Blood Wedding

Hailey Gillis, Diane D'Aquila and Caroline Gillis in Blood Wedding. Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

Soulpepper's current production of Blood Wedding sets Federico Garcia Lorca's classic Spanish drama against the backdrop of rural Ontario, with mixed results. This new translation by Governor-General’s Award-winning playwright Guillermo Verdecchia is symbolically rich, but the story itself gets lost in the cultural and allegorical trees, so to speak.

Blood Wedding tells the tale of a young couple who's engagement rekindles buried passions and threatens a deep-seated feud between their families. The Groom (Gordon Hecht) tells his Mother (played by a delightfully bitter Diana D'Aquila) that he is ready to propose to his girlfriend. The Mother concedes that he should marry, although she is stubbornly still in mourning for her youngest son and husband who were violently murdered. Together they go to meet the Bride (Hailey Gillis) and her Father (Oliver Dennis) and a match is made. However, we later discover that the Bride holds a torch for Leonardo (Colin Palangio) who is now married to her cousin (played by Courtney Ch'ng Lancaster). Leonardo's family is responsible for killing the Groom's brother and father. Needless to say, this union is doomed from the start.

Soulpepper's production features beautiful lighting design by Rebecca Picherack, creative set and costume design by Anahita Dehbonehie, and a brilliant original score by Andrew Penner. The swinging folk/country music performed by Penner and Anna Atkinson is definitely the highlight of the show. Sadly, the play itself doesn't seem to know what it wants to be. While it's set in rural Ontario, the narrative references often feel foreign, and the dialogue is almost entirely replaced by heightened, poetic language towards the end. This figurative turn takes away from any real connection we feel for the characters and their plight. It just doesn't work as a whole.

Regardless, there are some strong performances to watch throughout. Blood Wedding runs until April 9, 2016 at the Young Centre for the Performing Arts. Visit soulpepper.ca for more information and to buy tickets.