AGE OF AROUSAL by Linda Griffiths, directed by Jennifer Brewin, with Julie Stewart, Marie Beath Badian, Aviva -Armour-Ostroff, Leah Doz, Sam Kalilieh and Juno Rinaldi. Factory Theatre (125 Bathurst). Opens October 23 and runs to November 8, Tuesday-Saturday 8 pm, matinee Sunday 2 pm. $35. 416-504-9971, factorytheatre.ca.
Linda Griffithss Age Of Arousal, set in the world of 1880s British suffragettes and their disciples, is as much concerned with sexual freedom as the breaking of political and economic shackles.
At its centre are Mary Barfoot (Julie Stewart) and her lover, Rhoda Nunn (Marie Beath Badian), who run a secretarial school for women hoping to move up in society. Their happy household is disrupted when they take under their wing the Maddens, a trio of sisters impoverished in both finances and spirit.
And things arent improved with the appearance of Marys cousin, Everard, who finds himself carnally drawn to two women in this extended family.
Lindas writing is incredibly powerful, says Stewart on a rehearsal break. Were finding moments when we just stop work and sob. I hadnt anticipated this when I read the play on my own. Our first reading with the company made me like it even more.
I couldnt wait to jump in and pull this huge play apart to find all its riches.
This is the kind of script in which we can relish just how much a glance contains, adds Badian, whos just as turned on by the material. Theres a scene between Mary and Rhoda that goes on for two minutes, but it feels so ethereal and timeless that it could go on forever.
In her script notes, Griffiths comments that every character is on the verge of tumultuous change.
Thats certainly true for Mary, explains Stewart, who most recently appeared onstage in George F. Walkers Dead Metaphor and is remembered for her work as a police sergeant in TVs Cold Squad.
Mary, a former member of the suffrage movement, is older than Rhoda, and she realizes at the start of the play that she might lose her partner. She fears that when Rhoda really gets to know her, the younger woman will find her not an Amazon warrior but rather a coward. Theres also the age thing Rhoda is in her prime.
But Mary, who understands that shes a leader and has power over others, doesnt want to let go, so she fights to hold on through whatever means she has.
Rhoda, on the other hand, finds herself caught in what Badian calls a crisis of ideals. When we meet her, shes buoyed herself on the mandate of the suffrage movement: shes marched, waved signs and finds comfort in the admiration and love of her teacher/mentor. What blindsides her is the sexual attraction she has for Everard and the problems she has with the demanding Maddens.
The two actors are also excited by the politics, both large and small, on which the play turns.
Linda takes seriously the idea that the suffrage movement wasnt single-mindedly about gaining the vote, notes Stewart. Its members realized they had to bring sex and politics, the private and the public, together. Keeping them separate led to the sexual objectification of women, who were kept in the home and not allowed out into the public realm.
They both savour the playwrights use of what Griffiths called thought speak, in which characters pour out their thoughts aloud. Theyre not asides to the audience but more like emotional outbursts that cant be contained.
Theyre incredibly challenging to pull off, admits Badian, a playwright (Prairie Nurse, The Making of St. -Jerome) as well as an actor. But I love the moments of expressive explosion that are in such stark contrast to or complement the public moments.
The lushness of these sections is the best kind of fan-girl writing. Its like shes created characters who spar like Beatrice and Benedick or Elizabeth and Darcy and then added a great layer of sex on top of their exchanges.
jonkap@nowtoronto.com
