The bond between sisters is beautifully encapsulated in a new play about war and emancipation currently showing at a downtown theatre in Toronto.
Three Sisters is an insightful and moving production surrounding the love and conflict shared between family members amidst the Biafran Civil War in Nigeria from 1967-1970.
“It’s a beautiful, beautiful production. The set is insane…the house, it’s just such a beautiful combination of historic but also modern,” Akosua Amo-Adem, who plays the eldest sister Lolo, told Now Toronto.
The classic play, by Anton Chekhov, was adapted by Nigerian-born British playwright Inua Ellams, and this marks the North American premiere of the show.
“I think Inua, the playwright, he gives language to things that you just, like you can’t articulate specifically about how you feel,” Amo-Adem said.
The co-production between Soulpepper Theatre and Obsidian Theatre was directed by Mumbi Tindyebwa Otu and marks a timely reflection of wars and conflicts currently happening around the world.
“The play is set during the Biafran Civil War in Nigeria in 1967. So, there’s three major tribes in Nigeria…the (home) owners’ own family is part of the Igbo tribe and…they felt like the country, Nigeria, was not representing their needs and wants and wanted to secede from them,” Amo-Adem said.
The Igbo tribe was successful in seceding but that led to a civil war between them and the two other tribes.
Amo-Adem adds that the play speaks to how families are coping amid civil unrest happening worldwide.
“I just think that to be able to have a piece of work that is looking at the experience of a specific family, in the backdrop of a civil war, and the things that they have to endure, and the things that they have to, that they’re forced to address are things that I think everybody is thinking about right now.”
“Every time I step into this play, I can’t help but think about the people in Palestine, the people in Congo, there’s so many, like the people in Ukraine, like there’s so many wars that are actually happening in 2024. And I know for myself, having this piece to be able to sort of process through my own feelings about what’s going on in the world has been a gift,” she said.
Throughout the production, the audience is taken on a journey of love, heartbreak and triumph in an emotional, and sometimes comical series of scenes.
From the talented acting to beautiful set and costumes, the play is a charming story that will keep the audience intrigued and engaged.
Amo-Adem’s character Lolo is a 40-year-old, single woman and teacher without children who takes on the mother role in the household following the deaths of her parents.
The Ghanaian actor says she strongly relates to her character as they share similar backgrounds and personality traits.
However, Amo-Adem does not have any sisters, only brothers, but says she seamlessly connected with her stage sisters.
“We haven’t done like a formal sister outing but we all share the same dressing room. Our cast comes together as a group before the show…the three of us go off to a corner and just breathe together. And then when the show was over, we breathe together again, just to remind ourselves that like we’re doing this together,” she said.
She added that working with an all Black cast was simply beautiful.
“It’s so special. I’ve been very, very fortunate to have had a lot of experiences in Black spaces throughout my career.”
Despite the easy on stage chemistry, Amo-Adem shared that the most challenging obstacle for her was coping with the emotional toll brought on from being fully immersed in the role.
“Because the play is very demanding emotionally I had to sort of figure out how to rehearse it while still taking care of myself. Because I’m the type of actor that I’ll just dive in, all in, right, because we’re trying to explore, we’re trying to figure out what these moments are.”
The limited-time production is playing at Soulpepper Theatre in Toronto’s Distillery District until Mar. 24. Amo-Adem says everyone and anyone can enjoy this timely show.
“The story is just heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time. And there’s also comedy in it – there will be laughter, because you know that’s what we do.”
Tickets can be purchased here.
