Silly Little Country

They Killed Emily of New Moon! (SPOILER ALERT)

Well, not quite.
But Martha McIsaac, who plays Emily of New Moon,, was playing a character, Hedwig, in a production of The Wild Duck I saw last weekend. And they killed Hedwig. And who were they? Well, that is the question of the play - I am sorry to have given away this much to anyone who might want to go. But I would say go anyway.
It was wonderful. Nobody seemed wrong, and Martha McIsaac was quite natural as the daughter of the somewhat failed Ekdal (you may have to accept the wild enthusiasm she has for Dad, but I have seen it in real life, with real Ekdals), who was played perfectly by Diego Matamaros, with both of them led into great trouble by Ekdal's friend Gregers, played with trembling nuttiness by Brent Carver.
It shames me that until last night I had never seen nor read this play. It was full of conflicts I recognize both as a human and as someone with a Norwegian background (the latter perhaps trumping the former at times).
The production felt so even, with all roles filled well.
Now it was a Soulpepper production, and I saw one other on the day - Hamlet. I enjoyed it mightily as well, though it seemed far less even - in fact it seemed to me to have been carried by William Webster (the link is an educated guess) who played Polonius, and Albert Schultz (many of you will know him as Rob Diamond in 'Street Legal'), who was a very convincing, if somewhat mature, Hamlet. It is also well worth seeing.
As in every year this group has existed, it makes choices that make it thoroughly worthy of patronage. Thanks, Soulpepper, yet again. And. mostly, thanks to Albert Schultz.
Now let's hope they do not kill off Anne of Green Gables in one of the remaining shows I will see.

posted by Alan Adamson @ 5:58 PM