It is difficult to write about Peer Gynt and be objective, because it was, simply put, the best production I have ever witnessed performed by the University of British Columbia Theater Department. It was also better than many professional productions that I have seen in Vancouver. This production flowed with a natural pace that was very enthralling. All of the actors were very strong and completely believable. The staging of it was highly creative. And most importantly, Errol Durbach’s new adaptation of the classic work is totally appropriate. Instead of doing a literal interpretation Durbach has decided to create a modern version of Ibsen’s search of self. The script is chock full of modern references and comical moments. It’s rhyme flows with a natural rhythm that is a delight to the audience. It never grows tedious or annoying.

However the script is not one of the only things to recommend this modern masterpiece. Director John Wright’s staging of the whole shebang was startlingly epic for such a simple use of the BC Tel Theater. This space in the past has been used less effectively by such overblown efforts as the multimedia heavy The Bacchae and the conservatively staged Top Girls. However, the minimalist staging of Peer Gynt was just enough to make it work. Such exciting uses of puppets and parachutes were incredibly innovative. An example of this brilliance was the choice of the director to create a turbulent sea by using a large billowy white parachute manipulated by the actors. As the scene of the sea ends we hear a draining sound as the parachute effortlessly drops into a trap in the center of the stage, evoking an image of a sea draining into nothingness.

Another fascinating moment in Peer Gynt involved using full bodied dolls to portray several characters being manipulated by actors in black behind the dolls. This allowed the dolls to be flung when they are involved in an explosion, a very dramatic effect.

The dolls and sets didn’t steal the show, however, the actors held their own. Erich Schneider as old Peer and Craig Lapthorne as young Peer successfully capture the same character at different spectrums of his live. Lapthonre’s young Peer, full of ambition and dreams is a great contrast to Schneider’s old Peer: a bum lost and dejected by society. The rest of the actors are very excellent. None of them are lost in the rhyming structure of the piece, an element of the script that could easily become overwhelming. Other than the five main cast members, the rest change roles in the blink of an eye. A standout was certainly Bryan Johnson who portrayed two garish and stunning characters, von Eberkopf and Satan.

Peer Gynt really was excellent. It was a joy to behold. And the final message of the play was very appropriate. The old Button Moulder (Errol Durbach) reminded us that at one time or another we are all very much like the wild Peer Gynt. Perhaps this is what makes Peer Gynt so appealing.
 

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