Hired Smoking Gun to create a custom murder mystery with the caveat that none of my 22 dinner…read moreguests were to know what's happening until the plot unfolded before them. To say the evening was a hit is an understatement; my guests were completely fooled and all had a fabulous time! The event was EPIC. I highly recommend Smoking Gun!!!

Hilarious!! Many themes to choose from. we've had them four times and each time so different and so…read morefun and interactive!

Had a meeting the other day to view this space as an events space and man did it blow me away. Set…read morein the heart of downtown, this 100 year old historic building still conveys its original pride in its golden leaf mouldings, the original theatre ceiling and original walls. Most of the architecture has been updated and the lobby area houses the sexy and sultry Velvet Restaurant. The main theatre is a jaw dropping thing to experience, from the catwalk you see an expansive area with rolling seats that can be set up as a classic theatre formation or can be set up against all four walls with the stage in the center. The hardwood floor is rich and dark and the brick wall is an interesting urban feel which could house really unique staging. The theatre was renovated by theatre diehard loyalists and you can tell the dedication that has been put into this venue as everything is so well taken care of. There is a killer mezzanine area, with a bar that presently has been popular for wine and scotch tasting events. The only criticism I would have is because of all the historic restoration they are not so open to hosting youth events there but it is understandable considering the fine details of the architecture. All in all the place is a superb location and akin to theatre spaces I have seen in New York City and Toronto, but it's not its grandness is all right here in Calgary.

A friend gave me tickets to a Charlie Chaplin event called Modern Times. People were decked out in…read more1920s outfits, drinking cocktails, and the amazing beauty of this old gem. They had Juno winning musicians masterfully creating the sound for this old film. I was blown away by the beauty and history of this theatre! I have since attended several events and loved them all. This theatre has heart and soul and artists to run it. It's an incredible space with more history and nooks and crannies that any other joint in our FINE City! Heading to their showing of The Princess Bride tonight, pass the popcorn. ;)

Went to view He foreigner today. WOW well worth the drive for live theatre…read more the lunch Buffet was truly amazing. Lamb was perfect and very full of flavours. The roast beef was cooked perfectly. Thank you to all the staff and actors for your passion to make this an exceptional experience.

I recently went here for the first time and saw the play: "Driving Miss. Daisy". It is the cutest…read moretheatre in the cutest little town. It is a quaint performing arts venue showcasing professional live theatre, including popular musicals. This year Rosebud Theatre is celebrating their 35th anniversary! They play of Driving Miss. Daisy was a great choice and very well done! A Warm-hearted Comedy of an Unlikely Friendship Daisy, a cantankerous old widow of wealth, is reluctant to accept help from anyone, especially the new chauffeur hired by her son. Her treatment of her new driver is aloof and dismissive. But Hoke is patient, and incident by incident, prejudices and stereotypes are revealed and shattered. Over the course of 25 years, the most unlikely of friendships changes both of their minds and their hearts. This play runs from April 6th to May 19th! Highly recommend :)

We've had season tickets for Vertigo since they were in the Science Center beside Mewata Stadium…read moreand really enjoy the productions. Some more than others, but it's always entertaining. However, A Killing at La Cucina misses the mark by a long shot. In a word - boring. Two people talking (one with a fairly heavy Italian accent that can't always be understood) and a suspect. No action except for a brief moment towards the end. Don't waste your money on this one!

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is an outstanding play. Acting is incredible, sound perfect, and the stage…read moresettings are simple, but perfect for the play. It is astounding to see 4 individuals carry this play off...Each so talented. First act does a lot of building of the story, but the second act is incredible. Job well done by all involved. An absolute must-see show!!

