Mary has been a fan of live theatre since her first visit to the Stratford Festival as a child, where she saw Christopher Walken and Louise Marleau in Romeo and Juliet. As a teenager, she had a summer job at the Grand Bend Tourist Information booth. Huron Country Playhouse founder James Murphy gave her free tickets to his inaugural season so she could promote it to visitors. She has a vivid memory of sitting in a tent on a folding chair, with her feet up on the seat in front of her, to avoid the rivulets of rain flowing through the mud and gravel towards the stage. Unfortunately, the productions that summer were less memorable, but have improved greatly over the years. Mary holds a B.A. in Honours English and an M.A. in Journalism from the University of Western Ontario. After graduation, Mary was a reporter for the Exeter Times-Advocate and reviewed shows at Huron Country Playhouse. Many years later, in 2004, Mary returned to writing reviews and posting them on her blog at www.EntertainThisThought.com . She lives in Strathroy, Ontario, central to the Stratford Festival, London’s Grand Theatre, Huron Country Playhouse in Grand Bend, Victoria Playhouse Petrolia, the Blyth Festival and more. Mary is a member of the Canadian Theatre Critics Association (www.canadiantheatrecritics.ca). By day, she works for the Ontario Association of Community Futures Development Corporations, (www.ontcfdc.com ) where she sees first-hand how a professional theatre can be an asset to the economic development of a community.
BWW Reviews: Other Desert Cities
February 23, 2014
February 23, 2014
Other Desert Cities strange tale similar in style to the great studies of dysfunctional families - it's a modern version of O'Neill's A Long Day's Journey into Night, or Miller's Death of a Salesman. The production, currently on stage at London's Grand Theatre, is an interesting study in family dynamics.
BWW Reviews: The Passion of Narcisse Mondoux
February 3, 2014
February 3, 2014
1980: the times, they were a-changin'. But in The Passion of Narcisse Mondoux, poor old Narcisse is being pushed as he reluctantly keeps up with the changing times. Narcisse Mondoux and his long-time crush, Laurencienne Robichaud, are on stage together in this charming Quebecois play at London's Grand Theatre. This delightful two-hander stars Rod Beattie as Narcisse and Brigit Wilson as Laurencienne. Beattie, of course, is well-known for playing many parts in the Wingfield series, and Wilson has been on stage in Stratford and Blyth.
BWW Reviews: ELF, From the North Pole to New York
December 2, 2013
December 2, 2013
Elf, the Christmas musical now on stage at London's Grand Theatre is an endearing show, thanks to a funny, well-written script, and a six foot four Elf who can deliver the lines. Liam Tobin is perfect as Buddy the Elf: He's taken the best that Will Ferrell had in the movie version of Elf, but his portrayal of the 30 year old child-like character is more reminiscent of Tom Hanks in 1988 movie Big. Either way, Tobin has made Buddy very lovable and almost believable.
BWW Review: WHITE CHRISTMAS
November 25, 2013
November 25, 2013
White Christmas is one of those "feel good" shows. There's a guaranteed happy ending, great songs, fantastic dance, and everyone leaves the theatre humming and smiling. What a great gift at Christmas time, on stage at St. Jacobs Country Playhouse!
BWW Review: LEGENDS OF HARMONY
November 25, 2013
November 25, 2013
Drayton Entertainment's Artistic Director Alex Mustakas has continued to his tried and true "Legends" series with Legends of Harmony. This is a concert-style revue, covering all your favourite four-part harmony songs.
BWW Reviews: RING OF FIRE - The Music of Johnny Cash
October 21, 2013
October 21, 2013
Ring of Fire, now on stage at London's Grand Theatre will be a thrill for true Johnny Cash aficionados. Only those who are big Cash fans and true country music enthusiasts will appreciate the lesser known songs in this concert-style show.
BWW Reviews: FLORENCE HENDERSON: ALL THE LIVES OF ME - She is Simply Charming
October 12, 2013
October 12, 2013
Florence Henderson: All the Lives of Me...A Musical Journey
BWW Reviews: GODSPELL - St. Matthew's Gospel with Great Energy
October 7, 2013
October 7, 2013
Energetic cast brings Godspell to life at the St. Jacobs Country Playhouse, Waterloo.
BWW Reviews: LEND ME A TENOR is a
Door-Slamming Good Farce
October 2, 2013
October 2, 2013
Lend Me a Tenor offers many cases of mistaken identity, lots of physical comedy and plenty of door-slamming fun as the crazy situations unfold.
BWW Reviews: LEGALLY BLONDE - Grand's High School Project Goes Blonde
September 24, 2013
September 24, 2013
Legally Blonde, on stage at London's Grand Theatre, marks the 15th anniversary of their High School Project. Each year for the past 15, the Grand has mounted a full-scale musical with high school students as the cast and crew. The students get all the advantages of working in a professional theatre setting, with Artistic Director Susan Ferley directing the show.
BWW Reviews: Hollywood Sings at the Victoria Playhouse
September 10, 2013
September 10, 2013
Hollywood Sings is a musical revue style production currently on stage at the Victoria People's Playhouse in Petrolia. Presented by David Rogers and David Hogan and starring an impressive roster of Canadian talent (including Les Miserables alumnus Susan Gilmour) the show makes for a great night out for lovers of film, musicals and live music.
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