I’ll take them where I can get them…

This time last year I was part of Freak Show, Swallow-A-Bicycle’s contribution to One Yellow Rabbit’s High Performance Rodeo. I was pulled into a number at the last moment, handed a megaphone and told to climb to the highest point accessible on the top of The Epcor Center. Outside. In the snow. In the cold. In the dark. Did I mention the snow?

It was awesome.

I’m not able to yell at you people this year (and yelling at people through a Megaphone is awesome fun) because unfortunately I’m not part of Freak Show. I know. It makes me sad also. I haven’t seen my Megaphone in almost a year. I called him “Titan”. Happiness is a loud Megaphone…

But I do have a part to play in the High Performance Rodeo. Here’s two more shows you should check out, Swallow-A-Bycicles Freak Show, and Ground Zero Theatre’s 10 Minute Play festival.

Freak Show
Presented by Swallow-A-Bicycle
January 7 - 9, Tours leave from Center Court, Epcore Centre
Tickets $15

Freak Show is something a bit different than most theatre you catch in the city, which makes it a perfect fit for the HPR. It’s comprised of three tours. Each depart from the Freak Show ticket booth in Centre Court, right in the middle of the craziness of Midway. The tours will take you through a diverse style of theatre disciplines in new work generated for the location that each group of artists is assigned.

There are two components that make Freak Show something worth checking out at the HPR. The first is the talent. Although many participants are actors, you will also find dancers, contortionists, musicians, and some people you can only really define as “artists”. The second ingredient is the locations. Each of the three tours will take you into locations that most people will never see. Tour guides can take you backstage, past the dressing rooms, and into theatre’s belly.  Cargo elevators, behind restricted access doors, and up the ladder to the stage… If you’re lucky, maybe you’ll end up out on the roof.

It is possible to see all three shows, but you will have to pay for each tour (they are all seperate shows), and there are no presale tickets. Last year the tours were packed, and more than a few were turned away.

Stay tuned, there may be news on getdown.ca shortly about how you can get a bit of a preview of the tours…

10 Minute Play Festival
Presented by Ground Zero Theatre
January 9th, 7.30pm, Martha Cohen Theatre
Tickets $15

I’m going to get the shameless plug over with. I’m in this. I’m stoked to be part of this challenge.

In it’s tenth year, the 10-Minute Play Festival has proven to be a mostly crazy fun time. Doug McKeag, fresh off of his role as Toad in ATP’s Toad of Toad Hall, hosts the evening, taking every opportunity he can get to skewer the performers with his sharp wit and raised eyebrow.

For 24 hours, local theatre companies field teams who have to write, rehearse and perform a show. Friday evening each of the teams receives a package containing a line or two of dialog (traditionally from the OYR Main Stage show) and a prop. They must feature these items centrally in their work, and be ready to perform the following night.

I’m excited and a bit freaked. This will be my first time on the Martha Cohen Deck, and I cant wait. You’ll either find me in The Auburn Saloon later Saturday night with shaking hands and a sullen face or a huge smile and a beer in hand.

I’m confident it’ll be the latter.

Tags: Ground Zero, High Performance Rodeo, HPR, One Yellow Rabbit, Swallow-A-Bicycle

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 7th, 2010 at 10:39 am and is filed under Stage & Screen. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.