In Conversation Series Episode 1

Welcome to our In Conversation Series.
Today, we get to sit down with Director Soheil Parsa and Director Tawiah M’Carthy and talk about their process and approach to our productions of Daniel MacIvor in Monster and Here Lies Henry.

Monster and Here Lies Henry on stage at Factory Theatre until December 17, 2023.

Book Tickets to Monster by visiting www.factorytheatre.ca
Book Tickets to Here Lies Henry by visiting www.factorytheatre.ca

Transcript

00;00;00;00 - 00;00;25;20

Hi. My name's Mel Hague. I'm the artistic director here at Factory Theater. Welcome to our In Conversation series. Today. I get to sit down with director Soheil Parsa and Director Tawiah McCarthy and talk about their process and approach to our productions of Daniel MacIvor is Monster. And here lies Henry. Yeah you know I when I was 18, so it might have been the first couple of weeks of theater school.

00;00;25;23 - 00;00;43;19

It was when I saw Here Lies Henry for the first time. And you know that feeling of like, I'm from Mississauga. So that feeling of going downtown, going to Buddy's in bad Times theater for the first time was the first time I'd ever been inside. Buddy's in bad Times, which then of course, I went on to work at I know every nook and cranny of that building, but it was the first time.

00;00;43;23 - 00;01;07;25

First time I was still closeted. It wasn't even out. I didn't even I'm not even sure if I was gay yet. I was 18, like, who even knows? And I sat in maybe the front row or the front two rows. So I was right up near him and I watched him do Here Lies Henry. And it was incredible being that close.

00;01;07;27 - 00;01;38;28

And I think seeing it at that time, at that age and at that time, like just starting theater school and really to think about what I wanted to do as an artist, being able to see him then shifted something I think fundamental inside of me, of what theater is and should be, of how I want to feel in a theater and how I want audience members to feel because they felt like he was talking to me so much so that years later, when I was working at the Starbucks at Bloor and Avenue Road, the Ontario Arts Council was right across the street.

00;01;38;28 - 00;01;59;18

So Canadian artists would come in every once in a while. And one day Daniel MacIvor walked in and I was like 23 and I was like, Oh my God, Daniel MacIvor, I'm such a nerd. I'm like, Oh my God. And he and he walked in. He ordered a soy latte. Oh, you remember what he ordered? I did. Well, I did because I had no I had no power at the time.

00;01;59;18 - 00;02;17;27

So I gave him free soy milk and I just said to him, he got up to the front and if he paid me and I'm just like, I, I love you. And he's like, I love you, too. And he went off and got his soy latte because I felt like I had a relationship with this person after just seeing him for the one night.

00;02;17;27 - 00;02;43;27

And that was the second time ever I ever saw him. Now, and now look at me. Look at me now. Look at me now. I mean, do you folks remember the first of Daniel McIntyre's works that you saw? Yeah. Yeah. Like, I think I'm confused between never scream alone. Yes. And Lorca play the law completed. This was a collaboration between Daniel Brookes and Daniel MacIvor with six women.

00;02;43;27 - 00;03;09;29

Seven women. And Tracy Wright was there, like I said, like, I was like, I'm talking about like, perhaps around 1993. 94. Yeah. Where was it? Do you remember? It was Theater Central, but the all theater center at Queen and Shaw. I think it's right now it's a different place. It's the Great Hall now, but, but for a long time.

00;03;09;29 - 00;03;29;16

So that theater was, like, in the basement. Was it in the basement? No. Even across the street. Oh, it's even older. Is older. That's right. There was any was like the third floor, the office of the theater center. Was it the third floor and the first floor was the theater just it was walking the door. The entrance of the theater was just.

00;03;29;16 - 00;03;57;05

You open it any way in the future. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I saw the Lorca play there and it was amazing. It was remarkable. And it was MacIvor playing Lorca and creating creating the House of Bernarda Alba or Blood Wedding, whatever. And he was confronting all of the characters. The women were confronting him, refusing to take his notes. He's a writing.

