The Shatner Tour Diary: Day 5 (Winnipeg, Part 1)

Here's a travel tip:  The Hotel MacDonald in Edmonton doesn't do laundry for guests on the weekend.  Travel tip #2:  Make sure the next stop on your tour involves a trip to your parents' place.  Tip #3:  Ask nicely and maybe mom will do your laundry.

It's the 25th of October and it still hasn't snowed in Winnipeg.  In fact, there's a suspicious number of trees that still have their leaves.  Global warming?  No.  I think the glow from getting the Jets back has permanently altered the climate.

The How Time Flies tour is officially half over.  Three more dates to go:  tonight in Winnipeg, next Thursday in Toronto and then the final show in The Shat's hometown of Montreal next Friday.  It's perhaps a good time to look at some of the reviews.

I've never been involved in a production where a review appears in the paper the following day.  It's a big weird, really, reading the notices the following morning.  I've included a bunch below, but before you read them consider the following:

(1) Each show has ended with a standing ovation.  A couple began with a standing ovation.

(2) The show is 100% about Shatner.  If I do my job onstage properly, I should be practically invisible.  I shouldn't be worth so much as a mention in any review.

(3) Some critics believe that their job is to criticize i.e. point out nothing but bad stuff.  A critique of a show is different--and much harder to do.  It's also very useful to the people involved in the tour.  The show is over, so nothing can be said that will affect ticket sales.  That means an asshole review serves no purpose to anyone except, well, the asshole.

Bottom for me, though, is the audiences seem to be having a ton of fun.  That's all that matters.  And me?  I'm just thrilled to be along for the ride.

Show 1:  CTV News/Vancouver

Show 2:  Regina Leader-Post

Show 3:  Edmonton Journal and Edmonton Sun.

Show 4:  Tonight at the Centennial Concert Hall. Curtain is 7:30. 

Check out this interview with the Winnipeg Free Press.