Review : 12 Angry Men | 1 Amazed Olivia
Last night I went on a double date to see the play Tweleve Angry Men at the SoulPepper Theater in Toronto's Distillery District. Was I ever pleasently surprised!!! I'll admit that it's been a while since I've seen a play that wasn't part-musical or part-musical experiment. Over all I was engaged, enthralled and can't wait to see another production.
Firstly, the premis of the play (which is also a movie) is about a group of 12 white, male jurors in 1950s America, that must deliberate on the fate of a 16 year old black boy, accused of killing his father. With the beginning verdict 11:1 guilty, the tension between the actors was beyond palpable, as I felt actually submerged into a hot, dirty jury room in midtown Manhattan.
There are so many aspects of the play that made it work! The set was spectacular and litterally "set the stage" - designed almost in a-round. With a long wooden table, where the characters sat, argued, and acted from. I sat in the front row, so it truely felt like I was peering into a window. Characters would be less than a metre away from us; at a water cooler, looking out the window, venting to themselves and they never broke character, no matter who had a monologe, they were all engaged. Each actor had a dedicated character, down to colloquialisms and mannerisms of the time, not to mention very specific accents.
What I really loved about the play, was the quality of the entire production. I really appreciated the casting and of course, the cast. I'm used to seeing so many productions with faces so young I want to wear night cream. Where you can tell the performance was their first gig out of theater school and they give it their all becuase they want to "make it". That wasn't the feeling with this group of actors, who's average age was probably 55. Their grasp of the acting craft was seemless, and they were doing it because they LOVE IT.
There is no greater experience than seeing someone do what they love. Whether it is teaching, singing, acting, gardening, fighting for justice or solving soduko. I was genuinely blown away by the performance I saw last night and I'd really encourage anyone and everyone to see it. It was compelling, heart-felt and full of talent!