“Richly layered performances that linger long after the curtain call. Enlightening, Apocalyptic and Terrifying simultaneously. First rate direction by Soheil Parsa.”

Playwright Guillermo Verdecchia’s complexly layered ‘Feast’ remains discussion-worthy. I hope Tarragon has planned some talkbacks for future audiences.

There are moments when the narrative unfolds seamlessly as it should. A few minutes later, the fourth wall is broken as each character addresses the audience directly. These elements complement each other beautifully to create a frighteningly real story, especially considering its increasingly evident apocalyptic themes.

We meet Mark (Rick Roberts), who travels the world for his job to gather as much authentic cultural experience as possible. Mark’s hunger for a ‘genuine, real life’ experience has become insatiable- in fact, ravenous. He longs for the next opportunity to visit a city and savour the most obscure foods and cuisines.
Mark’s wife, Julia (Tamsin Kelsey), recognizes this quality in him and seems to have accepted it. Julia is strong in her own right; she’s an articulate and poised lawyer. Their relationship appears solid at the top of the show. They understand each other’s vibes and interests.

However, their relationship with their daughter Isabel (Veronice Hortiguela) is occasionally rocky. She is a university student who has become highly engaged and actively involved in climate change issues.
The young woman's conversations with her parents are evidence of selfishness. Isabel is disrespectful in her tone. She does not want children later in life. While Mark and Julia seem confused about why their unseen son has recently left home, Isabel understands her sibling’s reasons.

When Mark is on an overseas experience, he meets Chukuemeka (Tawiah M’Carthy), a logistics expert who introduces Mark to bizarre culinary experiences, such as frogs’ legs that have been poisoned - grotesque sounding to a Western cultural appetite.

Kaitlin Hickey’s très sleek set design artfully catches the eye for its minimalism. Yet, what lingers in the air feels out of place amid this compact, sterile neatness. Upstage, sliding doors allow the characters to enter and exit, while a walkway facilitates their movement across the stage. Hickey’s sharply defined projections- such as people texting each other and the change in Starbucks’ mermaid logo- strongly contribute to that sense of dislocation. Thomas Ryder Payne’s sound design, featuring musical selections, accentuates the unsettling sensation of what exists beyond our comfort zone. Chris Malkowski’s lighting design features spotlights that delineate the characters as they approach the audience.

Soheil Parsa is a marvellous director. His gentle, subtle touches of welcomed humour allow the audience to breathe momentarily in relief before confronting another stark fact about the absurd yet seemingly post-apocalyptic world that Verdecchi has crafted.

I find the reference to Dr. Faustus in the script relevant since the play is titled ‘Feast.’ It has been a long time since I last engaged with that story, so I had to do a quick bit of research into Faustus. Briefly, it deals with the protagonist requesting a demon to bring out-of-season fruit to woo a duchess. Hmmm…an interesting contextual parallel.

Mark travels around the world to experience various tastes of global cuisine. There are moments when he tells Julia he would prefer to be home with her and Isabel. However, that does not stop Mark from pursuing what he desires - a wonderful life, unfortunately at the cost of his relationship with his wife and daughter.

Verdecchia’s script contains some terrific monologues that delve deeply into the psyches of the four characters. What the audience discovers upon digging further is not pretty—it’s a tad horrific when the truth comes out.

Rick Roberts commands the stage as Mark. Throughout the surreal elements of the story, including how anyone could develop such a peculiar culinary taste, Roberts remains grounded. I genuinely believed he would eat these dishes without a second thought. A highlight of this opening night is witnessing how Roberts engages with the audience during the various monologues. He convincingly portrays a man becoming disconnected from everything around him as he indulges in these ‘fantasies’ of a good life surrounded by this odd cuisine. His emotions run the gamut, yet Roberts compels the audience to listen to what he says.

There’s a palpable sense of tension in the performances of Tasmin Kelsey and Veronica Hortiguela as Julia and Isabel, respectively. Kelsey seems to accept her role as Mark’s wife and what life has dealt her, while Hortiguela’s Isabel adamantly refuses to do so. Why? Isabel recognizes that she will not receive the same treatment from her father as her mother does. This transient existence in the family cannot foster a stable marriage. There is a possible implication that this is why the unseen son left home.

Kelsey and Hortiguela are shrewdly matter-of-fact in their portrayals as mother and daughter. There’s a sense that their relationship has run hot and cold. Yet, at one point, Isabel announces she wants to leave the house and move far away with her best friend to begin life anew. The poignant reckoning between mother and daughter strikes at the heart. Solid work in this scene.

Tawiah M’Carthy is strikingly authentic in his onstage portrayal of Chukuemeka. His conversation with Roberts during the play's final moments serves as a sombre reminder that if we often wish for something we genuinely desire, it is possible to achieve it. M’Carthy, Kelsey, and Hortiguela also play supporting and secondary roles that add humour and enliven the moment with details that address the play’s fatalistic undertones.

The final image emphasizes Mark's shadowy figure. It took my breath away for a few moments. Mark appears to search, perhaps even yearn for something lacking in his life. Will he ‘feast’ on something completely different if he discovers what he’s seeking?

Questions upon questions upon questions to discuss.

The mark of good theatre.

‘Feast’ is another afternoon or evening of good theatre.

Running time: approximately two hours with no interval/intermission.

‘Feast’ runs until April 27 in the Mainspace at Tarragon Theatre, 30 Bridgman Avenue, Toronto. For tickets, call the Box Office (416) 531-1827

FEAST by Guillermo Verdecchia

Directed by Soheil Parsa
Set and Projection Designer: Kaitlin Hickey
Costume Designer: Ting-Huan 挺歡 Christine Urquhart
Lighting Designer: Chris Malkowski
Sound Designer: Thomas Ryder Payne
Stage Manager: Lani Martel
Fight Director: Davi Chinchilla
Dialect Coach: Dienye Waboso Amajor
Apprentice Stage Manager: 樊海怡 Eloise Fan

Performers: Veronica Hortiguela, Tamsin Kelsey, Tawiah M’Carthy, Rick Roberts