I've recently started subscribing to The Slotkin Letter, subtitled Reviews for People Serious About Theatre, a "best-kept secret" amongst theater professionals.

Lynn Slotkin is a Fine Arts graduate from York University. She is a devout theatregoer who sees over 200 plays a year throughout North America and England. Her passion and criticisms are shared her monthly newsletter, titled The Slotkin Letter. Here's how Lynn traces the birth of The Slotkin Letter:

...this is all Jane Alexander's fault. She was playing Gertrude to Sam Waterston's Hamlet at Lincoln Center in New York in 1975. I went to see it (I've known Jane for years) and told her that I was about to go to London to see Albert Finney play Hamlet. Jane said, "Let me know what you think." The letter I sent her was hand-written on 1½ sheets of medium-sized paper, covered one play and was sent to one person. Over the years the letter 'grew' from being hand written to being typed on a typewriter, to being written on a computer. More friends besides Jane, (actors, directors, artistic directors etc.) received it or wanted to get it and passed it to their friends, who also wanted to get it. The last letter, before this 'spiffy monthly version', covered 27 plays, was 74 pages long and went to about 20 people.

Lynn's theatre reviews can also be heard regularly on CBC Radio.

It's hard to precisely describe Lynn's style. It certainly isn't classic Times theater criticism. On the other hand, it's not an academic exercise either. I think I would describe it as "Super Fan on Acid", because she describes each show in such incredible detail that you feel like you've actually seen it. She has unbelievably detailed descriptions of the sets, costumes, and staging. And she has her opinions as well, but they tend to come off as "my opinion for whatever it's worth", as opposed to a definitive critical point of view, as someone like Ouzounian would provide. Nevertheless, each monthly newsletter is endlessly entertaining and worth the price of admission.

Lynn includes this article on her site that provides a nice overview of her life's work. Here's a brief excerpt:

I consider Lynn to be the theatre's greatest fan, not just here in Toronto, her home, but across the English-speaking world. She sees more shows than anyone I know, including professional critics.

Over lunch, I bombarded her with questions about her theatre-going. I even asked some very personal ones, like how much money she spends on theatre tickets in a typical year. She answered every question without missing a beat.

"I would say $6,000 to $7,000; but that's just a guess, it could be more," she says. "I do know that last year (1999) I saw 217 shows, but there have been busier years."

Imagine. That’s about five shows a week. If there were a thousand Lynns in the world, theatre producers would never need to worry about selling tickets.

"I see all that I can in Toronto and in places that are close by, like Stratford and Shaw. I travel to New York six to eight times a year, usually for the weekend. But the best are my visits to London, which I usually go to in July for 18 days. After many years, I've discovered that 19 days is too long and 17 days is too short; 18 days is ideal. It gives me time to see 30 shows."

Thirty shows in 18 days! How does she do it? I know people who can barely squeeze in four shows in a week's visit to London.

"Four shows! What's the matter with them? I could fit in 14. If you make it into a science and do your homework, you can see three shows on Saturday -- at 2 p.m. 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.; a matinee and evening on Sunday; one on Monday; and two each on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, because there are special matinees besides the evening shows. And on Friday, there are usually two performances, one early evening and one late."

In one of her latest issues she reviews Mary Poppins and The Woman in White, Andrew Lloyd Webber's latest effort. She loved Mary Poppins:

The whole affect [sic] of this show is pure magic. I loved it from top to bottom. It's for kids, adults and those in between.

While she savaged The Woman in White:

I'm sure everybody thought this whole thing -- the music and those projections -- was a good idea at the time. Well it wasn't. I couldn't imagine sitting through this again.

It's $100 for a year's subscription. To subscribe, print out and fill in this Order Form and mail the completed Order Form with a money order for $100 to:

The Slotkin Letter
15 Clinton Place
Toronto, ON
CANADA M6G 1J8

For questions or inquiries please you can can also send an e-mail to slotkin@sympatico.ca

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