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Play Review: Disney’s Newsies The Musical

When Disney produces Tony Award winning musicals, you must take note. As soon as the cast of Newsies gathered together for the opening ensemble number, Carrying the Banner, I remembered why I insisted on seeing this show a second time.

Newsies is an incredibly high-energy show with flawlessly synchronized choreography that includes pirouettes and tap dancing. It’s a charming tale about the underdog fighting against a corporate giant. The story follows a group of poor boys who sell newspapers, or “papes,” as they call them.

August 13, 2015 by Sarah Prince

Book Review: Who Do You Love

As a major Jennifer Weiner fan, I was delighted to get a sneak peek at her latest novel, Who Do You Love. The novel tells the story of Rachel and Andy, two Americans who meet in the ER and reunite again and again as they grow up and fall in love. Their bond is strong enough to let them survive a long distance relationship and they remain top-of-mind for each other as circumstances tear them apart. The characters are raw, realistic and believable.

The book starts off with a slow pace, but the plot thickens as soon as Rachel and Andy enter their teenage years. Weiner dedicates the beginning of the book to establishing Rachel and Andy’s immediate circle of family and friends, and then the book becomes more interesting as Rachel and Andy become independent, leaving their parents’ homes behind.

August 5, 2015 by Sarah Prince

Perez Hilton Will Star In Full House The Musical!

After catching up on G-rated entertainment on Netflix by watching old episodes of Full House, it’s exciting to announce that celebrity blogger Perez Hilton will star in Full House The Musical!

The show will debut in Toronto at the Randolph Theatre in August. Perez loves spending time in Toronto and he especially admires how we celebrate theatre as a city. In a phone interview, Perez noted that Toronto’s passion for theatre makes our culture distinctly different from Los Angeles, where people see more movies than stage shows.

Considering how much time he spends online, it’s unsurprising that Perez landed this opportunity through social media. When he saw a friend in the entertainment industry post about the show, he immediately commented that he wanted to get involved. “I even joked that I would be Mary-Kate and Ashley,” he recalled. “Then Tobly, one of the creators, saw my comment and asked my friend if I was serious and I said, ‘Yes, I’m very serious,’ so then we set up a meeting.” Perez sent the creators footage of him singing to convince them that the Tisch School of the Arts graduate was talented enough to play Danny Tanner.

July 1, 2015 by Sarah Prince

Movie Review: Inside Out

Inside Out - Carbon Brew

Core Memories. Personality Islands. Imagination Land. These are just a few of the driving forces behind protagonist Riley Anderson’s thought process in Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out. The original concept takes viewers on a behind the scenes tour of a young girl’s mind as the script explores how her emotions affect her behaviour. Five emotions – Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust and Fear – run an intense operation and guide her through life’s challenging moments like being the new girl at school.

The characters clearly express their feelings through their large eyes and energetic voices. For example, Disgust (Mindy Kaling) has extra long eyelashes and her sassy personality makes her quite entertaining. No matter which emotion they represent, every character speaks with conviction.

Meanwhile, Amy Poehler’s character Joy is the woman in charge. She’s not bossy, but eager. She wants Riley to be happy. All of the emotions have a symbiotic relationship that helps Riley function like a typical preteen. When that gets disrupted, chaos ensues. Midway through the movie, I was so engrossed that whenever Joy and Sadness stood at the edge of a cliff, I felt nervous for them. That’s a tell-tale sign of good storytelling.

June 17, 2015 by Sarah Prince

Book Review: I, Justine: An Analog Memoir

Photo Source: Prizeo

On YouTube, Justine Ezarik seems larger than life. She’s bubbly, animated and enthusiastic. On paper, Justine seems brilliant. She managed to earn a living by broadcasting her daily life and amass a social media following so big that brands couldn’t help but take notice. Her work has paid off and now she has a book called I, Justine: An Analog Memoir.

“I have been lucky enough to earn a living doing exactly what I love,” she writes in her introduction. “I hope that, whatever it is that you love, you never let anyone make you feel weird about it. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, to write or sing or draw or play video games or dance like a crazy person in an Apple Store. Do what makes you happy. It’s always worked for me. And who knows? You might even build a career out of it.”

June 10, 2015 by Sarah Prince

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