OBEAH OPERA by Nicole Brooks (Culchahworks Arts Collective/Panamania in association with Nightwood Theatre and b current). Young Centre (50 Tank House). Runs to Saturday (August 8) at 7 pm, matinee Saturday 1 pm. $20.15-$40. 416-866-8666, obeahopera.com. Rating: NNNN
Nicole Brookss fascinating look at the perceived witchcraft in 17th-century Massachusetts takes an unusual approach: it focuses on the lives of the Caribbean slaves whose African roots connect them to a matriarchal power far older than their Puritan masters Christianity.
An a cappella opera performed by a cast of 15 women and directed by Lezlie Wade, Obeah Opera examines not just two contrasting cultures but also the different ways men and women wield power.
The production, which I saw at its last preview, enthralls with its moving and varied melodies, superbly performed by the cast under the guidance of music director Andrew Craig.
The narrative, though, isnt always clear, especially at the start, and could use some shaping for a stronger dramatic telling.
It begins in Barbados, where Tituba (Brooks, in a powerful performance) kills her master during a rebellion. Fleeing to the forest, she invokes ancestral forces and meets the Elder (resonant-voiced Singing Sandra), a primordial Earth Mother who is accompanied by other elemental spirits. Unsure of her own background and power, Tituba is sent by the Elder across the ocean to help her sisters.
The rest of the play takes place first on a slave ship and then in Salem, where Brooks does a fine job of defining the two cultures musically: the white masters sing mostly foursquare, regimented tunes, including hymns, while their black slaves offer a richer, more organic series of melodies that include blues, jazz and Caribbean-flavoured songs.
Tituba is given to the self-righteous community leader, Reverend Parris (an impressive Janet MacEwen), who rapes her and then is as dismissive of her as he is of all women in his family, including his wife, Elizabeth (Sabryn Rock) and daughter, Betty (Dana Jean Phoenix).
Betty and her friends, Mercy and Abigail (Melissa Noventa and Sarah Gibbons), follow Tituba and three fellow slaves (Divine Brown, Karen Burthwright and Deidrey Francois), characters who echo the earlier elemental spirits, to the woods. Watching their ritual celebrations, the Puritan youngsters discover a looser, more self-willed way they might behave. No surprise that their prim parents dont approve of the trios new-found sensuality.
Bettys illness, Titubas attempts to heal her and subsequent charges of witchcraft flow from there, as do Elizabeths and Titubas discoveries of personal truths and, for the latter, a rebirth.
Its beautifully, stirringly sung, and there are episodes of theatrical power, including a tender scene that links images of Tituba in jail, Elizabeth in the sick Bettys bedroom and the Elder as another maternal figure. Theres an entertaining comic number involving the communitys useless doctor (Diana Coatsworth), and a more serious section in which ropes double as shackles and iron bars for the four jailed black witches.
But other sections need development, among them Abigails turning on and accusing Tituba, and Elizabeths realization of Titubas goodness. And while theres exciting music and dance (choreography by Anthony Prime Guerra) in the various scenes that lead up to Titubas full acceptance of her heritage, theyre also repetitious and dont always move the story forward.
Robin Fishers costumes and simple set design, along with Bonnie Beechers atmospheric lighting, are production pluses, while Graham Clarkes sound design ensures that we hear all the voices and text clearly.
In its present form, Obeah Opera is a pleasure to watch and listen to for its energy and the commitment of its performers. What it lacks is a stronger narrative to focus the action.
