Category: arts

Theatre: “Eros and the Itchy Ant”

This afternoon, a friend and I headed to Varscona Theatre (10329-83 Avenue) to watch Teatro La Quindicina‘s season opener, titled Eros and the Itchy Ant. From the flyer:

“Music and mythology converge to make magic in this unstoppably hilarious romp, set in that most unexpected of Teatro setting – present day Canada. A piano teacher and a baker explore the possibilities of mutual attraction with a little intervention from a tart-tongued mezzo-soprano and an affable contemporary incarnation of the Greek god of Amor.”

First thing – I think Stewart Lemoine productions are meant to be enjoyed in a packed house: it’s an unspoken rule that the communal experience on a grander scale somehow make the laughs funnier. Unfortunately, this matinee performance was only about half full.

It’s hard not to judge Lemoine by comparison, because I know what he is capable of (Shocker’s Delight! has become my standard of which community theatre is measured by), so I found the plot of Eros to be sorely lacking. Unlike most of his other romantic comedies, the only obstacle to the would-be couple was themselves. Nothing is more frustrating than having to watch characters get over their assumptions for the inevitable pairing to occur. Moreover, I have never been a big fan of musicals in any incarnation, and though I enjoyed hearing “The Itchy Ant” piano piece and watching the manic comedy of the Psyche opera scene unfold, I think the musical interjections disrupted the flow of the play as a whole.

Jesse Gervais, who played the hapless male lead Franklin, was the only cast member not in the 2002 premiere. Although John Kirkpatrick was the original Franklin, I still couldn’t help but think what Ron Pederson would have done with the role. Nothing against Gervais’ performance, but Pederson’s brand of awkward grace would have better suited the rhythm and chemistry of the group.

As typical in Lemoine productions, the supporting characters stole the show. Wanda, friend and coworker to the female lead, was the perfect blend of supportive associate and blunt observer, played to a T by the stately Sheri Somerville. And Jeff Haslam, always a welcome presence, brought his boisterous energy to the title role of Eros, immediately putting the audience at ease. I don’t think I can wait eight months to see him again on the Varscona stage, so I am planning to catch a performance of the Euro-style variety show, Oh Susannah! sometime soon.

Despite the overall disappointment of Eros, I will be back in February for the next Teatro play. Lemoine has done much to earn my respect for his work, and I believe it’s a compliment, ultimately, for the expectations to be so high. He’ll have two more opportunities to clear the bar this year.

Theatre: “Lost in Traffic”

Following dinner, we headed to the Myer Horowitz Theatre at the University of Alberta (8900 114 Street) to watch Quebec-based Theatre Parminou‘s production of Lost in Traffic. The purpose of this interactive, social activist play was to: “increase public awareness of the traffic of women and children.”

Four very versatile actors and one “game leader” presented various scenarios involving the trafficking of women, including: a sly American attempting to convince a young girl to leave her home to become an international model; a lonely man about to head abroad to marry essentially a mail-order bride; and a matriarch defending her decision to isolate and contain her foreign-born housekeeper for decades. In between anecdotes, the game leader would step on stage, either to provide more information, or in some cases, stopping the action altogether during the scenes themselves in order to poll the audience for possible interventions to prevent the trafficking from occurring.

I really liked the set design that involved five wooden trunks used as props throughout the show. They visually represented the theme of displacement, and can even be seen as a metaphysical reference to the theatre group’s own nomadic travels as they bring the show to campuses across the country. I also found the play to be appropriately educational, such as the 2004 change to the exotic dancer immigration clause.

The game leader was an interesting concept, and although I realize the rationale for the role was to encourage audience investment by allowing for the illusion of influence and control, a more effective means to this end would have been a complete storyline where the audience could build empathy through more natural processes.

Moreover, it seemed to me that the scenarios boiled the subject of trafficking down to stereotypical character profiles on both sides – the innocent-girl-turned-prostitute, the housemaid who cannot speak the language, and the stubborn Canadians who refuse to believe that the problem exists on North American soil. Of course, my own knowledge is limited, so who am I to say that such common beliefs don’t actually reflect realities? Still, at times, the production felt like a play written to fulfill the requirements of a class project.

In the end, I was expecting suggestions or ideas on how we, the public, could help with the prevention of human trafficking. Unfortunately, the bottom line provided was just to ‘spread the word’ and to advocate on behalf of those without voices. Yes, it’s now left in the hands of the audience, but I would have appreciated something more concrete than “speak.”

Theatre: “Urban Tales”

On Friday night, I went with a friend to watch Northern Light Theatre’s Urban Tales 9: Night Nurses in an Insane Asylum at the Third Space. Four separate playwrights wrote anecdotes for each of the four characters, which were then edited together to form one coherent play. From the program:

“On a dark and stormy Halloween night, an electrical storm unleashes the inmates, and perhaps a few ghosts, to terrorize Dorothy, Midge, Betty Ann and Vivian.”

This was my first Urban Tales experience, so unfortunately I don’t have any past productions to compare this one to, but what I did not expect was a glorified reading. Yes, there were costumed actresses, sound and music effects, and lighting design, but the actors for the most part read from the script! Each actor even had their own music stand, which made for quite the awkward commute between the very-small stage and an additional stand set up just in front of the stage to showcase the individual monologues.

That said, Annette Christie, who played Dorothy, was by far the standout for me, as she had to voice her lines entirely in the stereotypically “giggly girl” nasal, and provided many comedic moments with her doe-eyed delivery. There was also some interesting work with a projector that flashed a variety of images onto a makeshift curtain screen just to the right of the stage. An image of a catatonic patient with vacant eyes was particularly spooky, and did much to set the mood for that scene. In addition, the sound technician has to be singled out – the necessary timing involved with inserting a *lightning flash* here, and a *creepy howl* there seemed more taxing than in other productions I’ve seen. In all, although I jumped a few times, and my imagination was exercised, Urban Tales 9 pales in comparison with Marty Chan’s The Bone House, my benchmark for chilling theatre.

Theatre: “10 Days on Earth”

Ronnie Burkett is a theatrical genius.

I first heard of him when he premiered Provenance in Edmonton a few years ago, but didn’t get out to see it because of the “hefty” $30 price of admission. Little did I know his talent, as showcased in a 120 minute production, is priceless.

Last night, a coworker and I watched a play titled 10 Days on Earth at the Roxy Theatre, acted entirely with marionettes. The flyer describes the show as follows:

“Darrel, a mentally challenged adult, doesn’t realize his mother has died in her sleep. For ten days straight he unknowingly lives alone, continuing his simple daily routine and daydreaming about his favorite storybook characters.”

Like most synopses of great art, words alone cannot do Burkett justice. At first, I had to adjust to the experience of watching puppets move about in place of live actors. But soon enough, I realized how imagination bridges the gap between you and the stage; you end up relating and empathizing even further with the marionettes because to believe the life being created out of wood and string, you have to invest a part of yourself that isn’t necessarily required with human performers. My heart broke as Darrel called in vain for his mum; as he peered expectantly at her still-shut door; as he sat, ever-patient, in the hallway, and waited. And because the faces of the puppets are unchanging, it was fascinating to notice the vital importance of body language. Every flicker, twitch, and jerk became a telling sign, a character trait. The marionettes are “simply, simply” mesmerizing.

You have to wonder how Burkett manages to perform this show night after night – it was exhausting just watching him maneuver over the numerous platforms, personally handling all two dozen puppets, and voicing all of the different characters, some that I was sure would lead to laryngitis. In any case, his sweat and tears made last night’s show unforgettable. I am already looking forward to his next stop in Edmonton. I encourage you to check out 10 Days; it runs until November 26.