TIGHTROPE created by 2boys.tv (Buddies in Bad Times, 12 Alexander). To June 5. $19-$33, Sunday pwyc. 416-975-8555. See listing Rating: NNN
If you’re open to experiencing a multimedia mind fuck – and a theatrical experience you won’t get anywhere else – then take a walk on 2boys.tv’s Tightrope.
The Montreal performance art troupe’s latest, like their 2009 piece, Zona Pellucida, combines elements of drag, video and music into one gorgeous stunner of a show. This time, however, the text isn’t quite as polished as the production.
It’s set up like a funeral service overseen by performer/collaborator Alexis O’Hara, who delivers a reverent eulogy before calling up a half-dozen mourners in various drag get-ups who stagger around and (over)dramatically wail. Musical performances – both real and virtual – and prepared readings by coached audience members round out the show.
Despite some suggestions in the program about remembering “our forgotten,” it’s unclear who or what is being mourned. The songs evoke a number of cultures and provide some clues, but the spoken sections remain elliptical and vague.
The design, however, is superb. Lucie Bazzo’s dramatic lighting and shadow effects, a richly detailed set and Sarah Doucet’s sumptuous costumes all evoke strong emotions.
Tightrope also uses film and video in surprising ways, and combined with the unique musical sequences, will haunt your imagination longer than the slack script.
