Directed by Nicole Janisch
Reviewed by Katie Stobbart
Plays again:
Saturday, April 26 at 9:20
Sunday, April 27 at 5:20
Three sisters try to cope with the death of their mother in different ways, all cloistered in their childhood house. One obsesses over the preservation and romanticization of the family home and domestic lifestyle, especially when it comes to Mother’s floral pattern linoleum in the kitchen. For the second sister, a bug who was their mother’s pet, is the object of focus. Finally, the third, who has been solely dedicated to writing a book about who their mother really was, sets out to destroy the distraction: the bug. The play was quirky with some standout comedic lines, and the actors dedicated themselves to the delivery of humour. However, this focus on humour sometimes diminished the darker themes in the play rather than balancing with them, so some moments which I think were meant to be serious lost some punch. There were places where I would have liked less yelling, but there were some very good moments as well — the writerly sister Angel’s outburst toward the end comes to mind. Also, the mop dance.
Memorable lines:
“That bug was every perfect thing you wish our mother was.”
“When you lean on the table it makes it difficult to reach the legs; I’m trying to be thorough and I wish you would respect that.”
