

Vintage Halloween Masks – DIY Printables!

With Halloween just around the corner, we thought we’d share some fun vintage masks that you can print out at home! Check out these great sites for more, and be sure to follow our pinterest board for all the updates.

Wings of Whimsey is a great source for free printables and one I visit often. You can find things like this vintage cat mask;

VintageHalloween.com is an obvious choice if you’re looking for something specific and don’t mind spending some money. They have a wide array of vintage reproduction so you can make your Halloween party as authentic as you’d like (I’m swooning over some of this stuff).

This is sort of a random one that I stumbled across while browsing pinterest. 50’s Ben Cooper Box Art Detail is how the flickr album is labeled and it seems to be a high-res scan of an old costume box. Pretty nifty.

The Monster Masks Blog is a spectacular find – you really can get anything on the internet. Check out an amazing assortment of high-quality rubber and latex masks and download some cool paper ones for yourself!

 

Prefer pretty over creepy? Check out Mamelok Papercraft for some beautiful Victorian reproduction masks like these;

Got some more resource you think we should share? Send them our way! Tweet them to @BygoneTheatre.

• E.D.