Edmonton’s Live Theatre Scene

Posted on June 15, 2007
Filed Under Uncategorized |

I had originally intended to write a review of One, the play I saw last night, but I’m honestly not sure what I thought of it[1]. I’ll give it a bit more time to sink in, and then I’ll try to give you a proper review of it (hopefully, before it’s finished it’s run at Nextfest). Instead, I’m going to write a little bit about the live theatre scene in Edmonton.

The theatre scene in this city is huge. It’s incredible how much theatre we have here. It seems that there is a small theatre every few blocks in the downtown and Old Strathcona areas. This is a theatre town. Somehow, though, I don’t manage to see very much of it.

I’ve always suspected that one of the reasons that Edmonton has such a vibrant arts scene (theatre, visual arts, poetry, music, etc.) is because we’re so far north. Even with the advent of modern travel, we’re a relatively isolated city. As a result, we’ve had to create our own scene. I’m glad for it, because it’s an amazing scene. We have the second largest fringe theatre festival in the world, after all. I think that speaks to the appreciation for theatre (and for the arts in general) in this city.

We’re a city of just over a million people which, while big by Canadian standards, is hardly amazing in the global scheme of things. We’re a city that most people have never heard of and yet, we’ve got the biggest alternative theatre festival this side of Edinburgh. I think that says something about the city as a whole.

But, as I said, I don’t get out and see nearly enough of the wildness that is the Edmonton arts scene. In order to remedy that, I’m asking you, dear readers, to recommend some of your favourite things in the local arts scene. Tell me what to check out. I’ll do my best to act upon all of your recommendations, and post my responses here.

What are your favourite parts of the Edmonton arts scene?

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[1] The page that I’ve linked to looks a bit weird, because the site uses frames, and I wanted to link directly to the content I was referencing, instead of forcing you to try and find it on your own.

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