00;03;57;07 - 00;04;30;04

It was just amazing. Yeah, playing, playing Lorca. And it made a lot of sense. You know, Lorca was a gay man, and now the MacIvor is like, you know, 60 years later just playing Lorca as a gay man and creating that beautiful, beautiful piece. And the other one was obviously like, I never swim alone. It was just a remarkable idea the physicality, the movement and the text, the combination of these two being so precise, being so beautiful.

00;04;30;10 - 00;04;55;23

That's why I like my first two experience of MacIvor. So I love it, you know? Yeah, I think cul de sac is a play that I go to and I remember particularly the architecture of it in the sense that it was again classic MacIvor, nothing really on stage his body but the description. I remember being able to imagine everything that he said and it had something to do with the intimate conversation he has with his audience.

00;04;55;23 - 00;05;20;23

Right. It feels like he's really talking to you and painting all the pictures for you. So there was something around just remembering that that like where the character lived and the experiences, like the architecture of the story he was telling was so vivid to me. I think it drew me to his working in a in A, because I think it was also one of those times like I am trying to figure out when it was.

00;05;20;28 - 00;05;38;10

And that's what I was talking about. University and out of university at times seems to kind of have managed itself together in one way or the other. But I remember going because there's such a skill to what he does, right, to be able to draw you in, to be able to fill the space up when it's just his body on the stage.

00;05;38;16 - 00;06;00;07

That's quite magical, right? Like it reminds you of him as a performer with a skill, but also knowing that he wrote the piece. So the skill as a playwright as well, but all combined together, his skill and the level of storytelling that exists within his work, because there was not a moment about what he was saying, what he was feeling wasn't clear to me as an audience member.

00;06;00;10 - 00;06;23;17

And I think for me that was feeling like I was seen feeling like that sure wasn't meant particularly for me and for like the work that he did to get me on that same page within to understand what he was going through was such a revelation for me. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I think I'll end my thought there.

00;06;23;20 - 00;06;41;01

Yeah. No, it's great. Yeah, Yeah. Because, you know, like I personally, I think you were still in school because it maybe it was around that data camera retrospective that was done in bodies and bodies and minds. Yes. Because we went to school. I think you were either in school or like it was the minute after I graduated. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00;06;41;02 - 00;07;04;19

And I think like, because then, you know, you went on into the the Buddies Creators unit and you created. Oh Barber Emma. Yes. Which is a solo show the day we are created and toured all over the country and kind of for a while you and that solo show became a calling card for you. It did. And you became very tied with the solo show like Dora Ward was at best best play, best new play.

00;07;04;20 - 00;07;24;28

Bass got a nomination for Best New Play. We won best production like, yeah, yeah. You know like so this became for many years like here we are in the solo show in the way that we think of MacIvor MacIvor in the solo show. So this is you know so so in your approach to approaching Here Lies Henry, what do you take from being that guy, being where Damien is going to stand?

00;07;24;28 - 00;07;42;04

Yes, yes. And we're Daniel has stood. Yes. And now you're the other one. I think, like I mentioned, the idea of intimacy is a big thing, right? I think when you're the only earlier conversation we're having when talking about the fact that the actor has nowhere to hide, that was my experience working on November Mai. It's like I had nowhere to hide.

00;07;42;06 - 00;08;03;23

So there is a work that needs to be done in staying present, knowing that everyone is on you, You have no one else you're playing with. Everyone is just looking at you, but that calls for a certain level of honesty and intimacy that I don't think all actors can do. Right? So that's the first thing going in is kind of working on.

00;08;03;25 - 00;08;22;12

It's so funny because I'm talking about truth and honesty in a show that is about what lie is. Yes, right. So it's one of those things. But I think the work that we're doing, Damien and myself, is kind of figuring out every moment that Damien as a performer has on that stage needs to be true, honest and pure.

