Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, was a hilarious play with a refreshing script, playing at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Theatre.
Christopher Durang’s witty mash-up of Chekhov characters and smartphones is a delightful new farce for our hyperconnected era. Middle-aged siblings Vanya (Jay Brazeau) and Sonia (Susinn McFarlen) live an angst-ridden, melancholic existence on their family farm. Housecleaner-cum-soothsayer Cassandra (Carmen Aguirre), whose hilariously ambiguous prophecies keep them befuddled, provides the only break from monotony. That is, until their glamorous movie-star sister, Masha (Anna Galvin), swans in for a surprise visit—along with her hunky boy toy, Spike (Robert Salvador). Brilliant performance by actor, Jay Brazeau with so much character from this wonderful cast of characters!
Christopher Durang is the Tony Award–winning author of such acclaimed plays as Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You (1979), Beyond Therapy (1981), and Betty’s Summer Vacation (1999). Durang is an alumnus of Harvard University and of the Yale School of Drama. He is the co-director of the Lila Acheson Wallace American Playwrights Program at the Juilliard School. In 2013, he won the Tony Award for Best Play for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.
An Arts Club Theatre Company production: Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage (2750 Granville St., at 12th Ave) to April 19, 2015. Tuesday at 7:30 pm, Wednesday–Saturday at 8 pm, and Wednesday, Saturday & Sunday at 2 pm. Tickets from $29, inclusive of taxes and fees. Call the Arts Club Box Office at 604.687.1644 or visit www.artsclub.com.
