by Yanik Comeau (Comunik Média / ZoneCulture)
With the second production of its “Coming Home” season, Centaur Theatre really brings it home with Torontonian Chloe Hung’s Three Women of Swatow. Because this season is clearly about family and, after Harry Standjofski’s (generally) feel good classic dysfunctional family in Sakura – After Chekhov, this play tackles domestic violence in a frontal, brutal yet eerily comical fashion, bringing together three generations of Chinese-Canadian women who seem to have no other way of getting out of suffocating marriages but to eliminate their spouses. Two of them, at least.
How convenient that these women of Swatow have passed down the art of butchering from generation to generation. The Grandmother (formidable Julie Tamiko Manning), who has been instrumental in raising her Grand-daughter (so talented, refreshing and adorable Qianna MacGilchrist) to protect her from witnessing her Mother (powerful Shiong-En Chan) suffering at the hand of her violent father. As the plot thickens and the blood coagulates, this trio’s destiny unfolds with a healthy dose of raw wit and unapologetic dialogue that just so happens to involve Asian women but could sadly just as well be the story of women of all origins.
In an era in which feminicide is running rampant and masculinists and Incells are slithering out of the dark web and into broad daylight, Chloé Hung’s piece, commissioned and produced by Toronto’s Tarragon Theatre in 2020 and now finally getting its second production here in Montreal (how, for the life of me, has this play not been produced anywhere else in the last four years is beyond me), is not a call to vigilante justice per se but a powerful anthem against violence towards women which shows that, too often, women need to take things into their own hands (here read knives and cleavers) because our system is just not working for them.
Sophie Gee directs this piece with precision and passion, entrusting her powerful cast with the tools they need to shine. Jessica Poirier-Chang’s costumes, Paul Chambers’ lighting and Christine Lee’s sound design all come together in Diane Uribe’s cleverly spaced set to bring this important script to life.
Once again, Eda Holmes brings must-see theatre to the Centaur Stage.
Three Women of Swatow by Chloé Hung Directed by Sophie Gee Starring Shiong-En Chan, Qianna MacGilchrist and Julie Tamiko Manning Set Designer: Diana Uribe Costume Designer: Jessica Poirier-Chang Lighting Designer: Paul Chambers Sound Designer: Christine Lee Fight Director: Robert Montcalm Stage Manager: Elyse Quesnel Assistant Stage Manager: Ava Bishop Assistant Costume Designer: Maryanna Chan Apprentice Stage Manager: Lia Wright Tai Chi Consultant: Phi Nguyen Surtitle Translator: Elaine Normandeau Surtitles: Delphine Ricard A Centaur Theatre Company production From November 5th to November 24th, 2024 Tuesday to Saturday 8pm (duration: 90 minutes, no intermission) Matinées Wednesdays at 12pm, Saturdays and Sundays at 2pm Centaur Theatre, 453, rue Saint-François-Xavier, Vieux-Montréal Reservations: 514-288-3161 Information: https://centaurtheatre.com/fr/shows/three-women-of-swatow/ Photos: Andrée Lanthier
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