00;08;22;15 - 00;08;45;05

And in the moment, it's the most challenging thing to do as a as a one performer, as a as a performer, doing a one person show is the most challenging thing to do. Daniel does it well, but what serves in this particular piece is the fact that the writing right write the writing gives you all the tools you need to do that.

00;08;45;07 - 00;09;04;18

So it becomes more of just. And this is something I see often now, just do the play, tell the story right, but also just give you acts of the space to find themselves within the story, which is another thing that we have to do because there's something around not having anything on stage. How the actor has to fill up that space.

00;09;04;18 - 00;09;21;08

Right. Again, like I mentioned when I saw called the say you have to build that world like you have to get your audience to see what you're seeing, be where you were at. Right every moment you're in and you don't have a set like as in you don't have like the house or the room or whatever it is.

00;09;21;09 - 00;09;45;07

I mean, you don't even have a scene change, right? Like, you're just it's it's you staring at people for 70 minutes. Yes. Like the the the bravery and like technical skill that is needed to pull that off. Yes. You know, and you and you folks are both like it's a really interesting time to have this conversation because we're you're each a week in Yes to rehearsal.

00;09;45;07 - 00;10;13;03

So we are one week in. We have three weeks to go until opening night. And that I just wanted to add to this conversation. We're at that point where we don't know what we're doing. Yes, Yes. No, it's eggy. It's eggy. And it's and it's and it's immense. Yet it seems immense. And yeah, there is a huge challenge, like, again, one person show.

00;10;13;03 - 00;10;38;08

Yes, 70 minutes, 85 minutes, whatever that you got to engaged the audience. You have to That's was my first thing talk The conversation I had with with Carl was like, that's that's our challenge. Both of us. How we can engage the audience for an hour. And I say all the eyes on you. There's no way to hide. There is no scene change you there.

00;10;38;08 - 00;11;16;20

You are responsible to carry the story. And that's that's it, you know. And again, when when, when I was reading the play, it was I could see MacIvor, of course this is MacIvor. And he would say like, okay, how can I imagine this without the MacIvor. Yeah, because it's very much MacIvor like, you know, but again, by reading it over and over I realized absolutely that's is, yeah, it is very much MacIvor, but it's written in a way that another skill for actor could take on and do justice to it, because she has given you all the ingredients of the great play.

00;11;16;20 - 00;11;36;22

Yeah. That as an, as an actor, as a director that's you. There's nothing is confusing there If you talk about action and intention yes it's all there it is. Yeah. We know exactly what is happening. There's nothing confusing. It's not self-indulgent because some people may think this is MacIvor is all his own world and he might be suffering that.

00;11;36;23 - 00;12;06;16

No, it's not is absolutely. If you find the essence, the rhythm of the piece is absolutely the pieces are accessible to the audience is a matter of the director. Like myself, I like talking about myself. I'm scared to death sometimes, you know, talking about like, you know, MacGyver's one man show. But yeah, it is. It is. It is our job to genuinely explore and find out what is happening in this piece and share it with, with, with.

00;12;06;16 - 00;12;38;17

Yeah. Collaborating with, with the, with the actor and with the designer. This is I think one other thing is so important about MacIvor, his work, you know, his close collaboration with with the design is Yeah, yeah. Sound and light camera. Yeah I absolutely agree. And of course with Daniel Brooks there's a, there is a conversation being had in each of the pieces and partially it's with the audience but partially it's with the director, with Daniel Brooks their close collaboration of course data camera.

00;12;38;17 - 00;12;58;11

So all of the works that we're talking about were directed by Daniel Brooks. And this what we are seeing in these works as we take them up and we pick them up and turn them over. One of the things that I, I love so much is how clear that conversation between performer and director, between audience and director like it.

00;12;58;11 - 00;13;19;06

It really helps you know that that dramaturgical of like, why here? Why now? Or like who are you talking to? Those are questions that we often ask ourselves. We talk about like one monologue or a one person show. But like here, it's so clear that they are speaking to someone like and it's sometimes is the audience and sometimes it's.

