Hroses: An Affront to Reason. A play that divides the audience.

Photo from Gigcity. ca (The production in Edmonton).

I might say something that many would not like here. In general I like the idea of putting a magical realism piece on the stage. It is rarely done, simply because it is exceptionally difficult. But, then, that can be said for any genre that is not concerned with a classical concept in storytelling. Now, to transfer a genre like this to a completely different medium, like theatre, takes a lot of knowledge and experience. Certainly, it cannot be done “word by word.” I respect Evolution Theatre because they are not afraid of challenging tasks, they experiment, and, above all, they bring to the Ottawa the theatre scene what it needs – new concepts and a daring approach. Their latest play Hroses: An Affront to Reason (in aco-production with Mi Casa theatre) proved to be all that.

The play, written by Jill Connell, takes us into the world of relationships – love, past, present, livelihood, ancestors, all bundled into one package. Impossible, yet inevitable, connections among all creatures and things in the universe join us in a beautiful way only to separate us in an ugly reality.

Lily and Ellery love each other, but while their love progresses, numerous obstacles stand on their way. Their love story serves Connell to discover a whole world of links around and beyond us. Although the idea is interesting and some parts are beautifully written, wrapping with the notion of universal inter-dependency, some inconsistencies get in the way. Although it is true that magical realism has elements of the magical intertwining with the realistic (a trait that makes it more intriguing, but also harder to follow), all the elements need to work together. Even if it doesn’t have a firm frame, it has a good storyline. That is something that is lacking in Hroses: An Affront to Reason – the narrative lacks consistency. The author wants to tackle too many issues, so there is a lot of jumping from one topic to another, sometimes completely unrelated and unrealistic.

Ellery, who does not know what a horse is, all of the sudden becomes an expert on the subject. Also, a few profanities uttered by Lilly seem out of character and do not help the narrative at all. A different and courageous approach to art is commendable, but whatever style the artist chooses, it should always be in support of the story. The director misses defining the angle of the play. With so much going on, an adaptation of the text would have fitted the medium better. Through a better choice and combination of elements from the narative, he would be able to convey the ideas more clearly.

Katie Swift and Nick Di Gaetano are excellent in their respective roles. Katie Swift held the whole world of controversial feelings on her palm, allowing the spectators to enter her unusual and yet still ordinary life of work, love, joy and pain.

The audience’s opinion was divided – there were some laughs during the show and a long round of applause after, but there were also some who felt completely puzzled. True, this kind of theatre is not for everybody (but than, which one is?). Let me add this: Evolution Theatre is very different from most of what can be seen in Ottawa. They are also a young company (founded in 2005). It takes time to mature and, in the meantime, learn through its own mistakes and accomplishments. I believe that an artistic company like this deserves our support for the exciting future that seems to be ahead of them.

Hroses: An Affront to Reason

Author: Jill Connell

Production – Evolution Theatre and Mi Casa

Director: Emily Pearlman

Cast:

Ellery: Nick DiGaetano

Lily: Katie Swift

Crew:

Costume and Props Design: Patrice Forbes

Sound Design: Al Connors

Light Design Pierre Ducharme

Set Design: Nick Di Gaetano