Kevin Bundy as Rick and Kim Horsman as Jo in As Above at Here For Now Theatre. Photo by Ann Baggley
By Galen Simmons
Just as trees are known to communicate with one another and share nutrients through an underground fungal network, we as humans can have a mysterious connection with those closest to us that defies time and geographic separation.
Playwright Christine Quintana and director Marie Farsi explore that mysterious connection in the Ontario premiere of As Above at Here For Now Theatre in Stratford.
The play centres around Jo (Kim Horsman), a widowed woman in her late 60s, a once renowned botanical researcher and a recovering alcoholic whose connections with her family have frayed. Her daughter (Melissa Oei) doesn’t speak with her anymore, she keeps her sister (also Oei) at arms length and she’s only just getting back into the dating world after nearly a decade alone.
As Jo teaches others about fungal networks that connect trees with each other, she forms her first real connection with someone in years. Rick (Kevin Bundy) is nearly three decades sober, he runs a successful construction business that employs newcomers and he struggles with deep depressive periods during which he disconnects from everyone he cares about, including Jo.
As the two embark on an open, honest and loving relationship, Jo begins feeling sick – at first, comparing the feeling to a hangover without having consumed any alcohol the night prior. As she gets sicker, becoming bed-ridden for days at a time, a mysterious phone call convinces her that her estranged daughter, who she learns from her sister is on a research trip in Bolivia, is afraid and needs her help.
What unfolds is a story about a mother and daughter who, despite years of separation, frustration, anger and sadness, find their connection is still strong, and they come back into one another’s lives at precisely the right time.
This production strikes a beautiful balance between science and the supernatural. Jo’s botanical expertise and her understanding of the natural world gives her a logical base from which she explores feelings and spooky happenstances she doesn’t fully understand.
Horsman and Bundy have immediate onstage chemistry as Jo and Rick, and I couldn’t help but root for their relationship – one that isn’t perfect but is built on mutual love, understanding and support.
Playing no fewer than three characters – Jo’s doctor, sister and daughter – Oei’s performances in this production are flawless. At no time did I find it confusing as she switched from one character to another, giving each the care, attention and sense of individuality they need to feel real.
Though I wouldn’t call this play scary in any real sense, it manages to build suspense as the audience, along with Jo, struggles to understand what is happening to her. Quick scene changes, dramatic lighting and sound, and a set comprising three greenhouse windows, a park bench and a couple of wooden crates combine to create an atmosphere of mystery and increasing desperation.
As Above runs at Here For Now Theatre until Nov. 8. I sincerely encourage you to see this play before it’s done.
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