00;13;19;08 - 00;14;04;19

And so even even that thought of them being alone on stage, they are. But they're not. Yeah, yeah, but they're not because of the strength of the, of the, the necessity of the design around what looks like a bare stage but is actually this like playground of sound and light that pushes and prods and pushes the, the, the performer pushes Henry pushes Adam pushes them around and it's it's that that's where the there's a beautiful tension there there's a beautiful yeah it's so great that you see that because in our room we we made that but our presence as the operator right.

00;14;04;19 - 00;14;25;13

So there is the audience that's the operator in this Henry Because it's the truth, right? Obviously the operator being like and that relationship you're talking about, the director and the performer, it's quite it's pungent. Yeah, right. Thank you. It's it's there. There's no way of avoiding it. So what we had to do is just name it like there's the operator and that's part of the story.

00;14;25;16 - 00;14;51;25

And that broke something for us, right? Especially with heels. Henry broke something for as of kind of of the here and now and why, which has become something that's that's been quite instrumental in navigating what what the why the urgency to to tell the story of this point. Yeah oh and it was interesting what you said about like design sound and light up most of my works.

00;14;51;25 - 00;15;17;07

I always say I have to explore actors, players, characters, and there are like sound design in a lighting design rooms, and especially more in this piece, they are two characters. There are not icing on the cake coming to decorate and make the show more interesting. No, there are storytellers. Yeah, like the light and sound. Help us to clarify the story and shape with clarity.

00;15;17;13 - 00;15;38;26

And they come in the right place. They. They don't have to act definitely as a character sound as a character here. And as I said, like it's not an extra thing for decoration for. Yeah. Making it more interesting. No, it's they are essential and integral to the whole process of storytelling and the thank you for that that you might like again.

00;15;38;26 - 00;16;02;29

Like one other thing I notice, you know, I, by reading the play, like the first time I was reading. Yeah, definitely. I could see Daniel Brooks Yeah, because I think the writing in the creation of the piece with the director, with the designer kind of was happening simultaneously. So it wasn't just, I'm going home, right, to play and I'll come and get a director.

00;16;02;29 - 00;16;33;23

No, I think I that's my understanding. Like just come with a couple of scenes this side exploring and going home and writing and coming back next day. This is really interesting. When I look every day I see, yeah, like, you know, all the stage directions indicates kind of the direction, the first direction of that. Daniel Brook that guided, you know, like very specific and you know, it's sometimes, you know, like it's important, like, you know, some of them absolutely make sense to keep it and there's everything makes sense actually.

00;16;33;23 - 00;17;00;13

Yeah. But again that you have this option as a director after 23 years to retreat so yeah yeah treat actually number three treat some of those differently. Yeah. Yeah. And you know that's that was interesting that I was talking to Tim MacIvor and first time about the piece that he Yeah he encouraged me so so yeah I know it's very much you see me over there like, you know, but it's all yours.

00;17;00;13 - 00;17;17;19

Yes. Make it your own thing. Yeah. Find your own journey. I think it was in our conversation like we had, like, a dinner together. Yeah. And you mentioned that, and I really appreciate. So you know, it's. You know, it's good, but that's it, right? Like in the published published edition, almost every stage direction is like, do whatever you want.

00;17;17;20 - 00;17;41;07

It's whatever feels good for you and the performer. Yeah, whatever feels good for it. Like, like this is a piece that is begging for reinterpretation. Like, they they want these characters and these voices to live. And in the in the published editions. And the other thing too, is, is, you know, I just finished the general auditions where like a lot of young actors will come in and audition for Factory Theater as a company.

00;17;41;09 - 00;18;05;08

And you can't go a year without at least one without a dozen MacIvor monologues coming through. And, you know, the the retrospective that Terry and I are talking about happened, you know, 15 years ago. And so there's a whole generation of artists who have only think of this as a written if you're in Toronto, in other cities, they've done it before.

