THEATRE REVIEW:
I SEND YOU THIS CADMIUM RED
12 OCT/11

JOHN COULBOURN - QMI Agency
R: 4/5
Pictured: Julian Richings

TORONTO - It’s the reason my late grandmother always planted yellow roses by her front door, believing as she did that yellow roses spoke of friendship. She was informed by a very Victorian ethos, wherein flowers had become a language all their own. But as any visual artist will tell you, colour also has a language all its own. And so, at least, in our house, yellow became the colour of friendship.

A more in-depth study of language of colour is at the heart of an unusual but compelling evening of theatre that opened at the Berkeley Street Theatre Tuesday night, produced by Art of Time Ensemble, in association with Canadian Stage. I Send You This Cadmium Red is rooted in an ongoing real-life correspondence between two multi-talented artists, both of whom happened to be painters — specifically novelist John Berger and filmmaker John Christie. It was, however, a very specific kind of correspondence, as each of these highly articulate men took turns meditating on the hugely personal language of colour.

Their riveting correspondence, which spanned two years, was later collected and published in book form, which then became the inspiration for a radio piece commissioned for the BBC. It was at that point that a third artist became involved in their conversation, specifically composer Gavin Bryars, who, in an unobtrusive score, seemed to join these two very fluent men in their reflections to make their words and their colours take wing.

Now yet another artist has added his perspective to the ever-expanding prism of their discussion, with theatre director Daniel Brooks transforming the radio play into a piece of theatre that adds further depth and dimension to the conversation. With Julian Richings giving voice to Berger’s musings and John Fitzgerald Jay voicing those of Christie, Brooks creates an evening of intimate theatre, buoyed and underscored by the Bryars’ music, performed by four musicians under the direction of AOT’s Andrew Burashko.

It is, in its way, an evening of deep passion, as two very talented actors bring life not only to the words these men use to express their deeply held beliefs but to their friendship as well. One feels the affection of long association, implicit in the trust with which they communicate reflections both highly personal and deeply considered. Meanwhile, Bryars’ music fuses with designer Bruce Alcock’s imagery and the lighting of Glenn Davidson to cocoon the proceedings in such a way that the audience is cast, in the best possible way, as eavesdroppers on a conversation of deep artistic intimacy. Clocking in as it does at a mere 40 minutes, I Send You isn’t really a stand-alone theatre piece, despite everyone’s best efforts.

So Burashko, known for forging musical keys to unlock the world of theatre, has paired it with a work of dance set to yet another composition by Bryars — an almost hypnotic piece titled Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet. Presented in collaboration with Coleman Lemieux & Company, Soudain l’hiver dernier is choreographed by James Kudelka as a work for two dancers — Michael Sean Marye and Luke Garwood (who danced it on opening night), alternating with Ryan Boorne and Andrew Giday.

And while Soudain initially feels like a religious meditation, thanks to the lyrical background loop, it evolves into a touching portrait of intimate friendship, with each dancer taking a turn as the supporter or the supported, each movement linked by deep trust. Together, they make for a compelling, thought-provoking evening for anyone prepared to sit quietly and listen to what colour has to say.