General Info
a new and radical adaptation of Racine's Andromache
By Jean Racine, Adapted by Evie Christie
Director: Graham McLaren, Associate Artist
Stage Manager: Crystal Salverda
Assistant Stage Manager: Sarah Bustard
Sound Designer: John Wynne
Costume: Melanie McMeill
Assistant Production Manager: sandra Henderson
Featuring: Ryan Hollyman, Christine Horne, Arsinee Khanjian, Steven McCarthy, Christopher Morris.
The war has ended in a hail of brutal crimes against women and children. The new leader, Pyhrrus, has become infatuated with a hostage, the recently widowed Andromache. She now faces a sickening dilemma – should she allow her surviving child to be publicly executed by her enemies or should she sell herself to Pyrrhus? Canadian poet Evie Christie collaborates with director Graham McLaren on a modern adaptation of Andromache that examines how obsessive love and lust lead people to do unspeakable acts.
Produced in association with
TiMax2 SoundHub audio showcontrol matrix and playback server
Filiming by REM generously supported by the Ontario Arts Council's Arts Investment Fund
Photos by Anthony Cohen and Michael Cooper
Creative Team
CAST (In alphabetical order)
RYAN HOLLYMAN | Pylades
For Necessary Angel: Debut
Other: Ryan is an actor born and based in Toronto, although he began his career in Montreal, as a graduate of Concordia University's performance program and a member of the Montreal Young Company. He is currently a member of the Actors Repertory Company, a Les Masques and TFC award winner and a two- time Dora Mavor Moore award nominee. Theatre Credits Include; Our Class (Studio 180); Fernando Krapp Wrote Me This Letter, The Overcoat (Canadian Stage); The Mill parts 1-4 (Theatrefront|Young Centre); Mojo (Red One); Scratch (Factory Theatre). TVCredits Include: Republic of Doyle, Othello (CBC); King, The Dealership, Degrassi (Global); Flashpoint (CBS|CTV). Upcoming: The Tempest (Theatre By The Bay).
CHRISTINE HORNE | Hermione
For Necessary Angel: Debut
Other: Christine is an actor and indie theatre producer hailing from Aurora, Ontario. Recent stage credits include Romeo and Juliet (Canadian Stage), The Turn of The Screw (DVxT Theatre – Dora Award), Miss Julie: Sheh’mah (KICK Theatre – Dora nomination), Underneath (Praxis/Summerworks), Twelfth Night (Resurgence), Bluebeard (GromKat/Toronto Fringe), The Seagull (Wordsmyth), and Gorey Story, which she also co-created (Thistle Project – 4 Dora nominations). Film and television credits include The Stone Angel (VFCC and MethodFest nominations), Othello, The Untitled Work of Paul Shepard, Little Films About Big Moments, Flashpoint, Republic of Doyle, Rookie Blue, Befriend & Betray, and King. Christine is the Artistic Co-Director of The Thistle Project, Artistic Producer of KICK Theatre, and a graduate of the Acting Program at York University.
ARSINEE KHANJIAN |Andromache
For Necessary Angel: Debut
Other: Palace of the End, by Judith Thompson (Dora Nomination). Her extensive stage-work includes Irina Brook's French-language premiere of Brian Friel's modern classic, Dancing at Lughnasa (Theatre de Bobigny, Paris and Theatre de Vidy, Switzerland.) The hit play was remounted for a French national tour and special festival appearances in Japan and Germany. Also at the Theatre de Bobigny, she starred in a major new production of Goethe's Stella, directed by Bruno Bayen. In her home city of Toronto, Khanjian has starred in a number of plays, including two critically acclaimed productions at Theatre Passe-Murraile, Beast on the Moon, directed by Hrant Alianak, and Wedding Day at the Cro- Magnons, by the highly acclaimed Canadian playright Wajdi Mouawad and directed by Banuta Rubes. Khanjian appeared in the lead role in Factory Theatre’s world premiere of Florence Gibson’s Home is My Road, directed by Ken Gass, in April, 2003. Selected TV includes; CBC drama series, Side Effects and Ken Finkleman's his series More Tears, Foreign Objects, and Foolish Heart. (Gemini Award for Best Actress in a Series). Film work includes; Poupoupidou, inspired by the life of Marilyn Monroe, The Lark Farm, which had its premiere as a Special Presentation at the 2007 Berlin International Film Festival, romantic comedy Sabah by Canadian director Ruba Nadda, as well as playing Ani in Atom Egoyan’s critically acclaimed Ararat. (Genie Award, Best Actress in a Feature Film/Best Actress by the Durban International Film Festival in South Africa).
