PETER AND THE WOLF conceived and directed by Allyson McMackon, with Hume Baugh, Matthew Romantini, Lucy Rupert, William Yong and others. Presented by Theatre Rusticle at the Theatre Centre (1087 Queen West). Previews Saturday and Monday (September 3 and 5), opens Tuesday (September 6) and runs to September 11, Tuesday-Saturday 7:30 pm, matinees Saturday-Sunday 2 pm. $15-$22, matinees pwyc. 416-538-0988. See listing.
Jack Layton’s very public death has once again brought difficult end-of-life issues to the fore of many Canadians’ minds. How can you prepare yourself to die? How should you spend your final hours on earth?
These timely yet timeless questions are explored in Theatre Rusticle’s dark new adaptation of Peter And The Wolf.
Known for crafting surreal, movement-based companion pieces to famous stories like Macbeth (Birnam Wood) and the sinking of the Titanic (April 14, 1912), Rusticle interprets Sergei Prokofiev’s famous orchestral piece for young people as a more macabre tale set years later. Peter (David Smukler), now an old man on his deathbed, is visited by the wolf (William Yong) one last time.
“It’s very heavy,” admits Allyson McMackon, Rusticle’s artistic director. “We look at what is means to be approaching the end of your life.
“Last year a few of my close friends passed away, and I had the opportunity to speak with them and be with them near the end. I was very moved by that experience. I had always wondered what happens. What’s that like? It had always been very mysterious to me. This show is a concrete exploration of this moment that we will all face. We want to look at it in a more conscious way and not simply be spooked.”
In the show, the deathbed scene serves as a frame (“Like a Ghost of Christmas Past thing”) within which the wolf helps Peter review his life. In addition to new stories and relationships imagined by McMackon and the company, the show also incorporates the classic tale of Peter’s first boyhood encounter with the wolf, told as a flashback.
Just as in the original, live music – a first for Theatre Rusticle – will play a central role in this version.
“The initial impetus for this show was to see if we could make a production that incorporated theatre, dance and live music,” says McMackon.
An onstage chamber orchestra plays eight new adaptations by Patric Caird of contemporary music, plus the familiar themes written by Prokofiev back in the 1930s.
“Music is really the architecture of this piece,” explains McMackon. “It doesn’t underscore the action – it creates it.”
McMackon breaks down the traditional divide between orchestra and actors by incorporating the musicians’ physical movements into the action of the show. Each player is paired with a character in the story – much like Prokofiev’s use of leitmotifs – and as they play they also embody aspects of that character. Likewise, the actors translate aspects of the music into their movements and gestures. Creating the show was a collective process that took place during rehearsals.
“In our improvisations we ask questions about the music, and I do my best to shape and direct these. Then we devise and build gestures in response. Part of Theatre Rusticle’s approach is to illuminate the fact that the answers we come up with are not final, and that uncertainty and process remain important elements of the performance.”
Despite the grim theme, McMackon insists the show won’t be overly gloomy.
“The play is dark, but it’s also a massive celebration. We want people to see Peter’s life as their own, projected through this prism.”
“We always ask, do you want to explore what you know, or what you don’t know?”
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