
Theatre Review: Reading of Excellence, Ontario @ Rotunda Theatre
Far away from the busy metropolitan landscape lives a family on a private island. Here, they have their own rules and live according to their own desires. They like to think of it as a Utopian place which they’ve named Excellence, Ontario.
Written by Emma C. Roberts, a Toronto-based playwright, Excellence, Ontario is the second-place recipient of the 2005 Herman Voaden National Playwriting Competition. A biennial award established at the request of Herman Voaden, Voaden is an influential figure in the Canadian theatre, as well as a Queen’s University alumnus and professor. Voaden personally donated the funds necessary for this competition to the Queen’s drama department.
Playwright Emma C. Roberts is also the recipient of the CBC New Voices Award, the Cleveland Public Theatre’s New Play Festival Award, and the CBC/Quebec Writers’ Federation Short Story Award.
Set in Ontario, the play takes the audience into the private world of one family living on a fictitious island named Excellence. In the first scene, we are introduced to the family: Otto, the father, and his two daughters, Juliette and Tricia. As the play develops, a heartwarming tale of family relationships in the face of isolation and death unfolds.
Directed by Daryl Cloran, the reading came to life with the use of colourful voices. Rather than a fully-staged performance, Friday night was a stripped-down reading of the play. Each performer stood onstage and sat down when offstage, a typical procedure in play readings. Although this routine was seemingly distracting at first, it wasn’t long before the storyline drowned out all interruptions. Friday night featured a memorable performance by Irene Poole, who played Tricia, Otto’s adopted daughter. Tricia was brought to the island at the age of five, and now, at the age of 34, has never left. Although the audience isn’t given an explanation for her behaviour until the last few scenes of the play, her childish and quirky comments set her apart from the other characters. Poole’s performance brought some of the most comical and heartfelt moments to the reading.
Juliette, played by Catherine Fitch, delivered a believable performance of a woman trapped by her family responsibilities. As the responsible daughter who takes care of her dying father and younger sister, her character was the easiest to sympathize with, despite her cynical and bitter remarks. Otto, played by Mo Bock, is an elderly man preparing to write his memoirs. Upon first impression, his character appeared to be bitter and senile, but after a few witty exchanges with his daughters, the audience seemed to quickly warm to his character. Bock’s performance captured Otto’s sense of isolation with the loss of his wife and his fear of death. Repeatedly he reminds his daughters, “This could be my final 15 minutes.” In addition to the serious tones he contributed to the play, Bock also offered effortless comic relief, demonstrating a considerable degree of experience in the theatre.
Although the reading of Excellence, Ontario lacked the common theatrical elements such as costumes, lighting effects, music or sounds, the director incorporated just the right amount of props to allow the audience to envision the fictional world of this family.
For example, when the character of Blake was introduced, he was in the process of committing suicide. The use of a rope around his neck as well as the stage directions—read by Cloran—created the image intended to be portrayed by the writer. The simple approach of incorporating a few props when necessary made the reading more entertaining without creating a distraction.
One advantage to the absence of theatrical elements is that the audience pays much closer attention to the script. Fortunately, Roberts’ play was filled with both profoundly philosophical and light-hearted dialogues. Complete with several interesting surprises, the script allowed the audience to imagine and create the missing theatrical elements on their own.
The Herman Voaden National Playwriting Competition was created with the intention of promoting the Canadian theatre and showcasing Canada’s many talented playwrights. Judging by the caliber of the reading, Roberts was certainly deserving of her award.
The competition is open to all Canadian citizens or landed immigrants. For information on making a submission for the 2007 Awards, visit queensu.ca/drama.
All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s)-in-Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be contacted, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to journal_editors@ams.queensu.ca.