STEVEN McCARTHY | Orestes
For Necessary Angel: The Last Romantics, Hamlet
Other: Steven has been an actor, musician, and theatre-maker for nearly 12 years. Revisited, a play he created with Michelle Monteith and Chris Barry toured nationally and internationally to great acclaim and garnered multiple awards including a Top Five Plays of the Year designation by Toronto's Now Magazine, a Best Actor Award in Halifax, best production of the year in Victoria, and nominations for the company’s writing and design. The ElastoCitizens, the 10-piece hard rock funk band for which Steven is the lead singer, manager, and co-songwriter are a staple on the Toronto music scene, selling out venues such as Lee’s Palace and The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern and participating in festivals such as NxNE and Luminato. He received a best actor Dora Nomination for his role in the critically acclaimed norway.today (Theatre Smash) and played Horatio in Necessary Angel’s controversial production of Hamlet, directed by internationally renowned director Graham McLaren. In 2009 he founded Candles are for Burning, directed the site specific Three Plays by Sam Shepard in a dilapidated frat house ballroom and was subsequently invited to be the only student to attend a special one year version of the National Theatre School’s directing section. In 2010, he was the recipient of the Canstage Award for Best Direction for Bliss - the North American premiere of Olivier Choiniere’s play at the Summerworks festival which McCarthy also acted in and produced.
CHRISTOPHER MORRIS | Pyrrhus
For Necessary Angel: Hamlet
Other: Aurash (Modern Times), The Runner (Human Cargo, Rustavelli Theatre/Tbilisi), Stones in his Pockets (Thousand Islands Playhouse), Descent (Theatre Passe Muraille), Return: The Sarajevo Project (Theatrefront), Much Ado about Nothing and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Resurgence Theatre), Winter’s Tale, Chorus for Disapproval, Play about the Baby (Soulpepper). As Artistic Director of Human Cargo, Christopher wrote and directed Night. A play about Nunavut, it premiered at the National Arts Centre in January ‘10 and toured extensively across Canada, having just completed a run at the Factory Theatre. Christopher recently returned from Pakistan and Afghanistan where he was developing a play with Pakistani, Afghan and Canadian actors about the current war in Afghanistan. Upcoming/Human Cargo: August ‘10 Christopher is working on the second workshop of The Runner in Tel Aviv and Tbilisi, and will be traveling to Algeria and Paris to start work on The North African Youth Exchange, a play created with Paris and Toronto-based youth of North African descent that explores the challenges of immigration.
Crew (in alphabetical order)
SARAH BUSTARD | Assistant Stage Manager
For Necessary Angel: Hamlet
Other: The Tempest (Dream in High Park, The Canadian Stage Company); Tuesdays with Morrie and Kindertransport (Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company); Madama Butterfly (Opera Hamilton); Forbidden Phoenix and Touch the Sky (LKTYP); The Children’s Crusade workshop (Soundstreams); In Darfur (Theatre Awakening at SummerWorks); blood.claat (Magnetic North Theatre Festival and Black Theatre Workshop); Jewtopia and Evil Dead, The Musical (Independent); The Beggar’s Opera, Real Estate, Storm Warning, Trying, Girl in the Goldfish Bowl, The Music Man (Thousand Islands Playhouse); Hellfire Pass, Real Estate, Wade in the Water and The Goat, or, Who is Sylvia? (Centaur Theatre Company).
EVIE CHRISTIE |Adapter
Evie Christie is the author of a collection of poetry, Gutted and a novel, The Bourgeois Empire published in fall of 2010. Her work can be found in journals and the anthologies Jailbreaks: 99 Canadian Sonnets, IV Lounge Nights Anthology and Approaches to Poetry: The Pre-Poem Moment and IV Lounge Nights. She lives in Toronto where she studies literature at the University of Toronto.
sANDRA HENDERSON |Assistant Production Manager
sandra Henderson is a Toronto-based theatre practitioner who can be found working in a variety of mediums. Recently, she designed lighting for the Groundswell Festival and FemCab (Nightwood Theatre); directed a staged reading of the new play Mythmaking by JP Larocque (New Ideas Festival); and designed lighting for Songs for a New World (Angelwalk Theatre). sandra’s endeavours as a production and tour manager have taken her across Canada with Red Sky Performance’s works Tono and Raven Stole the Sun; she has navigated Western Europe as stage manager and ‘Jane’ with Le Grand Peep Show (CORPUS). sandra is thrilled to join the Necessary Angel team for Tout Comme Elle and Andromache.
ANDREA LUNDY |Lighting Designer
For Necessary Angel:The Eco Show, Half Life, Insomnia, Hamlet, When My Name Was Anna (workshop), Divisadero: a performance
Other: Andrea Lundy is an award winning lighting designer, having been nominated for 22 Dora Mavor Moore Awards, winning 9 times for Hamlet, The Mill, The Eco Show, Stories from the Rains of Love and Death, Russell Hill, The Attic, The Pearls and Three Fine Girls, Possible Worlds, Insomnia, and Oedipus. She has spent four seasons at the Shaw Festival and has worked extensively with Tarragon Theatre, Soulpepper Theatre, Canadian Stage, Necessary Angel Theatre Company, Factory Theatre, Theatre Passe Muraille, and Neptune Theatre among other Canadian companies. She is the Production and Tour Manager for Necessary Angel, teaches at the National Theatre School and Humber College and is a member of the Associated Designers of Canada.
