Congratulations to Stage West in Calgary on announcing its 2013-2014 Season! Details can be found below:

A modern day twist on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, set in New York City.  A young, uptight greeting card writer’s life is changed when he meets a flighty photographer.  Along with their eccentric friends and siblings, they learn to love each other not in spite of their faults, but because of them.  Because it’s easy to say, “I love you anyway”, but hard and all the more rewarding to say, “I love you because.”
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2011′s Motown Gold brought you the music that was specifically recorded under the Motown label and its stable of artists.  This time around we bring you Love Train – a journey through the music of soul and R&B.  It celebrates the songs recorded under such influential labels as Staxx, Phil Spector’s “Wall of Sound”, Atlantic Records, and even more from Motown.  Featuring the incomparable genius of stars such as Aretha Franklin, Chuck Berry, the Drifters, Etta James, James Brown, Ike and Tina Turner, and Percy Sledge, just to name a few.  The soul and R&B legacy of these great artists has been passed on to a new generation which include Prince, Beyonce, Boys2Men, Mariah Carey, Bruno Mars, and Whitney Houston.
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“This laugh-out-loud comedy has everything one can hope for in a modern-day farce: two likable cops operating way out of their league, a supposedly crooked mayor with impeccable timing, his innocent-acting wife, a shy accountant with a penchant for dropping her drawers, a nervous double agent who’d like to get in those drawers, a Scottish hitman whose brogue gets thicker the angrier he gets, two adjoining motel rooms, simmering sexual tension, and eight doors a’slammin’.” – Donald V. Calamia, “Between the Lines”

Two cops.  Three crooks.  Eight doors.  Go!
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In the little village of Anatevka, Tevye, a poor dairyman, tries to instill in his five daughters the traditions of his tight-knit Jewish community in the face of changing social mores and the growing anti-semitism of Czarist Russia.

Rich in historical and ethnic detail, Fiddler on the Roof has touched audiences around the world with its humor, warmth, and honesty.  The universal theme of tradition cuts across barriers of race, class, nationality, and religion, leaving audiences crying tears of laughter, joy, and sadness.
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Avenue Q is a gut-bustingly hilarious modern musical focusing on a group of unique 20-somethings making their way in the big city, seeking their purpose in life.  Although the show addresses humorous adult issues, it is similar to a beloved children’s show; a place where puppets are friends, monsters are good, and life lessons are learned.

Winner of the Tony “Triple Crown” for Best Musical, Best Score, and Best Book, Avenue Q is part flesh and part felt, and packed with heart.  Avenue Q is a laugh-out-loud musical that tells the timeless story of a recent college grad named Princeton who moves into a shabby New York apartment all the way out on Avenue Q.  He soon discovers that although the residents seem nice, it’s clear that this is not your ordinary neighborhood.  Together, Princeton and his new-found friends struggle to find jobs, dates, and their ever-elusive purpose in life.

Congratulations to The Shakespeare Company in Calgary on announcing their 2013-2014 season! Plays are listed below, but we thought it’d be fun to share their season announcement on YouTube: 

Titus Andronicus

September 20^th to October 6th, 2013
Co-production Hit and Myth and Ground Zero Theatre
The Studio Theatre at the Vertigo Theatre Centre

The Winter’s Tale

February 5^th to 15^th, 2014
In conjunction with the Mount Royal University Theatre Dept
Nickle Theatre at Mount Royal University

Twelfth Night

May 15^th to 25^th, 2014
The Studio Theatre at the Vertigo Theatre Centre

VERTIGO THEATRE ANNOUNCES 2013/2014
BD&P MYSTERY THEATRE SERIES and Y STAGE THEATRE SERIES

Calgary, AB – Craig Hall, Artistic Director of Vertigo Theatre, during a near capacity season launch event, announced the company’s 2013/2014 Vertigo Mystery Theatre season, renamed BD&P Mystery Theatre series, thanks to a generous funding commitment announced by Cheryl Gottselig, Partner/Lawyer, from Burnet Duckworth & Palmer LLP Law Firm. Hall was joined by Nathan Pronyshyn, Y Stage Theatre series Producer, who revealed the season line up for Y Stage Theatre series.

