From Russia With Love

I returned to the Factory Theatre on Tuesday night for another production. This time, it was a musical adaption by Comment Descent (Scott Christian, Kevin Shea, Wade Bogert-O'Brien) of a Chekov's short entitled A Misfortune.

Ivan (Jordan Till) proclaimed his love for Sofya (Trish Lindstrom) who vehemently denied any romantic feelings for him. She returned home to her older husband Andrey (Rejean Cournoyer) who reveled in comfortable routine and prudent living. This man sang a paean to mortgage payments when his wife proposed a thrilling vacation. Later that evening, they were visited by Masha (Kaylee Howard) and Pavel (Adam Brazier) as well as Ivan. This passionate couple showed another side of matrimony. They scandalized their hosts and each other by singing salaciously of hypothetical (or not) affairs. Though they have grown somewhat bored of married life and itched for novelty, they were still in love. Ivan, on the other hand, insisted that true love did not permit strayed thoughts or equivocation; the moment must be seized. Which view of love will Sofya finally chooses?

This was the best show of this year's Next Stage Festival. The performance was engaging and dynamic with numerous sly digs between the characters and the songs had clever and witty lyrics. Though all actors had strong performances, Howard and Brazier stole the show with their louche wit and lusty manners. Lindstrom and Till didn't quite sell the may-or-maybe-not romance, as they both seemed stuck with broad-stroke characters. Lindstrom carried a stunned/agog expression for too many scenes and Till's hair-pulling tortured soul got tiresome. Cournoyer put in a subtle performance as a stick-in-the-mud patrician, but who was aware enough to perceive that dependability, stability, and trustworthiness could be unexciting for a young wife and a source of gentle derision from his cosmopolitan neighbours.