Concordia’s SIPA festival (which, for those who don’t know, stands for Student-Initiated Production Assignments) features 4 great pieces in this year’s Fall round. Here’s my look at these productions, all of which have been wonderfully executed by all of those involved. Félicitations, mes amis!
Ludlow Fair
The team working on this adaption of Landford Wilson’s piece decided to keep with the story and assemble an all-female crew. As this play is about issues of love, life, and the difficulties of defining and accepting oneself from the perspective of two young women, it was a great choice to create it, in all aspects, from an exclusively female perspective. As the director said, only women can truly bring the full understanding to this experience. It made for a very honest look into these issues, and that translated into the discussions feeling true and palpable. The actresses delivered their roles in a quiet yet firmly established fashion, and the work paid off.
Third Person
I can’t deny that Third Person stole the night for me. The show is a very funny and thought-provoking piece that pits two young men against an unknown force that is communicating with them in a delightfully cruel manner. This malevolent force continually toys with the already unsure characters, resulting in great comedic interplay mixed with philosophical doubts about the nature of existence. There are only two actors present onstage, but the third character is undeniably the main man. It is the true third person narrator figure whose omniscience is nothing short of terrifying, as it causes both the characters and the audience to question our own free will. As any God figure, it is always one step ahead of the human beings in their continual struggle to define themselves and find control of their own decision. Third Person is a fantastically executed, funny thinking show.
Knots
The Canadian/German ensemble created a visually striking movement piece that was, by all means, quite strong. The space is rife by ropes hung from the ceiling that provide ample room for movement but visually confine the actors. The connection between all of the performers in the ensemble is clearly very well developed, and allows them to say quite a lot through no words at all. The only sounds present are the movement of the performers, their breath, their occasional singing (in German), and voiceovers that give insight into personal struggles and meditations upon their own lives. Again, it is a very visceral examination of the knots that keep us tied down, or perhaps more importantly, tied together.
Silent Jenny
Harry Standjovski’s piece about 1940’s Montreal looks deeply into the interplay between the Jewish and Italian gang cultures of the time. As with any gangster piece, there is lots of scheming and power play at work that makes for a captivating experience that is simultaneously not a strain to follow. Certain characters come out of the action to directly reminisce upon the time and address the audience about what is happening, and the transitions between that “out of time” talk and the retelling of the action itself are seamless. The play uses the non-speaking, only-singing character of Geneviève (Jenny) as the unwitting centrepiece of all the action. The story stays true to the tenets of gangster culture – the woman, the gun, and ultimately, the power and control that all gangsters strive for. As with Third Person, Silent Jenny brings just the right amount of comedy to a serious topic. Note: Al is kicking himself for not finding time in his schedule to see this. Feel free to kick him as well. -Al
-Matt
