By Shera Cohen
My mission was not an easy task for a white-knuckle flyer.
Yet, after my journeys to New York City, then London, Toronto was next. There
were many weeks of arrangements: booking the cheapest, direct flight on a
name-brand airline; travel within Canada that included every mode of
transportation except boat; lodging in Tripadvisor recommended hotels; and most
important, choosing the plays and other cultural destinations.
I had always wanted to attend the Stratford Festival, near
Toronto. In googling the particulars, I discovered the Shaw Festival, also near
Toronto and at the same time of year. With Toronto in the middle, as Stratford
and Shaw were each 90 minutes travel on either side, the trip beckoned to me.
There were no “falls” to be seen from Niagara-on-the-Lake,
home of the Shaw Festival. Who needed a noisy water backdrop when enjoying one
of the quaintest towns and best theatre series on the continent? Shaw’s two
venues, within walking distance of each other, offered plays by George Bernard
as well as other writers whose works were of the same era and/or style.
Having traveled all day, we started with only one play,
Shaw’s classic “Major Barbara” at the Royal George Theatre – an ornate venue
built in 1915. Onto “Our Betters” the next day and “Lady Windermere’s Fan” that
night. After the matinee, it was a thrill to receive a private tour by Shaw’s
publicity director, particularly to see the inner workings of changing sets.
Shaw is a repertory company, meaning that actors perform in at least two plays
and sets transform from one to another within hours. This task is so well
choreographed that the “dance” does not skip a beat in presenting a perfectly
crafted stage. Overnight, “Barbara” turned into “Guys & Dolls.” In a rush
to catch a train, we thought of skipping “Guys,” but that would have been a
shame, as this was the best production of the musical that I’d ever seen. Shaw
Festival hosts 10 plays and ends October 27, 2013. www.shawfest.com
Onto Toronto to primarily visit some “buildings”; i.e. the
world-famous Royal Museum of Ontario, the Bata Shoe Museum
(not-just-for-shoe-lovers), the Toronto Reference Library (largest in the
world), and “the castle around the corner” – Casa Loma. BTW, you know those
hokey double-decker tour buses? We tried it, finding the trips fun and funny,
depending on your effervescent college-age guide. Fitting in at least one play
was a must. The Young Arts Center’s performance of a shaved-down Broadwayesque
version of “The Barber of Seville” was a hoot.
We trained it to Stratford Festival for five plays, two of
which were by the Bard. Like Shaw, the actors are in repertory, as is the crew.
Performing two plays, some on the same day, is a task for only the best stage
actors, and Stratford is a standout in this respect. First up at Stratford was
“Fiddler on the Roof.” As with “Guys & Dolls,” I wondered how I could ever
appreciate yet another “Fiddler”. And, as with “Guys,” this was the best
version of “Fiddler” I’ve ever experienced. Next, the matinee of “The Three
Musketeers.” Perhaps planned as a play for school kids (there were a lot in the
audience), “Musketeers” was every bit as much for adults, myself included, who
enjoyed the plot, scenery, humor, and intricately designed sword fights.
Shakespeare, of course, was a must see. The afternoon’s
depiction of the tried and true “Romeo and Juliet” was followed by the
evening’s execution of “Mary Stuart.” No lavish staging was necessary for
either production, as the scenery was minimal in each to focus on the
performances. Although the two women rivals lived some 500 years ago, Queen
Elizabeth and Mary Queen of Scotts could not have been more real. Stratford
presents 12 plays on four stages and ends on October 19, 2013. www.stratfordfestival.ca
If this reads like a whirlwind 11 days, it was. I will
schedule some down time in the future, not to mention time to eat at a real
restaurant. BWT, the Canadians are sincerely the nicest people on this or any
other continent. Not only did they give us directions (we frequently got lost),
but usually took us to our destinations.
Sydney, Australia is #4 on the list of theatre cities, but
that’s a flight that I don’t think I’m ready for. Maybe I won’t travel in
chronological order?
Shaw Festival, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
We begin the Shaw Festival with Shaw. Not to be repetitive,
but that seems the best place to start.
“Major Barbara,” penned in 1905, and set in that era,
compares a family of means with the lower classes. Our heroine Barbara, is
idealistic, stubborn, and/or naïve about her ability to make a difference in
the world. She scoffs at her trappings to become a soldier in the Salvation
Army. The subject is money, how it’s made, and what it can and can’t do. Could
one’s bank account save a soul? Toss politics and war into the mix, as Shaw not
so subtlety comments on social differences.
Common to each of the Shaw Festival plays is the exceptional
qualities of their actors. From star to the smallest role, these are consummate
performers. Also, because of the company is repertory, one play’s leading man
is the next day’s play’s butler.
