From the wonderful and imaginative mind of novelist and Nobel Prize winner Alice Munro comes Alice Munro Stories, two hour-long plays based, word for word, on two of her short stories. Alice Munro Stories, which is running at the Belfry Theatre, invoke a sense of instant curiosity, some laughs, and maybe even a tear or two.
The first, bombastic, play is Differently; it takes place mostly in Victoria and manages to tell the tale of the lives of several different people, weaving an impressive web of plot lines in a bold and somewhat complex fashion. Keeping up with this quickly paced and complex show could be difficult for those who have grown accustomed to a more traditional style of storytelling.
Differently feels grounded in reality while at the same time drawing you closer to the edge of your seat while you wait in suspense to see what happens next. It’s a true drama, with hints of morbid and shocking humour sprinkled in the mix.
The second story, Save the Reaper, was the better of the two; it’s a bit of a tearjerker due to the sad (but interesting) nature of the performance. This plot involves fewer characters and the world that it occupies feels smaller; perhaps that’s what made it feel so intimate. The play has a secluded atmosphere of a distant country town, where two people unlikely to meet come together quickly and are separated from each other just as hastily.
Some of the five actors and actresses featured in the two shows have the task of occupying multiple roles in the story they’re in, challenging the viewer to correctly decipher the events taking place on stage in what is an already complicated story. The sets were incredible, the props were intriguing, and certain moments of the two shows felt like a good old-fashioned thriller movie, especially when a light bulb would suddenly drop from the ceiling and flicker in the dark, or when a mother and her two children wander through a dimly lit home in the countryside, a home belonging to a shady stranger who they had just met.
Overall, I quite enjoyed the performances. The show was the perfect length, it featured strong acting, and the effects were plentiful and exciting. I would certainly recommend this to an avid theatre-goer or to anybody that enjoys complex and detailed storytelling.
Alice Munro Stories
Until Sunday, May 14
The Belfry Theatre
belfry.bc.ca