Crow’s Theatre / Massive Stuff, written and carried out by Matt Baram and Naomi Snieckus, co-created and directed by Kat Sandler, Studio Theatre, Streetcar Crowsnest, closes Dec. 8. Tickets right here.
There may be all the time one thing satisfying about watching grasp craftsman at their work, and such is the play Massive Stuff, created and carried out by Matt Baram and Naomi Snieckus.
The married couple are comedians, improvisors, actors, writers and storytellers, who, not surprisingly, met at Second Metropolis the place they honed their craft. So intelligent are these two, that it’s inconceivable to know what’s scripted and what’s improvised within the present.
Director and co-creator Kat Sandler is driving excessive lately, simply coming off directing the hit present Inside Design on the Tarragon. She will now add one other feather in her cap with the hilarious and touching Massive Stuff.
The massive stuff of the title is what occurs after the lack of a liked one. First, there’s the grief we supply in our hearts. Then there are the belongings of that particular person to be disposed of. A 3rd issue offers with our personal muddle — these keepsakes we grasp on to for intense private causes.
The play Massive Stuff is constructed round all these themes.
The Play
Throughout the present we be taught concerning the couple’s dad and mom. We additionally discover out concerning the ups and downs of their marriage. There may be additionally the operating joke of what to maintain and what to throw away.
They’ve a dump field, which the unsentimental Baram needs to fill, whereas Snieckus needs to hold on to an array of things, from the weird (outdated toasters) to the plain (work). Clearly one man’s junk is one other girl’s treasure.
Which brings us to Michelle Tracey’s marvellous set, made up of banks of varied sized packing containers with home windows stuffed with Snieckus’ keepsakes and hiding locations for different trinkets. You by no means know the place she goes to drag one thing from.
Tim Lindsay has supplied the amusing sound design by way of some intelligent decisions of music, whereas Emilie Trimbee has cleverly lit the stage to be each intimate and all-embracing.
The present swings backwards and forwards between scenes from the previous and the current. Up to now, each their moms and dads are every given loving portrayals, warts and all. For instance, Baram’s mom by no means made left hand turns. Within the current, are the couple’s disputes about what goes within the dump field.
A Shock Ingredient
The shock ingredient that makes Massive Stuff such a particular present is the interplay with the viewers.
Once you come into the theatre, you fill out a card itemizing one merchandise that has a particular significance for you, and at numerous instances, Baram or Snieckus pulls out considered one of these playing cards and dialogues with the proprietor. Additionally they ask the viewers questions stemming out of the scenes they’ve simply enacted, usually with very amusing outcomes.
Whereas the scripted (or perhaps not) portion of the present could be very humorous, these viewers interchanges make for an immersive efficiency that attracts artists and viewers collectively in a really distinctive dynamic. The theatre appears stuffed with the nice and cozy glow of fine heartedness for all.
There are the laughs a minute, notably when the couple level out one another’s peccadillos.
However, extra to the purpose, Massive Stuff has coronary heart, as a result of there are additionally many poignant moments. This can be a present that runs deep, and by the tip, the viewers can also be considering of the dad and mom, particularly, whom we’ve misplaced. The attractive ending encapsulates these recollections.
At Massive Stuff, you’ll chortle, and also you’ll cry as you bear an interesting theatre expertise created by masters.
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Paula Citron is a Toronto-based freelance arts journalist and broadcaster who hosts her personal web site, paulacitron.ca. For over 25 years, she was senior dance author for The Globe and Mail, affiliate editor of Opera Canada journal, arts reviewer for Classical 96.3 FM, and dance previews contributor to Toronto Life journal. She has been a visitor lecturer for numerous cultural teams and universities, notably on the function of the critic/reviewer, and has been a panellist on COC podcasts. Earlier than assuming a full-time journalism profession, Ms. Citron was a member of the drama division of the Claude Watson Faculty for the Arts.