“Our Betters,” by W. Somerset Maugham in 1915, is similar in
concept concerning social differences and the necessity of pretense and even
deceit to climb the ladder of success. Our dubious and clever Bessie is a
winsome manipulator ever aware of the social mores and life (everyone drinks
tea a lot, then plays tennis), division of the classes and sexes. Women of
means go to the highest male bidder. But Bessie is a smart cookie, and it’s fun
to watch the gears in her head move precisely as her plans unfold.
Another commonality of the Festival’s Shaw plays (written by
Shaw or others) is their staging. “Barbara” and “Betters” take place at the
Royal George Theatre. Amazingly, the first play’s set, with lots of scaffolding
and steel, is carefully dismantled to be replaced by the next afternoon’s play
depicting a full living room of the early 1900’s.
“Lady Windermere’s Fan,” written by Oscar Wilde in 1892,
literally graces the stage of the Festival Theatre (the largest and newest Shaw
venue). Beginning with tableaus and window-like boxes on a white set, the
audience is allowed to slowly examine the lives of three people, first
superficially, then under a magnifying glass. The white images become grey,
just as the characters morph from flat to detailed and bumpy. Interestingly,
Wilde makes fun of himself in the text, as depicted by a bored fop.
“Guys and Dolls,” the musical based on Damon Runyon stories,
brings the streets and underground of New York City alive because “in the ring”
it’s gambling vs. religion. Once again, the Salvation Army tries to come to the
rescue of sinners. Just as the title states, this show’s script is familiar –
guy gets girl, guy loses girl, you know the drill, although in this case, there
are two pair. I’ve probably seen “Guys” eight times. After enjoying the thrill
of the music and exceptional dance, I seem to have forgotten the seven previous
productions.
Stratford Festival, Stratford, Ontario
Not that we planned it on purpose, but our scheduled week
just happened to be the week of opening nights.
“Fiddler on the Roof,” inspired by stories of Sholem
Aleichem, shows off the superior talents of actors, musicians, singers, and
choreographer. The audience cares about the life of Tevya and his family living
in Russia which is as uncertain and precarious as a fiddler on the roof. I’m
not sure what’s in the water in Ontario that makes their musicals so sweet, but
this was surely the finest and most emotional “Fiddler” that I have seen. And
my “Fiddler” tally is above 10.
Stratford, like Shaw, hosts plays in two main theatres.
“Fiddler,” set in the huge Festival Theatre, permits the large cast of leading
characters and those portraying town folks to spread out as they create their
home – their village of Anatevka.
“The Three Musketeers,” adapted from Alexandre Dumas’ novel,
leaps onto the Festival Theatre stage for a fun matinee for all – like the
line, “All for one, and one for all.” Stratford could have easily presented a
less than lavish show, because kid audiences will like it no matter what the
scenery, but they opt for nothing but the best in staging, actor skills,
costume design, intriguing lighting, and dexterous carefully plotted sword
fights. With 40 scenes, “Musketeers” is a big show.
“Measure for Measure” was the first Shakespeare play that we
saw in Stratford. The performance in the smaller Tom Patterson Theatre, offers
a different visual perspective on plays, as the stage juts out into the
audience. Not one of the Bard’s often produced plays, perhaps because its
ending is not a clear happy one (comedy) or one with bodies strewn on the floor
(tragedy), it is more difficult. While not a Shakespeare purist, updating
“Measure” to the 1940’s is a curious choice. The cast performs admirably.
“Romeo and Juliet” takes us to, perhaps, the most performed
of any by Shakespeare. The essentially bare-bones staging focuses on the
superior acting. Elizabethan era costumes are sumptuous, and the only nod to
modern technology is the tomb scene where Juliet’s body, lying on a bier,
rises. Actors play to the audience – the majority high school students – and
several were so caught up in the play, they were heard to shout, “No, no, don’t
do that,” as Romeo drinks the poison.
Important about Shaw and Stratford is the variety available.
On any given day at either venue there can be eight events; i.e. six plays and
two forums/lectures/talks.
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| Photo by Don Dixon |
“Mary Stuart,” by Friedrich Schiller, tops off our working
vacation with “best in show.” Appropriately staged in the intimate Patterson
Theatre, is the fictionalized portrait of the conflict between Queen Elizabeth
I and Mary, Queen of Scots; in other words, Protestantism vs. Catholicism. A
tour-de-force by the two lead actresses gives the audience a look into16th
century politics and religion. At the crux of the story is the relationship
between two women, both strong-willed, yet with human weaknesses which they use
against each other.