00;18;05;08 - 00;18;25;19

But but this is as with every written text, it's meant to be alive. It's meant to lift, it's meant to be performed to an audience. You know, it's and I think the fact that we're doing them both at once, which Daniel couldn't do next, one thing that he couldn't do among them both at the same time, they can do a lot.

00;18;25;19 - 00;19;02;09

But let's say, you know, we have here lies Henry upstairs or Monster downstairs. And so being able to like move between these two connected but very different worlds of monster and here lies Henry that for me is was one of the exciting things of when I took over the artistic director job. And I have these two theater spaces, so we have our studio space they with 80 people like of being able to do two things at once that were connected, create kind of a it's an event to be able to spend time in this artist's head and, and to have you two together.

00;19;02;11 - 00;19;18;22

I will I will add that there is one thing that I love going into this work, reading the scripts and going into this work. First of all, like great writing means every time you go in and you read the script, you discover something that you thought you understood, and now you're like, No, no, actually, now I understand it.

00;19;18;29 - 00;19;48;12

So that's definitely a gift that we're trying navigating my way through. But there is something around how specific it is, right, that actually allows you the opportunity to kind of re-imagine it. Right? Because whatever you do is so specific, but the story still stays true. Right? And they so like some like specificity leading into universality. Right. If you're able to kind of go specifically into the human experience, then everyone is able to relate to that experience that a human being on stage is going through.

00;19;48;19 - 00;20;08;00

And there's a gift in the script about that because it's like with Henry, his journey is navigating this intricate, complicated and emotional states of beans that he goes through, and they're so specific, but you can't help it as a human being going, Oh, I know what heartbreak feels like. I know the what the loss of hope feels like.

00;20;08;02 - 00;20;38;15

I know like, you know, all these things. So at the end of the day, even though I won't give away the play, I will stop there. But there is there is something, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, the other thing that I found fascinating and it was my first conversation with Carl about acting so, Carl, as I have to play these, like 16 characters, so and it was very clear and obviously as a good actor, yeah, you're capable of playing all this is.

00;20;38;18 - 00;20;56;15

But I said conceptually something else. And he was saying why? They said, like, you know, that the main character is like a narrator, that the tall guy is Adam obviously like it. And I said, like, you know, that was my interpretation. I'm not going to go to write a lot of details. But I said, like, that's my interpretation.

00;20;56;15 - 00;21;31;16

Adam is is a sorcerer, is a control. All these characters live within him. He's an everyman. So I had Adam again add to the mythology. Yes, I am. Yes. And I think, you know, that's that's the beauty of it is not okay, a skillful actor can just come and play this is it that. But conceptually is is every man and he is he's a conjurer of all these characters and how beautifully to bring them in psychologically details work with them, let them go go to the next.

00;21;31;18 - 00;21;49;14

So and I think that said again that's why the value of of of of this monster, at least the one I'm focusing on right now, is that like yeah it's not over skill for actor. Of course we need that like amazing actor to play this part but it's more than that. If you can conceptually kind of get that idea.

00;21;49;14 - 00;22;20;26

I hope as a director, like I'm not sure whether or not but this one I would said the depth of his work. This is deep. It's amazing. It's just like there are some tricks and actors are playing different parts and it is great beyond that. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, it was interesting. I got an email asking me, a publicist emailed me and asked me what what are some of the themes in Henry that kind of relate to like why now essentially, like, why do these plays now?

00;22;20;29 - 00;22;55;26

And then I went on a whole because I mean, there's so much going on right now. So I went on a whole journey as to why now. And I came back to actually the very reason I chose them in the first place before this moment is is light, dark, love, pain, inheritance, inheritance of violence, inheritance of shame, guilt, really just huge, big things wrapped up in such an engage staging and like, what's a word that's not sexy?