Craig Hall said “I am thrilled to offer a season that honours Vertigo Theatre’s core mandate, while at the same time continues an exploration of mystery’s various subgenres. Placing classic names like Arthur Conan Doyle, Graham Greene and Alfred Hitchcock alongside contemporary names like Hannah Moscovitch, Matt Pelfrey and Chris Gibbs shows Vertigo Theatre’s BD&P Mystery Theatre series is continuing to evolve without forgetting where we have come from.”

“As a longtime supporter of the vibrant arts and cultural productions in our community, Burnet Duckworth & Palmer LLP Law Firm is proud to increase its partnership with Vertigo Theatre”, said Cheryl Gottselig, Partner/Lawyer at BD&P, “we feel strongly that long term support in culturally focused initiatives has a positive ripple effect on the people who work and live in the city we proudly call home.”

Nathan Pronyshyn remarked “we are very excited to be presenting a diverse, fully professional line-up of quality theatre for young people to mark the commencement of Y Stage Theatre series’ 10th season. With stories of courage and perseverance, and styles ranging from storytelling to circus – audiences will be able to experience a season that has something for the whole family.”

The 2013/2014 BD&P Mystery Theatre series will continue to explore the reaches of the mystery genre and Vertigo Theatre remains Canada’s only professional presenter of a season of mystery-based plays. The 2013 – 2014 series features:

IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT
By Matt Pelfrey
Based on the novel by John Ball
Director Kate Newby
September 14 – October 13, 2013
Adapted from the award-winning novel and Oscar winning film of the same name, this gritty mystery takes place amongst the racially turbulent backdrop of Argo, Alabama during the 1960s. With a local man found dead, the police work with an improbable stranger to help solve a case with no witnesses, motives, or clues. Both affecting and intense, this show will ensure audiences are guessing until the very end.

VINTAGE HITCHCOCK: A LIVE RADIO PLAY
By Joe Landry
Director Craig Hall
November 9 – December 8, 2013
Patrons will be transported to an era when radio was king, with a behind-the- scenes glimpse into a 1940’s style radio broadcast complete with vintage commercials, live Foley (sound effects) and musical underscoring. Audiences can simply sit back and enjoy the fun, nostalgia, and thrills through the re-telling of three of the master of suspense’s earliest films: The Lodger, Sabotage, and The 39 Steps.

THE HURON BRIDE
By Hannah Moscovitch
Director Eric Rose
January 25 – February 23, 2014
Hazel Sheehan has braved the perilous journey across the Atlantic to work for James as a hired hand at a backwoods sawmill. When he asks her to marry him, Hazel is overjoyed, but will the ghost of James’ ex-wife spoil their wedding plans? Originally commissioned by Toronto’s Theatrefront – this creepy Canadian ghost story will be adapted exclusively for Vertigo Theatre by one of this country’s most dynamic playwrights.

TRAVELS WITH MY AUNT
By Graham Greene
Adapted by Giles Havergal
Director Simon Mallett
March 8 – April 6, 2014
Henry Pulling leads a quiet life tending his beloved dahlias and never straying too far from his home. But when his eccentric and outrageous Aunt Augusta suddenly appears with mysterious information about his past, Henry is drawn into a life of crime and a series of absurd adventures. Adapted from the celebrated novel by Graham Green, Travels With My Aunt promises to take audiences on an irreverent, often hilarious and absolutely unforgettable journey.

