SPAWN by Cheyenne Scott (Wild Woman Theatre/SummerWorks). At Factory Mainspace. Aug 5 at 1:30 pm, Aug 6 at 7:15 pm, Aug 8 at 7:30 pm, Aug 11 at 5:15 pm, Aug 12 at 9:30 pm, Aug 13 at 3:45 pm. See listing. Rating: NNN
This dark yet uplifting family drama focuses on Theresa (Samantha Brown), an Indigenous 20-something dance teacher living in Victoria, British Columbia, who unexpectedly becomes pregnant after a one-night stand back in her small hometown. Her pregnancy compels her to attempt to reconnect with her estranged businessman father and her mysterious maternal grandmother, who have both been absent from her life since the drowning death of her mother.
The story is at times harrowing and heartbreaking, and at others funny and cute, but Cheyenne Scotts compelling script which touches on several important issues like missing and murdered Indigenous women, land-use politics and intergenerational trauma is sometimes hampered by rushed deliveries and less-than-naturalistic performances.
Director Gein Wong could improve things by slowing down the lead actors to make sure key emotional moments have time to resonate, and also by speeding up scene transitions, which make use of a visually impressive semi-transparent silk that represents the Pacific Ocean, but also take too long, interrupting the narratives momentum.
Despite these quibbles the show has lots of potential, so heres hoping it spawns a remount.
