A TASTE OF EMPIRE written and performed by Jovanni Sy, directed by Guillermo Verdecchia (Cahoots). At the Market Kitchen, South St. Lawrence Market West Mezzanine (93 Front East). To July 24. $30-$40. totix.ca, cahoots.ca. See listing. Rating: NNNN
If you’re hungry for a show that’s as full of ideas as it is of thea-tricality, head down to St. Lawrence Market to sample Jovanni Sy’s A Taste Of Empire.
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Performed in a kitchen overlooking the south market stalls, the Cahoots Theatre show is set up like a cooking demo by internationally renowned chef Maximo Cortés. The celebrity foodie has been called away on a “culinary emergency,” so harried sous-chef Jovanni (Sy) fills in to prepare the Filipino dish rellenong bangus, aka stuffed milkfish.
The choice is significant, its typical Spanish flavours representing Spain’s colonization of the Philippines. Apart from filling us in on the cultural implications of the dish, Jovanni introduces each ingredient, from the fish that’s been farmed and mass-produced (squeezing out the traditional fisherman), to the tomato picked by a migrant worker. Even the simple garnish has a disturbing backstory.
Occasionally, the facts and figures overwhelm the show, but Sy and director Guillermo Verdecchia often find ways to emphasize a particularly heinous point by squashing a garlic clove or using the staccato sounds of the knife on a chopping block. David Yee’s video projections add to the play’s complexity.
As in any worthwhile meal, it takes time for the show’s flavours to mix and mingle. Jovanni’s sarcasm is balanced near the end by a twist that shows us his real position in the world’s food chain. A bit more about his background (we’re just told he was rescued by Maximo from a Romanian orphanage) would add to the work’s emotional aftertaste.
As at any food demonstration, you get to sample the prepared meal afterwards. I guarantee this dish will stay with you.
glenns@nowtoronto.com
