4 The 39 Steps marches to a mature beat The Metro Theatre is run- ning Patrick Barlow’s comical adaptation of the The 39 Steps until Oct. 11 By JAMES GOLDIE 1 | ho the bloody hell cares, Wane Richard Hannay asks in his opening mono- logue. Although it’s “elections and wars and rumours of wars” he’s talking about, Hannay might just as easily be referring to the show’s plot and that’s OK. In The 39 Steps, Hannay (Tom Par- kinson) becomes a fugitive when Anna- bella Jenny McLaren), a beautiful Ger- man spy, turns up dead in his London apartment. Armed with little more than some vague directions from Annabella, Han- nay heads north in a quest to clear his name. The 39 Steps is an adaptation of the novel by John Buchan and the film by Alfred Hitchcock. While the earlier renditions were adventure thrillers, this version is pure camp. The play is rife with over-the-top ac- cents, cartoonish wigs, and a Three Stooges style of physical humour. The almost entirely grey-haired au- dience was in stitches. The two milen- nials in the fifth row ... maybe less so. A “Bob’s your uncle” play on words elicited gales of laughter. You do the math. Safe, uncomplicated jokes aside, what make this a show worth seeing, no matter what your age, are the per- formances by Trevor Roberts and Da- vid Wallace. They move across the stage like whirling dervishes, shifting seamlessly from milkman to police officer, from pa- perboy to elderly innkeeper. They populate Hannay’s oydessey with over a hundred quirky characters using voice, posture, and clever cos- tumes. Roberts’ facial expressions alone make this a must-see. “What does it all matter? What hap- pens to anyone? What happens to me?” Hannay asks himself in the opening scene. It doesn’t matter what happens to him. What matters is how four actors manage to fit so many people onto one stage, the only way is magic. DOMINIQUE LABROSSE photo Roberts and Wallace, two of the stars of The 39 Steps, play over 100 characters combined. By SANDY POWLIK nnovative director-creator David Mackay joins physical theatre mas- ter, Wendy Gorling and Studio 58 in the world premiere of Kosmic Mam- bo. Blending the 20th century space race with Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s 19th century poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Mackay puts his story to the music of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, tak- ing the audience physical theatre jour- ney. “There’s something hallucinogenic about it, something otherworldly or sub- conscious,” said Mackay. “The fact that it is non-verbal, filling the stage with the detail, it’s a feast for your eyes, and a feast for your ears.” Nearing its 50th year, Langara’s na- tionally renowned theatre training pro- gram, Studio 58, has a legacy of physical theatre. With Gorling as a teacher, Mackay knew the “students would have the language and skill set,” to succeed. The last Studio 58 physical non-verbal piece was 19 years ago. For third-year students Olivia Hutt and Markian Tara- siuk, this is a first. Without any dialogue, the real chal- lenge is “to get that sentence across,” and say what you need to say with your body, according to Hutt. “Your body, your eyes — those are your words... it’s a wonderful challenge that we’ve been given as actors here,” Tarasiuk said. The actors speak of vulnerability, hu- mility and pride in learning and crafting a new, non-verbal piece. “There are no borders of imagina- tion. David and Wendy guide our ideas in a way that can make the story clear,” Hutt said. Regarding the premier, it’s all about risk and everyone struggles through it together according to Gorling. “So it’s all of us as a team, a family, figuring things out,” he said. Actors trained intensively for six weeks. The work required impeccable timing, precise coordination of move- ment and exceptional communication. SANDY POWLIKphoto Co-director Wendy Gorling (second from left) instructs students, Tarasiuk (far left) and Hutt (far right), at Kosmic Mambo rehearsal. New play is out of this world Actors have been practising for six weeks leading up to the opening Showtimes Oct. 2 - PREVIEW 8pm. Oct. 3 - PREVIEW 8pm. Oct. 5 - MATINEE 3pm. Oct. 7 8pm. Ticket prices vary Source: Xop 6 on 6 xop xop xop Teacher records latest tune Deborah Holland and her band, The Refugees, are releasing their Christmas single later this month By ALICE D’EON ith teachers like Deborah Hol- Wi on the faculty, it’s no sur- prise Langara churns out tal- ented students Holland, an instructor in Langara’s singer-songwriter certificate program and coordinator for the digital music production program, has done it all; she has dabbled in film scoring and her solo work has been used on hit TV shows such as Keeping up with the Kardashi- ans. Her current band, The Refugees, is releasing a new Christmas single later this month. Holland is known for her in the late ‘80s pop trio Animal Logic, where she shared the stage with The Police drum- mer, Stewart Copeland, and jazz bass- ist, Stanley Clarke. Holland credits her many accom- plishments to her time with Animal Logic, saying her audition for them was her “big break.” “It was a door opener for me. My teaching job came from that. I got into the Refugees because of that.” Playing with Animal Logic took Hol- land all over the world and onto talk shows such as The Tonight Show and Late Night with David Letterman. Their performance on Letterman got pre- empted by the fall of the Berlin Wall. “So pretty much any time you put me on TV, something cataclysmic is going to happen,” she said with a laugh. Wesley Scott, a former student, de- scribed Holland as “very approachable” and still keeps in touch with her. Hol- land encourages her students to kick- start their own inspiration instead of waiting to feel inspired. The Refugees is comprised of Hol- land, and American singer-songwriters Cidny Bullens and Wendy Waldman. Speaking over the phone, Bullens couldn’t give Holland enough praise. “She is the highest-quality musician I know,” Bullens said. Check out the Voice Online for an ex- clusive sneak preview of The Refugees’ new holiday single, This Christmas. of DEBORAH HOLLAND Digital music production pro- gram coordinator 66 Something cataclys- mic is going to happen. DEBORAH HOLLAND Bill Murray’s St. Vincent to the first 10 people at A227(e) Fifth Avenue