Newfound Histories. What’s the Point?

The title of this piece holds promise. But the end result yields zero dividends. Evan Walsh is a personable enough presence on stage, but the deceased grandfather’s journals that form the basis for this show are pretty insubstantial. Intended to be evocative of a past culture, they are for the most part dull. Indeed, Walsh himself tells us that there’s not much there, thereby leading us to ask — so what’s the point? There are unsuccessful attempts to juxtapose his Newfoundland roots with his present big-city existence, there are moments of emotion that don’t really jell with anything else, there is clumsy staging. And there is no compelling reason for this purposeless piece to be existing at all.

Written and Performed by Evan Walsh

Arts Court Library