Tne Vic

[Cahoots Theatre Projects]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: David Kinsman, 416.504.8988 ext. 33


Cahoots Theatre Projects and Theatre Passe Muraille present the world
premiere of

The Vic

Written by Leanna Brodie . Directed by David Oiye
Featuring Marjorie Chan, Barbara Gordon, Ann Holloway, Moynan King,
Marie-Josée Lefebvre,
Sharon Mareeka Lewis, Anna Pappas, Waneta Storms
Set and Lighting Design by Steve Lucas . Costume Design by Sarah Armstrong
Sound Design by Jonathan Rooke and Bill Stahl . Stage Management by Fiona
Kennedy

Theatre Passe Muraille Mainspace, 16 Ryerson Avenue -
http://www.passemuraille.on.ca
Previews November 14 & 15; Runs November 16 to December 3, 2000
Tuesday to Saturday 8:00 pm, Sunday 2:30 pm. Box Office: 416.504.PLAY (7529)
Previews & Sundays: PWYC; Tuesday - Thursday: $19; Friday & Saturday: $28

"It's like on Law & Order. The bad guy is "the perp" - you know,
perpetrator - and the victim is "the vic". "The vic". A whole person, you
know? Cut to three little letters that say they got done to. Well, there's
more than that. Our lives are more than that."
Spud, The Vic

Toronto, Ontario. Cahoots Theatre Projects and Theatre Passe Muraille
present the world premiere of The Vic. As a group of women search for a
young woman who has gone missing, each of them struggles to understand and
overcome the brutality that has touched her own life.

Spud, a street-wise busker, and her lover Élise are fighting to maintain
their relationship in spite of their insecurities and troubled pasts. Henley
has returned from foreign aid work in Indonesia to care for her sister Tanis
who has been left debilitated after escaping from a religious cult. They're
joined by their mother Linda who is caught between apologizing for an absent
father and bewilderment at who her daughters have become. Henley's childhood
friend Cheryl is pursuing a career in film and has landed a dream job
working with the famous director Darsana Colhoun. At first spellbound by her
charisma and artistic vision, Cheryl soon finds her dream crumbling when she
becomes the target of Darsana's dark side. Meanwhile, a young suburban teen
named Cara is making a movie of her own, recording a video diary to document
the trials of adolescence.

In a startling debut, playwright Leanna Brodie combines these divergent
stories to explore the issues of power, violence, and responsibility while
challenging the concept of victim with uncompromising honesty and bold
theatrical imagery.

For this world premiere, director David Oiye had assembled a stellar cast of
eight women. It includes: Moynan King (Buddies in Bad Times' Dyke City,
S.P.T.C.'s A Fertile Imagination) as Spud; Marie-Joseé Lefebvre (TPM's The
Death of General Wolfe, G.C.T.C.'s An Acre of Time) as her lover Élise; Anna
Pappas (Buddies in Bad Times' The Elastic Band Effect, Skazmos'
Then/Berenice) as Henley; Waneta Storms (Theatre Columbus' Doubt, Tarragon's
Liquor, Guns & Karate) as Tanis; Barbara Gordon (Canstage's The Norbals,
N.A.C.'s Hard Times) as their mother Linda; Sharon Mareeka Lewis (Nightwood'
s Mango Chutney, G.C.T.C.'s Riot) as Cheryl; Ann Holloway (Tarragon's Sled,
Buddies in Bad Times' Crater) as Darsana Colhoun; and Marjorie Chan (Y.P.T.'
s The Prince and the Pauper, Platform 9's Grace) as Cara.

Leanna Brodie comes to playwrighting from a background in acting,
translating, improv and collective creation.
As an actor her past credits include Umbrella Factory's Marat/Sade and
Mercury Theatre's Road. Her translation work has included Carmelo Bene's The
Horrible Night of a Man of War and Monique Laederach's You Can't Imagine
Love. The Vic has been developed over a period of four years with workshops
by Cahoots Theatre Projects and as part of Theatre Passe Muraille's
Playwrights Collective.

Director David Oiye is the Artistic Director of Buddies in Bad Times and
former Artistic Director of Cahoots Theatre Projects. He first trained in
film at Ryerson University before branching out into theatre. He has
directed with companies such as the Shaw Festival (Ladies in Retirement, Six
of Calais), Cahoots Theatre Projects (Coups and Calypsos, Noran Bang: The
Yellow Room) and Buddies in Bad Times (When We Were Singing). In film he had
directed an adaptation of Daniel MacIvor's See Bob Run (Honourable Mention -
Montreal Festival du Monde 1990) and Just For Fun, a half-hour drama about
gay bashing for CBC TV (Gemini Nomination, Silver Hugo - Chicago
International Film Festival).

The set and lighting design is by TPM Resident Designer Steve Lucas. His
recent credits include TPM's Sheroes, Platform 9's Grace, and The Cabaret
Company's The Emotionalists.

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