Village Squire, 1979-03, Page 25J
THEATRE
Centre Stage
reopens
with strong
production
The latest reincarnation of London's
Centre Stage Theatre opened in February
with the Canadian international hit play
Zastrozzi. The play showed both the
strengths and the weaknesses of the
Centre Stage operation.
Ken Livingstone's theatre has died and
been reborn more times than one cares to
count but it's probably never been in
stronger financial shape than in its present
abbreviated season, thanks to an unpre-
cedented $20.000 operating grant from the
Richard Ivey Foundation.Zastrozzi showed
that new solid financial shape with
production values that have often been
missing in the past. And perhaps the
publicity the theatre has received in its
struggles and the quality of the
productions now possible is winning new
friends. The matinee performance we
attended wasn't sold out but it was
certainly attended by a larger audience
than had been present at many other
performances in the tiny theatre over the
years.
The new financial well being of the
theatre was evidenced quickly on entering
the theatre for Zastrozzi. The tiny stage, so
often played nearly bare in the past is
provided with an impressive set for this
production. The two rear sides of the
square stage were transformed into two
huge, substantial -looking stone walls of an
ancient castle filled with nooks and cranies
and gothic windows and staircases. The set
added immensely to the feeling of the
show, especially since its size in the tiny
theatre made the audience feel it was
almost sitting inside a castle watching the
show. It also aided the direction of a
basically action play on the tiny Centre
Stage by providing several levels for the
actors to perform from.
The strength of the set was matched by
the strength of the cast Livingstone has
assembled for the production. It was
headed by London native Wayne Burnett
who has gone on from Theatre London to
success at the National Arts Centre in
Ottawa and various Toronto theatres.
Burnett was given the lead role of Zatrozzi
and conveyed the feeling of evil throughout
the play. Although not large in actual
stature, he seemed a powerful character,
not just in performance but in a physical
sense.
He was surrounded by old faithful
members .of the Centre Stage company
throughout the years. Sonja Smits who's
been with the theatre since the beginning
with lunchtime theatre and Straitjackets,
turned in a sensual performance in
Zastrozzi as the gypsy Mathilda who's in
love and competition with Zastrozzi. He
destroys people with his sword, she with
her body and spirit.
Tom Arnott who was with Miss Smits in
those early days turned in a delightful
performance as Victor, the tutor of Verezzi,
the man Zastrozzi has become obsessed
with killing. He's one of the few likeable
characters in a play filled with darkness.
Jim Warren as Verezzi the mad artist who
feels he is by turns a servant of God, a
messenger of God and a seer played his
role with an air of unreality necessary.
With his hulking size, Jake Levesque gave
Bernardo, Zastrozzi's sidekick a caveman -
like appearance. And Maureen Press as
Julia, the aristoctratic young beauty
seemed well cast for the role of the flighty,
dreamy 17 -year-old.
The questions come when, after all the
good performances. after the total effect of
the production one tries to add up just what
is meant by it all. Nearly all the characters
speak in weighty, solemn eloquence that
makes it appear the author has something
momentous to say. Even the jokes are told
as if they were taken from stone tablets,
which at times gives them a marvellous
subilety. Yet the solemnity of the material
given to the various characters seems a
little improbable. Some of the weighty
comments seem highly uncharacteristic
particularly those eminating from the
Neanderthal Bernado.
Then too there seems something very
strange about the date of the play. Author(
George F. Walker says the play takes place
in Europe, probably in Italy in about 1890.
The characters spend a good deal of the
time sword fighting like Zorro or the
pirates of untold numbers of action movies.
Did people still sword fight in the 1890's
when the emergence of the pistol made
killing so much simpler and safer? And
Bernardo goes around dressed like a
remnant of the Viking age throughout the
play, not of the more modern 1890's.
Livingstone's sense of pacing slows
everything in the play to a crawl. Even
sword fights have a lazy, premeditated
appearance (although in the intimateness
of the tiny theatre they also are very
authentic because front row audience
members can feel the swords swishing
almost by their ears). The lighting was
always dim and dark, never giving a break
from the oppressive feeling, even in a
scene where the young Julia goes for a'
picnic and meets Zastrozzi who seduces
184 Diagonal Rd.,
Wingham, Ont.
Phone 357-3833
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March 1979, Village Squire 23