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THE MOURNING by Charles Picco, directed by Ed Roy, with Ken James, Anne Anglin, Picco and Darren Hynes. Presented by Topological Theatre at Theatre Passe Muraille Mainspace. August 2 at 9:30 pm, August 4 at 3:30 pm, August 5 at 11 pm, August 7 and 11 at 5 pm, August 8 and 10 at 8 pm.

Rating: NNNNN

Maybe you can go home again, but beware the nightmares you bring with you.Charles Picco’s The Mourning follows the emotional lives of a Newfoundland family after one of two sons dies on a camping trip. It’s a memory play, a well-crafted piece that allows journeys into the past for each of the living characters.

“I want my plays to feel like they’re a dream, but the fact is that any good theatre enters the characters’ subconscious,” says former Newfoundlander Picco.

“I’ve always written subtextually, never wanting to expose the obvious about my characters. There’s a lot that’s unsaid between the words. It’s a way of discovering another deeper truth. I believe that as long as a writer gives clues throughout, the audience can follow a story.”

Picco is one of Toronto’s little-known theatrical talents, a playwright who captures emotional nuance with ease. His initially ordinary characters become more fascinating the more we learn about them. He’s done a few festival shows and spent last year in the playwriting unit at Theatre Passe Muraille, working on Men Of Good Fortune.

Like Dreaming Elsewhere, a previous SummerWorks show, The Mourning began life in Rhubarb!, and since then Picco’s developed the relationship between the two siblings.

“Now there’s more dramatic tension, more chance for each to push his brother’s buttons. We’re trying to keep the piece fluid, so it moves like dance rather than naturalistic theatre.”

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