00;22;55;26 - 00;23;31;15

Like a like a sexy is kind of a sexy package, but like, but it's also intriguing. Like, there's something it's very there's a mystery in in really a big mystery in Monster but in Henry, too. And like that that I think and I think more broadly like bringing an audience into the theater now after everything that our society has been through over the last couple of years, like I don't take for granted an audience coming to this base, paying money to come and do the theater and come and sit down like the amount of we're at King and Bathurst, it is not easy to get down here.

00;23;31;15 - 00;23;52;23

Sometimes traffic will get a thing, so they come and sit. And what I think Henry and Monster and these works of Daniel MacIvor and Daniel Brooks offer is we are speaking to them. This is to you you are audience you are not. No one's going to ask you to come up on stage. Sorry if you're if you're listening and you're worried about that, no one's going to ask you to come up on stage.

00;23;52;23 - 00;24;18;02

But the engagement is so deeply and generously and terrifyingly and wonderfully to the audience and that feels really important to me right now that they feel seen. That thing that I felt that made me comfortable to tell Daniel MacIvor that I love that they really feel seen as Audience member. Yeah, it seems like a monologue, big monologue, but it's a dialog.

00;24;18;03 - 00;24;39;10

It is, it's a dialog, but again, not conventional that, but it's a dialog. Yeah. Acknowledging the audience audience there. Yes. So yeah, as we are talking about is not talking at the audience. You're talking to the audience. Yeah. You want to just engaged and talk to them. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. Which we rarely see. It's, you know, it's true.

00;24;39;13 - 00;25;05;09

It makes me think of like because you, you get actors or ask what, what do they want from me or what do I want from them especially. But it's one of those like audience performer relationships where it's as much as you want from them that they want from you. There is like a constant exchange that's happening, right? And it's still presence within the piece itself, the revealing of secrets that also helps the character reveal themselves.

00;25;05;13 - 00;25;28;03

There is a give and take, right? Like if that connection is made, then the process of learning like I keep I keep saying that there's a process of learning about each other and it happens right in that moment, of course, of the show. So like constantly learning about each other. So the the revelation at the end is not only is the actor, the character seen by you as an audience, you also see, Yeah, which is beautiful.

00;25;28;07 - 00;25;55;01

And that's the surprise and that's the trick and that's the the work that we have to do is to achieve this like it is. It is a, it is the highest goal of our calling that we see them and they see us by the end of our journey like that. That is the that is the goal. We are we are talking about like effecting collectivity through storytelling.

00;25;55;03 - 00;26;32;02

And I think these both of these pieces are some of the strongest vehicles that I've encountered. The other fascinating aspect of of these two plays, which are most certainly the work, you know, so I think the simplicity of something that's amazing because yeah, at the same time, you know, it's, it's, it's complicated ideas being expressed in a very simple way and a simple staging and simplicity is, is an achievement if we managed to get and I think that's that's, that's the beauty of these pieces.

00;26;32;05 - 00;27;12;03

If one person standing there with that all these like X with the elaborate costume elaborate set elaborate just like just simply like light sound and which is amazing. Again, the quality of light and sound they are doing are transformable. Yeah, so it's quick just jumps from one to the next. But I think that's that's, that's essential. And it requires, I think, simplicity of with this style of acting it's yeah, like eventually like this, you know, it should be like this going back and forth, like impersonating different characters eventually has to be very effortless.

00;27;12;03 - 00;27;33;16

Yes. And the way he's written it, I think. Is it. Yeah. He's just like, very simple. Just trust the moment. Shift of light. Yeah. Sound. You are in a different scene. Simple. And the simplicity is, I think. Yeah, well, that's it. Trusts and trusting the audience to go with you on that, but I don't need to explain it.

00;27;33;18 - 00;28;09;13

They will, because they will. I mean, if there's anything I've learned, like audiences are beautiful, like they are really up for the ride and, and I think that the data camera and Daniel Parks and Daniel MacIvor really took it took full advantage of how willing people are to just sort of go with it. So yeah, I think the great audience I believe in like, you know, spoon feed, you know, that's something like you trust that you're imaginative, just leave a bit of gap for them to show.

