Power-House Performance | Even in a flawless cast, Tracey Power (left) is a standout as Stray’s angry yet vulnerable Kim.
DETAILS
STRAY
Directed by Michael Clark. Written by Elyne Quan. Starring Brian Dooley, Sandra M. Nicholls, Stafford Perry, Tracey Power. La Cité Francophone (8627-91 St). To May 3. Tickets available through TIX on the Square (420-1757/tixonthesquare.com).
****1/2
It’s the hope that hurts.
Every time the phone rings, or someone knocks on the door, it could be him.
For the Kowalcyks in Elyne Quan’s new play Stray, it’s the constant knowledge that their son could be out there, cold and hungry, or living his life without them — or that he could be dead — that feeds the family’s pain.
The pain and grief this family endures is so poignant, so intense, and so raw that even though it’s been eight years since their son disappeared, each family member — mother, father, and sister — is locked in their own automaton existence. They eat, they drink, and they fight like a family. But it takes the sudden appearance of a young man, a young man who may well be their son, for them to become a real family again.
The play, Quan’s master’s thesis from the Department of Dramatic Writing at NYU, is a beautifully crafted and, if you’ll pardon it, masterful work of theatre. Each moment is carefully honed and well-structured, each emotional beat rings true. Painfully so. Sensitively directed by Workshop West artistic director Michael Clark, there truly aren’t enough superlatives to express both the power of the play and the Sterling-worthy performances by the cast.
Brian Dooley gives a nuanced and tender performance as Richard, the father who apologizes for everything and wears his responsibility for his missing son like a old shirt. He walks the careful line between pathos and hope, and with each “I’m sorry” breaks our hearts a little more. Sandra M. Nicholls, as the mother, Vivian, is the closest thing to an antagonist in this play and it is her voice of doubt that provides such poignant counterpoint and conflict. We don’t want to like her — or even agree with her — but we’re completely with her in her moments of anguish. Nicholls is strident in this role, but she has to be — she is a woman on the edge of grief and acceptance; she barely functions as a wife or mother. Stafford Perry, as the Young Man, is hope incarnate. He is entirely beguiling, and though he holds more questions than answers, his character breathes fresh life into a stagnating family. Perry’s performance is beautifully layered — sensitive and fragile — and we can’t help but hope against hope that he is the missing boy.
With such stellar performances to support her, Tracey Power as Kim, the other lost child in this family of strays, gives the best performance, hands down, I’ve seen in Edmonton in years. She is completely present, she completely embodies the sad and funny teen forced by tragedy to grow up too soon. She is as mouthy and indignant as any teen, as vulnerable and insightful as anyone who experiences profound loss. Power is true to her name and gives a performance that will stay with you, haunt you, well past the curtain call.
Stray is by no means an easy play to watch. The tension is palpable from the first scene and doesn’t let up until you’ve left the theatre. The emotion is raw, almost unbearable in places. If anything, I felt too much, not that that’s a criticism. The play does not allow for distance; you are confronted minute by minute with the partner emotions of grief and hope. And the hope stings the worst.
A fun feel-good romp it’s not. But who wants that kind of theatre when you can experience something like this?
Just bring Kleenex.
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