The play is translated by Shelley Tepperman and directed by Factory's director of play development, Bill Lane.
Tideline features "eight dynamic performers who portray 50 characters over 52 scenes in this award-winning epic journey to a war-torn land across the ocean." Performances play Factory Theatre's Mainspace through Dec. 11. Previews began Nov. 12.
According to Factory notes, "Wilfrid needs to bury his father, but wants to return him to rest in his native land across the seas. Once there, Wilfrid confronts a country scarred by war, where burial grounds are already full and an additional corpse is just one too many. The young man discovers a curious collection of co-travelers who all dream of a better life. Together they embark on an unexpected journey through time with a body that takes up too much space. A tale of war, exile and individual discovery, Tideline ranks as an imaginative fable for our times."
Tideline (Littoral) won the Governor General's Literary Award, French Category, in 2000 as well as First Prize by the Quebec Theatre Critics Association. Following a hugely successful production in France, Tideline was honored with the Prix Molière for best French language play.
Playwright, director, actor, translator and former artistic director of Montreal's Théâtre de Quat'Sous, Wajdi Mouawad is an original voice in Québécois theatre, drawing on his background in his native Lebanon, North America, Quebec and Europe. His previous works include Wedding Day at the Cro-Magnons and Alphonse. Mouawad was recently nominated for Canada's prestigious Siminovitch Prize in Theatre. A year ago, Mouawad made his feature film debut with "Littoral" ("Tideline").
Shelley Tepperman is a Quebec-based translator who has translated Mouawad's Wedding Day at the Cromagnons and Alphonse as well as François Archambault's Cul Sec and Les Gagnants, among others.
The cast for this ensemble production includes Michael Rubenfeld as Wilfrid, Sugith Varughese as his Father, Andrew Moodie as two of Wilfrid's imaginary friends, with Dalal Badr, Bobby del Rio, Sean Dixon, Audrey Dwyer and Dylan Trowbridge.
Set and costume design is by Victoria Wallace, lighting design by Andrea Lundy and music by Michael White.
For more information, call (416) 504-9971 or visit www.factorytheatre.ca.