Schmaultz at its finest. Cheesecake without the crumbs. Ham bones, the lot of 'em. This high…read moreenergy dinner theater has all principals also taking orders, bringing food and running tabs ! How they do it, I'm not quite sure. I mean, one minute your waitress is taking drink orders and the next she's up on stage singing her heart out ! Usually dinner musical theater is none of the above. Not so for "Oh Canada, Eh?!" There's not much of a through line to the show but no one seems to care. The actors do a good job of getting off the stage and bringing the show to individual audience members. (That's when the photographer shows up to snap a picture they hope you'll buy on your way out.) They also use one audience member, Down Center, as their, "Stud Muffin." He's their go-to guy they often engage in being part of the show. TIP: --Before the show begins, slip back stage to ask the manager if you can setup someone in your party as their Stud Muffin. It would be a lot of fun for the adventurous!-- Even though it's geared towards the 45+ crowed (read: 55-70 year old day tripper types), my children really enjoyed it also. It's just good, wholesome, Canadian fun.

What a beautiful theatre. The seats were comfortable for our entire performance and they had plenty…read moreof event staff and bars set up to serve customers. The fact that they had a mobile system to preorder drinks for pick up at intermission made things move smoothly. The staff was friendly and efficient. We loved the decor and really enjoyed walking around looking at all the art school students art. The themed drinks and decorations were great too. Thank you to all the amazing stage and show crews who put on a fantastic show. I have 2 complaints but I think they're universal to theatres and event centre's in general; there need to be more ladies bathroom stalls or make all the bathrooms gender neutral. Second is that seats should be staggered so that you're looking over someone's shoulders and not into the back of someone tall's head.

Saw Shen Yun. A beautiful production. Great lighting, effects and stage…read more The seats in the auditorium, however, were torturous. Painful to sit for more than an hour. Even that hour was unpleasant. The seats feature very thin cushion over a narrow hard wood frame, with short, hard wood arm rests. Everyone in my section stood up immediately at intermission. People behind me were rubbing their legs and hips complaining about how uncomfortable the seats were. Made a beautiful production less enjoyable

Was able to attend an evening of Dirty Laundry at the Lunchbox theater for a Yelp Elite event. Was…read moreso excited to final get to this show as honestly have been trying to get a group of friends together for a while to check it out! Dirty Laundry has been running for a million years. Ok its only been running for 16 seasons but that is basically a million years in theater years. Every season of Dirty Laundry is an ongoing soap opera based around a central theme. They start each "episode" off with a "previously on Dirty Laundry" so you can catch up to where the story has got to. It is really funny and they play off each other so well. As part of the Yelp event we got some delicious kettle corn during intermission, the actors then incorporated the sound of rustling paper bags into the performance. That's just good improve! Every couple of shows they open the floor to the audience afterwards for some Q&A which was good to get a bit of history on the show and how they come up with everything and decide where the story will go. They also sell wine and beer to enjoy during the performance and all reasonable priced too. Big win all around. Absolutely will look at getting a season pass for their next show as would love to watch the story progress from beginning to end. Also at $16 a ticket this is a great deal for improve.

This is improv like I've never seen before! Sure, going to a "Who's Line Is It Anyway" style improv…read moreshow is a great way to spend an evening. Dirty Laundry, however, kicks it up a notch and throws an ongoing storyline into the mix. The results are hilarious. Not only do they come up with a storyline that seems, well, at least as cohesive as any real soap opera story line, they do it in a way that every episode still stands on its own. Don't ask me how. Improv geniuses I tells ya! Don't worry if they're mid-season, the plot line isn't so important that you're unable to watch a single episode. But, if you do catch multiple shows you start appreciating it on a new level. My first time was so fun that we had to back... a few episodes later. For our second show, I was amazed at how many references to past jokes and plot lines they make that I would have missed entirely had I not gone to the show. Make no mistake, Dirty Laundry is definitely for adults, but it's like how Pixar movies are loved by kids, but when you watch as an adult you pick up on way more. It's not like you're missing out if you only go once (kid mode), you're just... ignorant to the full story, but in a way that you're so engulfed by childlike wonderment you don't even realize or care. If you're looking at an original twist to the tried and true but fully played out dinner and a movie date, definitely give Dirty Laundry a try.

