Odyssey Theatre - Theatre In The Park

"Odyssey is...not afraid of taking risks, and has over the years produced some of this city's most invigorating, expansive theatre pieces." Tom McSorley, CBC Radio 1

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A clever and incisive adaptation of the Pierre Corneille classic with a sharp contemporary edge by Pullitzer-prize winning playwright, Tony Kushner. In theatre, as in love, what is real and what is the illusion?

An imaginative production of The Illusion, directed by Diana Fajrajsl. Kushner's rich text brings a sharp contemporary edge to the masterpiece by French neoclassical playwright, Pierre Corneille. Corneille drew inspiration from Spanish plays of honour and Commedia dell'Arte to probe the chameleonic nature of both romantic love and the theatre.

The Illusion follows the adventures of a roguish lover as viewed through the eyes of his miserly father with the help of a multi-faced magician and her amphibian servant. Odyssey's set featured the gaping mouth of a gargoyle with a lolling red tongue into which actors appeared and disappeared, creating a surreal world. But through this journey, this play within a play probes the illusions of both familial and romantic love and the illusions and value of theatre.

ODYSSEY - ILLUSION

Directed by Diana Fajrajsl

Designer: Art Penson
Mask Design and Construction: Karen Rodd
Lighting Designer: Rebecca Miller
Composer and Musician: John Armstrong
Assistant Director: Catherine Edwards
Fight Choreographer: Mark Huisman

Cast: Jeffrey Aarles, Anand Rajaram, Nicky Brodie, Mark Huisman, Michelle Girouard, Alix Sideris, Attila Clemann, William Beddoe.

Stage Manager: Lara Goldenberg
Production Assistant: Rachelle Audette

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Reviews:

"…one of the most innovative, invigorating and consistently intelligent theatre companies in Canada…Odyssey has…delivered something approaching a masterpiece…Art Penson's set is a wonder, something straight out of a late period Fellini film…startling, wild combinations [in design] animate the themes of this sparkling, literate text and the performers even more so… [there is] a wondrous alchemy of light and shade in this masterful production…" Tom McSorley, CBC Radio 1

Photos: (top) Alix Sideris, Michelle Girouard;
(bottom) Anand Rajaram.

"…the performance was utterly stylish, perfectly coherent and an enormous pleasure to watch…the illusion we were watching was perfect!" Alvina Ruprecht, CBC Radio 1