Arcadia

Kate Besworth as Thomasina Coverly and Gray Powell as Septimus Hodge in Arcadia. Photo by David Cooper.

Described as a mystery wrapped in a love story, wrapped in a scandal, Tom Stoppard's Arcadia is a puzzling play that challenges audiences with heady subject matter and a complex narrative. This season, Toronto theatregoers have the opportunity to see the popular Shaw Festival production on stage at the Royal Alexandra Theatre.

Arcadia is alternatively set in two different time periods, 1809-1812, and the present, in a room at Sidley Park, a large country estate in Derbyshire. The first scene centres around the relationship between Thomasina Coverly (Kate Besworth), and her tutor Septimus Hodge (Gray Powell). Their math lesson is interrupted by news of a scandal: the wife of a guest, poet Ezra Chater (Andrew Bunker), was discovered in "carnal embrace" with the charming teacher himself. A controntation between Chater and Hodge occurs as a result.

Fast forward to present day Sidley Park, now inhabited by Chloe Coverly (Harveen Sandhu), Valentine Coverly (Martin Hpaper) and Gus Coverly (Kyle Orzech), as well as resident author Hannah Jarvis (Diana Donnelly) who is studying the mysterious identity of the Sidley Park Hermit. Passions flare when a cocky academic Bernard Nightingale (Patrick McManus) arrives with his own theories on what happened in the house. Convinced that Ezra Chater was killed in a duel by the visiting Lord Byron, Nightingale launches an investigation of his own, pursuing a hunch supported only by fragmented evidence. A battle of head versus heart ensues, culminating in a surprising discovery that proves both the practical Hannah and the romantic Bernard wrong in the end.

Stoppard's script is challenging to be sure, but as we peel back the layers of the tangled plot, parallels between past and present, science and poetry, reveal themselves as brilliantly connected. The concept of a Newtonian world view (deterministic, ordered, rational) is contrasted with Chaos Theory (the world as simultaneously deterministic and unpredictable), and both ideas can be applied to various characters' desires throughout the piece.

Director Eda Holmes gets excellent performances out of this talented cast. Besworth shines as the young genius Thomasina, the dynamic between her and Powell's Septimus Hodge heats up with electrifying power as the play develops, and McManus is particularly entertaining as the arrogant, lustful Bernard. Atmospheric lighting by Michelle Ramsay and moody music by Allen Cole provide a melancholy ambience that complements the deep thought and feeling expressed on stage. This is a rare species of show that begs to be watched a second and third time until its meaning is fully appreciated.

Don't miss this suspenseful and thought-provoking theatre experience.

Arcadia runs until December 14 at the Royal Alexandra Theatre. Visit mirvish.com for more information and to buy tickets.

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