This is a terrific venue in the Cultural District downtown, across from city hall…read more It is huge and takes up a full city block, has 6 levels and is over 400,000 square feet. Inside there's a number of theatres and theatre companies -Alberta Theatre Projects, Theatre Calgary, One Yellow Rabbit, and the Engineered Air Theatre. Plus the Calgary Philharmonic plays in the Jack Singer Concert Hall. Many awesome concerts play at the Jack Singer, too - the acoustics are are amazing! There's also a ticketmaster in the centre court for all your entertainment needs!

The EC is one of the largest entertainment halls in Calgary, in fact it occupies a full block…read moreoccupying 400,000 square feet, and that is about 10 acres. It is a 6 level complex downtown so it is near the train terminals and after 6 pm there is very cheap parking underground and free parking on the streets. There are 4 theatres at the EPCOR Center and one hall. EC provides theatre entertainment as well as music entertainment from all around the world. I watched an Argentinean guitar quartet there a half a year ago and although we were a little late we managed to be accompanied directly to our seats by a very pleasant usher. The concert hall is enormous, but there are various entrances that can take you very close to where you need to sit. The concert that night was glorious, this is fine classical guitar picking, that is very erratic and elaborate and I swear I could feel and hear every guitar string being plucked. The acoustics there at EC are fantastic and the seating is super comfortable. The roster of entertainment is so diversified at the EPCOR, in fact in January Chef Anthony Bourdain has been sold out since October. You may recall this guy, he travels all around the world eating anything that is exotic, and I believe the last time I saw him on television was seeing him eating cow testicles in Thailand. So expect incredible variety and high quality entertainment at the EC.

I admit that I'm a huge sucker for ghost stories and haunted houses, so when I heard that the…read morePumphouse Theatre was reportedly haunted I had to immediately check it out. I purchased a couple of tickets for my sister and myself to a little production one night. The tickets weren't expensive at all - $25 for a couple hours of entertainment is definitely worth it. Even though I didn't get to experience any sort of paranormal activity I was thoroughly pleased with the whole evening. The play was interesting and appealing; the seating is limited, so therefore very intimate; and there was always the added excitement of having a run-in with a ghost. I'll probably head back to the Pumphouse Theatre the next time I'm in the mood for a play... or when I'm hoping for a good scare.

The Pumphouse has incredible ambience as it easily wrests somewhere between theatre and historical…read moresite. The beautiful red brick building, acoustics, and large stages enable intimate but feasible setting for plays, shows, and the like. My only complaint is the comfortability (or lack thereof) of the seating. The chairs are not conducive to sitting for a three hour show. Most shows include intermissions. I suggest you make good use of said intermission and stretch your legs!! Also, the Pumphouse is tucked away off the beaten path meaning that no eateries are in the area. Do not expect to stop at a restaurant before the theatre if you only want to park once. No restaurants are theatre-adjacent.

Worst bar ever!!! Place stinks and the service sucks!! But maybe that's their idea of a vibe.read more

Vern's is hideous. I doubt anybody has put any thought into the way this place looks. It's like…read moreeverything was just there when the place was built, and the only reason you replace something is when it's broken and too dirty for the duct tap can stick anymore. It is the bar equivalent to a punk rockers beaten up grungy party basement. So... basically what I'm saying is - VERN'S IS AWESOME!!! I LOVE VERN'S! Love it, or hate it, and trust me it's going to be one of those two, Vern's is pretty much the 'as real as it gets' music bar for the Calgary music scene. This is the place where beginner bands get there first start and where the YYC music big guns love to come back to to pay their respects and feel at home in their first home. Vern's is where it all comes from. Pro-tip: 100% of the cover charge goes to the bands. I hope you'll find that $5 or $10 split between two or more bands is a pretty small price to pay for live entertainment. The beer is cheap, so after five pints of Alberta Genuine Draft, you'll have more than made your money back, and you'll have had a heck of a good time.