“A wickedly funny, razor-sharp and hilarious script performed with tremendous comical force by playwright Akosua Amo-Adem. Underlying messages of modern dating, relationships, and identity are paramount.”
Akosua Amo-Adem is Abena Ohemaa Frimpong, but she is known to many friends, family, and colleagues as Abby. Abby is an intelligent Ghanaian woman who is charming and witty. Her impressive resume shows how hard she has worked to achieve her success.
In this nearly solo narrative, she’s on her way to meet another online suitor—the mysterious JD45, with whom she has communicated solely on a dating app. Abby’s previous date with Marcus007 ended poorly, but perhaps this time will be different.
Abby hopes this online date with JD45 will help her cope with the pressures surrounding her single status at 35. Additionally, other social connections have caused Abby to question the direction of her relationships. Her best friend Janelle (Meghan Swaby) has recently become engaged. At the same time, Abby’s mother (Bola Aiyeola) continues to inquire why she is still single, which periodically places mother and daughter at odds. Mom is eager to become a grandmother. If Abby finds it challenging to meet men at work, perhaps a kind man from Ghana could help her move forward.
Akosua Amo-Adem’s script remains wickedly clever, razor-sharp, and hilarious. To discuss any of the comical moments would surely spoil the setup, and I’m not willing to do that. ‘Table for Two’ must be experienced live to appreciate its humour and heart. The opening of the production will indicate why audiences need to see it live.
Astrid Janson’s minimalistic set design effectively conveys the play’s various locations, from Abby’s apartment to the restaurant where she waits for JD. A closet filled with clothing also serves as her bedroom. A beautifully decorated table with matching chairs (and a hint of a wine bar in the background) indicates the cozy restaurant where Abby waits. Nick Blais’s sharp lighting design, featuring six spotlights at the beginning of the show, becomes crucial at the end when Abby places several items that have become integral to her journey as the woman she is today. A nod of appreciation goes to Sound Designer Maddie Bautista, who ensures the actors can be heard. This is important as the humour and poignancy are found in the spoken word.
Amo-Adem speaks candidly to the modern twenty-first-century woman of a certain age who begins wondering where her life might be headed. She also addresses how the modern twenty-first-century woman shouldn’t have to compromise the values and principles that define her and her uniqueness as a woman.
Under the watchful eye of director Djanet Sears, Amo-Adem shines in style, grace, wit, and candidness. She exudes exceptional confidence in the red dress, courtesy of Costume Designer Astrid Janson. Amo-Adem skillfully balances humour and sentiment without letting either overwhelm her. She stays grounded and entirely in control of her emotions, highlighting the remarkable power of this production in both comedy and humanity.
The supporting cast is of importance as part of Abby’s journey.
Ryan Allen plays the men in Abby’s life and showcases their unique characteristics. Let’s just say that some of them are complete idiots. Meghan Swaby’s performance as Janelle stands toe-to-toe with Amo-Adem’s. Swaby is direct and matter of fact, which is necessary for Amo-Adem’s character growth as Abby.
While Bola Aiyeola’s Mom is controlling, meddlesome, and sometimes manipulative, the performer never lets her maternal figure overshadow the tension in the scene. It’s clear that Aiyeola, as Mom, only wants the best for her daughter. Periodically, as adults, parents must rear their heads (and yes, even noses) in their grown children’s business. Parents want their adult children to be proud of who they are and happy in their lives. This is evident in Aiyeola’s performance; it never feels forced or overly pushed on the audience.
In her Creator’s Programme Note, Akosua Amo-Adem writes she was part of the third installment of the Soulpepper Academy. At that time, she was eager to stretch and hone her craft as an actor. She had incredible instructors who challenged her to bring all of this into the characters she played on stage.
I want to see where Akosua is headed next.
A hoot and a half with a sharply crafted script and performance, ‘Table for Two,’ is worth paying a visit.
Go and see it.
Running time: approximately one hour and forty minutes with no intermission.
‘Table for Two’ runs until March 2 in the Michael Young Theatre in the Young Centre for the Performing Arts, 50 Tank House Lane, Toronto’s Distillery District.
For tickets: Soulpepper.ca or call 416-866-8666.
A SOULPEPPER & OBSIDIAN THEATRE co-production present
‘Table for Two’ by Akosua Amo-Adem
Directed by Djanet Sears
Set/Costume Designer: Astrid Janson
Lighting Designer: Nick Blais
Sound Designer: Maddie Bautista
Stage Manager: Ada Aguilar
Performers: Akosua Amo-Adem, Ryan Allen, Meghan Swaby and Bola Aiyeola
Photo credit: Dahlia Katz. Pictured: Ryan Allen and Akosua Amo-Adem