00;28;09;19 - 00;28;36;26

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. That's the thing, That's what MacIvor does, that's very well and they're funny and they're funny. They are funny. They are really funny, funny. The combination of they're funny. They're like amusing and at the same time they're frightening. They're shocking, you know, evocative working. Yeah. Yeah. Well, now we're talking about both together. How do we split them apart?

00;28;36;28 - 00;28;59;13

Why would I go see Monster? What's the feeling I would have that would take me to Monster? And what's the feeling I would have that would take me to Henry? Everyone should see both just saying, Yeah, yeah, yeah. I will see that. I find these questions like I find a question like that's so hard to I know me to.

00;28;59;16 - 00;29;26;28

I think for Henry. No, we don't have to answer. No, no, but it's a good question. It's, and it's something that I need to learn to answer. Sometimes I think for Henry, aside from coming to see the skill, it's just the skill of the performer on stage navigating the stacks and the story and like with the design and everything, like it's a theoretical experience, right?

00;29;26;28 - 00;29;54;00

So aside from just that, I think the story itself, I think for me and it's something that we're navigating through, it brings us back in touch with our humanity, right? Like it brings us back in touch with the something that I see, the idea of lies and truth and the fact that it's not black and white as we understand it to be, and that the fact that we exist within the gray and we navigate our lives through the gray.

00;29;54;04 - 00;30;15;04

And I think most often than not, we forget that because we're we've come to a point in the world where everything either needs to be white or black or straight, like whatever that is, right? It's either one way or the other way. But the truth of our existence is we're always navigating the gray. And I think not humanity exists in that.

00;30;15;09 - 00;30;38;18

I think love exists within that. But also all the positives and negatives exist in that, and that's the reality of our lives, right? So for me with here, Henry, it's coming to understand that gray area that we as human beings are continuously and just so that we can hold on to the idea of hope all like whatever that is, right?

00;30;38;18 - 00;31;00;02

Like it's, it's so there's something around seeing a character navigate themselves through that journey that I think actually inspires hope. Yeah, and a story like that. Yeah. So that will be I went all around, but I came back to that. But yeah, for me that will be one of the reasons why I will see an audience come see here.

00;31;00;02 - 00;31;30;16

Likes Henry, right? Those who already know the play and I've seen it and those who don't know it. And what once we encounter the work it's it's it's it's beautiful. Beautifully written. And Damian is a very skilled, a talented, a very detailed, inspiring performer. Right. So the work that he's doing, it's it's beautiful and stunning to watch, but it's an experience on its own.

00;31;30;20 - 00;31;59;04

Yeah. So you're coming in not just for that, but also for the story itself. And you're not so bad yourself. Hot stuff. So there's that, right? Yeah. Yeah. And for Monster. Yeah. For Monsoon it's what fascinates me about this piece. It raises far more question that. Mm hmm. And I think that's, that's that for me that's exciting theater.

00;31;59;06 - 00;32;23;22

When I go and see a show and the director or a playwright have a message for humanity, like, you know, come on, you're another religious leader or a political leader. I don't artists, we we don't have an answer. We don't we are not supposed or we if we have an answer, we are not. We shouldn't put ourselves in that position and a position to teach people like how, what how to live their lives, you know.

00;32;23;25 - 00;32;54;26

But I think what is is important, I would say challenge us with great questions like, you know, cause sometimes we to keep the dark side as human beings and questions that, you know, so like, you know, yeah, it's this you it could be you you know that evil that that you know lies that that, that lies within perhaps everybody and waiting for the opportunity to reveal itself.

00;32;54;27 - 00;33;18;27

Yeah. Is it. I think this is a warning. It's a warning. It's not mistaken. It could be like a cautionary even just be aware and especially with this, what's happening right now. Yeah. Around the world about in relation to Monster, you know, what is that What is that evil. What is happening to us, where it's coming from? This what do you call this human.

