Photo by Joseph Ste. Marie
Abby Elizabeth for Curtains Up
Montreal’s Mainline Theatre is a charitable organization that supports and exposes local talent. Located at 3997 St-Laurent, corner of Deluth, the venue is slightly hidden and easily mistaken for a vacated building. Mainline is an underground venue and only those who know where to find the edgiest shows and exhibits are aware of its whereabouts.
During Mainline Theatre’s season launch Wednesday night, director Amy Blackmore admitted that she was unsure whether the theatre company would survive 2012. Fortunately Mainline has many fans and supporters who refused to allow the venue to close, donating money in order to keep it afloat. During her launch talk, Blackmore thanked everyone for contributing adding that the site would not exist without the peoples funding and continues to flourish because of it.
During the seasonal launch, guests had the rare opportunity to hear an eerie musical excerpt from Alex Gurtjahr and Franco Proetti’s, The Nightmare before Christmas Halloween production. Reminiscent of old timey radio stories, the audience was held captive by the eerie musical accompaniment to a morbid tale about a little boy who was unable to stop dancing.
The orchestral project has become such a hit that it has expanded from a 10-piece band into a 20-piece orchestra with cast. Music from Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas will be performed live on October 25th and 26th, times vary. The collaborative project will also include performances featuring two Edgar Allen Poe stories, one being The Raven. Original music composed by Tristan Capacchione and Melissa Pipe will accompany the live storytelling. General admission is $17.00 and $12.00 for students and seniors, $6.00 for children. Tickets are currently for sale.
Photo by Joseph Ste. Marie
Blackmore expressed her excitement towards Mainlines 2013 lineup. There are activities nearly every single day of the week, all which teeter on the border of daring insanity. Like last week’s Montreal Porn Karaoke, in which attendees took to the stage and added sound effects to a porn flick playing in the background.
Some upcoming activities to take note of are:
- Flip It! Don’t Panic! A 60 minute live ‘life sized card game’ adventure. The interactive theatre performance allows audience members to use actors (Fringe Fest staff) as their game piece. Teams are created and staff and guests are pitted against each other in this sport/storytelling game of chance. General admission is $12.00 age requirement is 18 and over.
- The Alcoholic Cinema: fan favorites vs. fan favorites. Movie lovers get to choose between two film classics, the winning movie is featured on The Mainline big screen. Fans get to vote via facebook https://www.facebook.com/events/624311717608526/ Admission is $7.00 and includes the cost of an attendee’s first drink. Hence the name: Alcoholic Cinema.
- Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Picture Show: The play will be featured during the last week of October, Oct 23rd-26th. This live performance of cult hit Rocky Horror is not to be missed. Tickets cost $15.00 for students $20.00 General admission.
- Confabulation: English storytelling. True stories about near death experiences, rebirth and other live changing moments are told to audiences without the use of gimmicky props or notes. Words only. Mainline is currently accepting stories so if you have a tale to share contact confabulation@nomoreradio.com. General admission is $7.00 and the show will take place October 5th.
If you’re interested in volunteering visit Mainline’s website, which includes contact information and show schedules. http://www.mainlinetheatre.ca/en/spectacles
