by AMY BARRATT

A few weeks back, I was singing the praises (to the annoyance of a lot of out-of-work actors) of one-person plays. I did not mean it as a put-down of large casts, which of course have their own charms. Indeed it gives me great pleasure to report that, at this moment in time, large casts seem to be the norm in local English theatre.

Eight actors bring to life a re-imagined Strindberg in Temenos Productions’ Le Songe/dreamplay at Théâtre La Chapelle. An even dozen are creating Shakespeare for the new millennium in The Tempest at the Saidye. Together, and following on the heels of Imago’s Bye Bye Baby (cast of five), these two shows express the vitality of English theatre in this town despite all odds. (That Le Songe/dreamplay is a bilingual production reflects a strong trend in anglo theatre).

What I like best about both these productions is their ambition. The arguments against undertaking anything on such a grand scale are so strong that these companies get brownie points just for taking the leap.

In Le Songe, director Kate Bligh has taken the structure of Strindberg’s play as well as the playwright’s “intentions, so far as she has been able to perceive them” and little else. The protagonist is still a Christ figure in the form of a young “ethnic” woman—that is, Agnes does not share Strindberg’s Swedish roots. All of the events in the original play have been replaced by contemporary stories set in Montreal. The adaptation and contribution of experiences are attributed to the whole cast.

Beginning with Sadia Mahmood’s (Agnes) descent from the catwalk, Cirque-de-soleil-like, using nothing but a ribbon, the production has some fine moments. But in the end, all this new material seems like a bad fit with the original. I began to wish that Bligh had just taken this same group of talented actors and fashioned a collective creation out of whole cloth.

Over at the Saidye, things hold together better in Madd Harold’s The Tempest. The director has been given more space and resources than he’s ever had with Gravy Bath, but he hasn’t let it go to his head. The production is remarkable first and foremost for its simplicity. The shipwreck is illustrated with a large piece of blue cloth and a model ship. Entrances and scene changes are effected by strips of blue fabric being rolled across the set, evoking a cinematic “wipe.”

Gareth Armstrong, star of 2003’s one-man Shylock, is riveting as the complex Prospero. Douglas Campbell brings not just Stratford diction but a sensitive reading of the text that had me actually verklempt in his final scene.

It needs to be said, however, that the inadequate rehearsal period necessitated by financial constraints does not serve the production. To Harold’s credit, no actor is left floundering. But there are scenes where Shakespeare’s meaning comes through more clearly than in others. If this is what the Saidye can accomplish in a three-week period, they deserve the chance—dependent on receiving the government grants that have so far unfairly eluded them—to experience the luxury of a fourth.

Le Songe/Dreamplay, to Dec. 4 At Théâtre la Chapelle (3700 St-Dominique), 843-7738, $12–$18

The Tempest, to Dec. 6 at the Saidye (5170 Côte-Ste-Catherine), 739-7944, $18–$40

>> Stage Listings