00;33;18;27 - 00;33;52;20

The human tendency for, for, for violence. So, like, you know, it's asking a lot of interesting questions like why? Why? As as a society, we are we are kind of like, you know, being I know, fascinated with this people's, you know, ugly, ugly business is why we are just get fascinated and, you know, there's a lot what the the role of of arts in in in what you call it.

00;33;52;20 - 00;34;22;01

It's like perpetuating, you know, violence. There's a lot there that's I think that's it. Like I think it's so meaningful and so relevant and so timely. Monster This time I think it's speaks speaks to us through history. Yeah. Yeah. It's so interesting because I you mentioned in Monster Adam, the main character being called Adam, but also in Henry, he makes a reference to Adam and Eve.

00;34;22;03 - 00;34;44;18

He talks about Adam and Eve as a story, but he, he's been fascinated with. So it just seems like there is something around coming back to the idea of humanity that always seems to be a thing that rings through like the core of humanity, whatever belief system you might like by but core of humanity. Yeah, but that seems to kind of Yeah.

00;34;44;19 - 00;35;06;25

Resonate in both works, right? Like cause that Adam and Eve story has also become a bit of a touchstone in the journey of the journey that Henry goes through. Yeah, yeah, you're right. You know, I think it's just like a philosophical component in, in MacGyver's work, which goes through those existential questions. Why I'm here, what's the meaning of all this?

00;35;06;27 - 00;35;28;10

But that's just Shakespeare, like Hamlet as the know it is like he is asking those questions. And because human being is important for this. Yes. Playwright for MacIvor. Yeah. And he's asking this like, what? Why we do this? Why do we do this? Why we just get fascinated with violence and get obsessed with it like so it is amazing.

00;35;28;10 - 00;35;45;00

But yeah, yeah. He, I think that's a line that he goes, I sense that you and I'm this is me paraphrasing but he says something that makes sense and he says this see the audience He goes, You're just like me. Yeah. But then obviously later on he goes, But this something makes us different. But you're just like me.

00;35;45;00 - 00;36;04;19

And there's something in me, just like me. That's an action that's within the play. But it's I'm, I'm so drawn to you because, well, at the time that I spent in the play, I go, Yes, Henry is just like me, like I said, direct. So working on the show now, I believe that to be true. Like all the experience because all the experiences that he's going through.

00;36;04;22 - 00;36;26;07

So again, I've said this already by a seat again, it's so human. It's really human. And he talks about it and honestly, even though the play's about lies and lies. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And it's crazy to me. I mean, because they were written, they were written quite a while ago, but, you know, we read them we read them both in June.

00;36;26;09 - 00;36;50;03

And it could be how is it like just so fresh, So immediate? They felt both of them like and not in that way that like, oh, we'll have to update but in the like actually don't change anything because this is as this is this is as fresh as it's going to feel like this is what we need. So that's that's a real that's a really speaks to their strength.

00;36;50;04 - 00;37;12;05

Mm hmm. Yeah. Yeah. No, we nailed it. It's a true story. I did tell him. I did give him free story and told him that I love him. I love it. He's looking good. Thank you for tuning in to in conversation with Soheil Parsa and Damian McCarthy Factory Theater would like to thank our supporters without whom we would not be able to bring you gripping Canadian theater.

00;37;12;08 - 00;37;36;28

Our season sponsor TD Bank, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council and the Toronto Arts Council, the Slate Family Foundation for their Transformative Theater Initiative and the McLean Foundation for their production support for Monster. And here lies Henry Monster by Daniel MacIvor, directed by Soho Parsa and starring Karl NG runs at Factory Theater from November 16 to December ten.

00;37;37;00 - 00;37;53;20

Here Lies Henry by Daniel MacIvor, directed by  Tawiah McCarthy, and starring Damien Atkins runs at Factory Theater November 23rd to December 17. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit our website at Factory Theater Dossier.