Review: Tear The Curtain

(photo credit: Bruce Zinger)

A mindfuck...

or a live-action version of Lost?

by Dave Ross

Canadian Stage’s Tear the Curtain opened last night at the St. Lawrence Centre. It is no small secret that at least half of the production is presented as a movie. The film, shot over three weeks in Vancouver, is worked into a live theatre experience. The program for this play is among the most expansive I’ve seen, including a story synopsis, which I both appreciate and hate at the same time. It could leave one worrying about the play – if it can’t communicate its story through theatre, then what exactly are we in for?

What you’re in for is likely the most interesting theatre experience you’ll have this year. Visually, the show is amazing. Technically, the show is absolutely astounding. Story wise… well, you’ll just have to go and see this show to judge for yourself. 

Visually and technically, this show shines.

Tear the Curtain is the result of a commission from the Arts Club Theatre in Vancouver. Set in a fictional 1920s Vancouver, it documents the battle between the live theatre and cinema mafias as they fight to build a theatre on a particularly valued piece of land on Granville Street, home of the present-day (and very real) Stanley Theatre.  The real history of the building was factored into the story and the filmed segments of the play, giving the production a very meta-feeling to it. Outside of this theatre turf war, the story expands much, much further, into the life of Alex Braithwaite, top theatre critic in Vancouver. He is tasked with locating the elusive Empty Space Theatre and its creator, Stanley Lee. There is much happening in the story, and it can be hard to track at times, but it does return and wrap up loose ends for the most part.

Jonathan Young as Alex Braithwaite gets top billing in this show, both as the lead and playwright/co-director. He must move from suave theatre goer to madman and beyond, and he does it easily and so convincingly. Opposite Young is Dawn Petten as Mavis, Alex’s secretary and girlfriend. She truly serves as a counterpoint to Young’s performance, calmly advancing the story outside his madness. Her role is pivotal, though one wouldn’t know it from the beginning. Petten expertly plays all facets of her character, and really shines at her character’s climax. It is hard to select one actor to really stand out in the play, but if pressed, Petten gets my vote. The cast is an excellent ensemble - with the exception of Patten and Young, no one shines, but there isn’t a need to shine. This show does not demand a sparkling lead. I have one small quibble with one performance,  Laura Mennell as Mila Brook. The story is set in the 1920s, and each of the actors simply creates that illusion. Instead, Mennell creates a caricature of a vampy actress, and while that execution is spot on, it doesn’t fit the play or story at all, and is a glaring inconsistency. Even more inconsistent is Mennell’s accent. In the filmed segments it is flawless… on stage, it’s sometimes Bronx-ish, sometimes Chicagoan, and sometimes nearly Hungarian. 

Visually and technically, this show shines. The production design by David Roberts is extremely versatile, and integrates the filmed and live theatre segments brilliantly. Cinematographer Brian Johnson has created segments that complement and participate in the action taking place on the stage, and special kudos go to Alan Brodie for the lighting design. It could be so easy for lighting to destroy the projected film segments, but he expertly avoids this while still giving the live theatre segments the light they need while maintaining a film-noir feel. I delighted in the theatricality of the direction and design. Despite the technical excellence required to execute much of this show, it is never once intrusive, and there is still good old-fashioned theatre magic in the show. 

This play could be classified as film-noir, which seems a contradiction, but there it is. It can make the story difficult to follow at times, especially given the synopsis in the program (which places the emphasis in other story elements, for some purposeful misdirection I expect). The show is constantly destabilizing the theatre experience, which leaves us circling around an issue that we can’t quite identify. At intermission, it can seem like a mindfuck. There are moments where you will wonder if you have actually stepped into an episode of LOST. Film noir is not my favourite genre, but I enjoyed many aspects of this show even if I was struggling to follow the story and its aims. This show is so incredibly unique and so well executed that it needs to be seen. Canadian Stage has made an excellent choice with this production, and it would be a shame to miss out on a show of this quality. Make the time. 

Tear the Curtain runs to October 20