I left Tarragon Theatre’s Extraspace after a terrific opening night of Nicolas Billon’s tautly written The Neighbours with a chill running down my spine.
That same chill is still there as I write this review the next day.
This North American premiere remains riveting throughout. The tension and suspense build to a harrowing conclusion.
Simon Armstrong (Tony Nappo) and his wife, Denise (Ordena Stephens-Thompson), live in a modest home on a quiet street next to their private neighbour, Au Yeung Wei (Richard Tse). Simon and Denise have lived on the street for many years. They are awaiting the arrival home of their daughter, Sophie.
While they wait, the couple breaks the fourth wall and speaks directly to the audience. Simon and Denise are likable and gregarious. In May, they usually host a barbecue in their backyard for the other families on the block. Through Simon’s blunt, humorous observations, paired with Denise’s smoothing over rough waters as she explains her husband’s sometimes offhand remarks that might be misconstrued, the audience learns about the neighbours’ idiosyncrasies and quirks.
Several months ago, it came to light that Denise and Simon’s neighbour had been hiding a sinister, shocking secret that horrifyingly comes to life.
What follows? The Neighbours asks its audiences to question the bonds and responsibilities of people who live next door and around us. Do we really know who people are? How much are we expected to do?
This opening night performance is a grand VOICE CHOICE, a NOT. TO. BE. MISSED. performance.
For one, the visual element remains striking in Tarragon’s intimate Extraspace. Paul Cegys’ lighting projects a street map/floor plan onto the stage floor, underscoring the neighbours’ proximity. Kelly Wolf’s set design and prop selection are simple yet convincingly real. Just off centre stage right is Wei’s residence, with a comfortable chair and side table. Wei sits in the chair, reading his book. At one point, he exits the stage, then reenters with a pink teapot and cup, which become very important items.
Just off centre stage left is Simon and Denise’s home/living room. There is a La-Z-Boy chair with a side table and ottoman. Suspended above the stage are remnants of a model house that have been cut up. There’s a front door, a staircase, a garage door and a front window. On one of the pieces are the letters S.A.P.
Des’ree Gray selects clothing that tells a great deal about the characters. As Simon, Nappo is dressed in comfortable jeans, a clean-looking grey undershirt, and a dark, unbuttoned shirt with sleeves rolled up to the elbows. Stephens-Thompson is dressed in stylish capri pants and a floral top. Sporting suspenders, Tse is dressed in dark dress pants and a striped shirt, sleeves rolled up to the elbows.
Braeden Etienne selects appropriate music and sound elements that effectively raise the intensity and build to a harrowing, suspenseful climax.
Matt White directs with a strong grasp of how to build and sustain suspense, not only in plot development but also in understanding the various human emotions when confronted with stark realities about the dark nature of human existence.
Richard Tse remains highly and keenly observant as the Armstrong neighbour in his stoic silence. I found myself glancing at him periodically, even as attention remained focused on the Armstrong house and the growing alarm about the atrocity happening on the block.
Tony Nappo and Ordena Stephens-Thompson deliver top-notch performances as a genuinely happy couple who have built a life on this quiet street for themselves and their unseen daughter. Just before the show begins, Nappo enters from stage left, plausibly walking with a cane. He falls asleep in the La-Z-Boy chair, and we hear authentic snoring. Ordena Stephens-Thompson’s Denise believably fusses over her husband. She knows he sometimes shoots from the hip, but she loves him dearly because he has provided a good life for all of them.
The gamut of emotions between Nappo and Stephens-Thompson is carefully and thoughtfully played out. The two listen keenly to each other. They observe, respond, and react with purpose and reason. They never revert to histrionic behaviour as the horrific reality materializes.
Without giving too much of the plot away, there is one moment that startled me because it looks and sounds very real. At one point, in an intensely heightened moment of suspense, Nappo falls behind the La-Z-Boy. Whether that moment is intentionally scripted or not, it certainly looks and plays out as real because the realization of what unfolds in the plot is monumental. (If that moment is not scripted, I do hope Tony is okay, because he hit the floor with a thud.)
As I think about the conclusion of The Neighbours, I still get chills at the reality of what human nature is capable of, especially in a sentence that rings scarily true today in light of the Epstein files – “When people show you who they really are, believe them.”
The Neighbours is a definite recommended must see from me.
Running time: approximately 90 minutes with no intermission.
The production runs to March 15 in the Extraspace at Tarragon Theatre, 30 Bridgman Avenue, Toronto. For tickets: tarragontheatre.com or call (416) 531-1827.
TARRAGON THEATRE and GREEN LIGHT ARTS present the North American Premiere:
The Neighbours by Nicolas Billon
Directed by Matt White
Set and Props Designer: Kelly Wolf
Costume Designer: Des’ree Gray
Lighting Designer: Paul Cegys
Sound Designer: Braeden Etienne
Stage Manager: May Nemat Allah
Performers: Tony Nappo, Ordena Stephens-Thompson, Richard Tse
