Jeff Hyslop is a Canadian musical theatre actor, singer, dancer, choreographer, and director. His most famous roles were as Jeff the mannequin in the children's show Today's Special and as the title role in the Canadian travelling production of The Phantom of the Opera. Hyslop is married to Vancouver-born singer and actress Ruth Nichol. They have one daughter, Gemma Nichol Hyslop, born in 1976. In 2003 Jeff Hyslop moved to Campbell River on Vancouver Island, to find peace and to be able to spend more time with his family. He has been doing weekend musical theatre workshops with as many as 32 children. His sister, Sandra Bailey, manages his career.
Today's Special was a Canadian children's television show produced by Clive VanderBurgh at TVOntario from 1981 to 1987. It also ran on Nickelodeon and the Faith and Values Channel/Odyssey as well as many PBS stations throughout the United States. It was set in a department store, based on the flagship location of the now defunct Simpson's in Toronto. Many sequences for it were shot at the Queen Street West and Yonge Street store after hours....
Lester and Humphrey are the Royal Jester and Doctor, respectively, in a Kingdom terrorized by a mysterious giant whose presence is known only by his horrible voice and giant shadow. The giant takes the crown jewels which permit the Evil Prince Malokeo to convince the King to let him marry Princess Marigold. Marigold, horrified at the prospect and in love with Prince Daryl, turns to her friends Lester and Humphrey for help....
In a special TV presentation of "Today's Special," Jodie, Muffy, and Sam prepare for a live theatre performance. However, Jeff faces a problem as his magic hat won't function outside the store, preventing him from joining them. Undeterred, he sneaks into the costume box bound for the theatre. Upon arrival, Muffy is late, prompting Jodie and Sam to begin the show without her. Meanwhile, Jeff, trapped in the box, finds himself turned into a mannequin without his magic working. With Waldo the Magni...
Robert Ross (Brent Carver) lives a protected adolescence in a well-off Toronto suburb. Secretive and withdrawn, he shares his thoughts only with his sister Rowena (Anne-Marie MacDonald) who is mentally disabled. He feels compassion for his weak and conventional father. He avoids any confrontation with his mother (Martha Henry), a dominating woman whose despondency at having given birth to a handicapped child has turned to bitterness. Rowena occupies a central position in Robert's existence of d...
As played out by a theatre troupe, the last days of Jesus Christ are depicted from the perspective of Judas Iscariot, his betrayer. As Jesus' following increases, Judas begins to worry that Jesus is falling for his own hype, forgetting the principles of his teachings and growing too close to the prostitute Mary Magdalene....
Brent Carver stars as the swashbuckling Pirate King in the famous Stratford Festival's rollicking production of the Gilbert & Sullivan classic that pits British bobbles against unlikely pirates on the Cornish coast. Sullivan regarded this operetta - a hit ever since its first production in New York in 1879 - as the best comedy he composed. He even said of his collaborator, "The libretto is ingenious, clever, wonderfully fun in parts and sometimes brilliant in dialogue - beautifully written for m...
A classic British pantomime version of the tale of Aladdin and the Lamp. The evil vizier Abanazar tries to manipulate Aladdin and his mother, Widow Twankey, into helping him acquire the magic lamp. But with the help of the Genie of the Ring, Aladdin wins through and captures the heart and hand of the Princess. Music, singing, dancing, and merriment throughout....