Other: Crystal is thrilled to be back at Necessary Angel. Over the last few years she has had the opportunity to work locally as well as tour both nationally and internationally stage managing some wonderful productions such as Half Life (Necessary Angel), Under Milkwood (Soulpepper Theatre Co.), Raisin in the Sun (Soulpepper Theatre co./Theatre Calgary), Hamlet (Necessary Angel), This is What Happens Next (Necessary Angel/Canadian Stage), Civil Elegies (Soulpepper Theatre Co.), Tuesday’s with Morrie (Harold Green Jewish Theatre), Of the Field’s Lately (Soulpepper Theatre Co.), Billy Bishop (Soulpepper Theatre Co.) and Divisadero (Necessary Angel) to name a few.
GRAHAM McLAREN | Director & Designer
For Necessary Angel: Hamlet
Other: Graham is a Glasgow based theatre artist who has created work ranging from totally improvised and devised work to classical texts. He has performed, designed, written, devised, taught, improvised, choreographed, programmed, directed and produced. His work on European classics has been seen in ancient Greek amphitheatres, black box studios, the main stages of National Theatres and prestigious festivals across the world. After graduating The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, Graham established the internationally acclaimed Theatre Babel. His shows for the company include new adaptations of Oedipus, Electra, ‘Tis Pity She’s A Whore, Uncle Vanya and the multi award winning Medea, as well as Thebans new adaptations of Oedipus, Phonecian Women and Antigone and his own adaptation of Hedda Gabler then Macbeth which saw its most recent reworking at The Hong Kong Cultural Centre in Dec 2008. He also created Blood and Ice for The Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh. In 2005 Graham as Artistic and Co-Creative Director of Perth Theatre, Scotland he created Great Expectations and Phedre, Jekyll and Hyde and The Demon Barber. As well as Volpone and School For Wives for Theatre Babel. Graham joined Necessary Angel as an Associate Artist, where his first production, Hamlet, opened at the World Stage Festival in November 2009. In December 2009 he previewed in own adaptation of A Christmas Carol for the National Theatre of Scotland and in August 2010 Graham was invited to join the company as Associate Director.
MELANIE McNEILL| Assistant Costume Designer
Melanie is a set and costume designer who also does a lot of costume building, scenic painting and puppet making. Select design credits include: set, props and costumes for Bullet for Adolph (directed by Woody Harrelson), costumes for Tombs of the Vanishing Indian (Native Earth Performing Arts), set & costume for Madhouse Variations (Eldritch Theatre), assistant set & costume for Fernando Krapp Wrote Me This Letter (Canadian Stage), costumes for The Last Days of Judas Iscariot (Birdland Theatre), set & costumes for Binti’s Journey (Theatre Direct, costume assistant for Necessary Angel’s Hamlet, and six seasons with Videocabaret .
CRYSTAL SALVERDA | Stage Manager
For Necessary Angel: Are You Okay (with Peggy Baker Dance Projects), Divisadero: a performance, Half Life, Hamlet, This Is What Happens Next workshop
For Necessary Angel: Half Life, Hamlet, This Is What Happens Next, Divisadero, Are You Okay
JOHN WYNNE|Sound Designer
John is a sound artist whose award-winning installations and radio pieces often hover on the boundary between documentation and abstraction. His work with endangered languages includes a project with click languages in the Kalahari Desert and another with one of Canada’s indigenous languages. His massive installation for 300 speakers, player piano and vacuum cleaner became the first work of sound art in the Saatchi collection and won John the 2010 British Composer Award for Sonic Art. He is a Senior Lecturer and researcher at the London College of Communication and has a PhD from Goldsmiths College, University of London.
Artist Statement
"Why Andromache? Well simply put, I love it. My old teacher once described Racine like 'Shakespeare in a tin can... with all the air sucked out... and utterly untranslatable into English.' That always stayed with me. So, why bother? Well, so far the work I have explored with Necessary Angel has been mostly around Shakespeare's Hamlet, so when we decided to further our exploration the actors found that Racine's Andromache provided them with the right kind of challenges... and an extraordinary bit of luck led us to Evie Christie whose poetry thrilled us in the way I imagined the 17th Century French might have felt about Racine's 'diamond edged' language and simple plot. So that seemed like a good place to start."
- Graham McLaren, Director
Andromache
History
Reviews
The reviews:
Click HERE for the review from the Globe and Mail
Click HERE for the review from the TORONTOIST
Click HERE for the review from the TORONTO SUN
Click HERE for the review from The L Project
Click HERE for the review from NOW MAGAZINE
Click HERE for the review from Mooney on Theatre
Click HERE for Lyn Slotkin
Click HERE for Holger Syme
Articles:
Click HERE to read about the poet Evie Christie
Click HERE to learn about the sound used by John Wynne and TiMax