THE HOUND OF BASKERVILLES
By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Adapted by Clive Francis
Director Craig Hall
May 10 – June 8, 2014
The quintessential sleuth and his ever-reliable sidekick return to the Vertigo Theatre stage. A bloodcurdling howl is heard across a cold, moonlit moor; the spectral hound has claimed another victim. Sherlock Holmes and Watson are called upon to investigate the legendary plague of the Baskerville Manor. The Hound of the Baskervilles is one of the greatest stories of the 20th century and the most popular of the Sherlock Holmes adventures.

~ SPECIAL PRESENTATION~

ANTOINE FEVAL
Presented with One Yellow Rabbit as part of the 28th High Performance Rodeo, Calgary’s
International Festival of the Arts
Created and Performed by Chris Gibbs
January 15 – January 25, 2014
Vertigo Theatre is proud to present this world-renowned one-man show with one of Canada’s preeminent international arts festivals. Barnaby Gibbs – an eternal optimist and Sherlock Holmes enthusiast – happens upon what he thinks is a burglar one hot August night, only to find out he is actually the famous detective Antoine Feval – and a crime-fighting duo is born! This hilarious show is sure to please mystery fans and High Performance Rodeo attendees alike.

Y Stage Theatre series is Calgary’s only professional presenter of theatre for young audience productions within the regular theatre season. The 2013/2014 lineup includes:

CIRCUS INCOGNITUS
By Jamie Adkins
October 18 – 20, 2013 | Recommended for Ages 5+
Clowning and acrobatic feats on the ground – and on a slack wire are pieced together with a story of a man who has something to say, but can’t quite get it out. Starting with only a microphone and an empty stage, Adkins performs circus routines; all the while trying to master the courage to face what he fears most, speaking in public. The audience will follow along intently as the message becomes clearer: not to give up because you never know what you can do until you try.

JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS
By Visible Fictions
November 22 – 24 & November 29 – December 1, 2013 | Recommended for Ages 8+
An innovative and celebrated company based in Glasgow, Scotland brings this hugely physical and irreverent re-telling of the legend to life. This production is full of adventure complete with monsters, romance, heroism, revenge, and action figures.

THE SPIRIT OF HARRIET TUBMAN
Written & Performed by Leslie McCurdy
January 31 – February 2, 2014 | Recommended for Ages 7+
A solitary actress – with a trunk full of costumes – depicts this historical legend and abolitionist at various stages. This is a moving portrayal that takes audiences through her life from childhood to rescuing slaves via the Underground Railroad as well as her later humanitarian work.

nOOb
Written & Performed by Christopher Duthie
Directed by Nathan Pronyshyn
Produced by Vertigo Theatre for the Y Stage Theatre series
March 7 & 8 and March 14 & 15, 2014 | Recommended for Ages 12+
Daniel, a video game prodigy, has crashed his bike and is lost in the woods. He struggles to make sense of what brought him to this place – the fight with his dad, his desire for independence, his quest to meet an online friend. Confused and frightened, he finds himself locked in a struggle between his reality and the exciting fantasy of the video game he loves. Exploring themes of online identity, video game obsession, family conflict, and the anxieties of teenage life is sure to provoke conversation.

I ON THE SKY
Produced by DynamO Théâtre
April 11 – 13, 2014 | Recommended for Ages 9+
This is a visually stunning show by a trail blazing and award-winning company out of Québec, which created the ‘theatre of acrobatic movement’. Recounting the story of an exiled woman recalling her past, it speaks to our ability to move forward as life goes on. With no spoken lines this story is told with only movement, imagery, and music.

Y Stage Theatre series is made possible through the support of TransCanada Corporation.

Subscribers to BD&P Mystery Theatre series or purchasers of Y Stage Theatre series passes will receive the following benefits:

• Save 20% on regular single ticket prices.
• FREE ticket exchanges.
• FREE coat check.
• Opportunity to pre-purchase discounted parking vouchers for the entire season.

Subscriptions to the BD&P Mystery Theatre series and Y Stage Theatre series packs can be purchased in person at the Vertigo Theatre Box Office, by phone at 403-221-3708 or on line at www.vertigotheatre.com