Nicola Lipman in Another Home Invasion. Photography by Trudie Lee.
Another Home Invasion
By Joan MacLeod
Directed by Richard Rose
Featuring Nicola Lipman
A co-production with Alberta Theatre Projects (Calgary)
Runs until April 19 @ Tarragon’s Mainspace
By Matt McGeachy
It’s the season for one-woman shows in Toronto, and it’s our great good luck that both of them are slam-bang productions featuring talented actresses named Nicola. Have the theatrical stars aligned? I think yes.
Another Home Invasion — Joan MacLeod’s subtle and moving one-woman show about an aging couple’s quest to remain together as they move into a nursing home in Vancouver — is both relevant and entertaining, and manages to bring to our attention the societal question of our treatment of elderly people without ever being overtly political.
The show takes place entirely in the North Vancouver living room of Joan, played by Nicola Lipman, in the house where she and her husband Alec have lived for over 50 years. A single chair, centre stage, on a bed of autumn leaves that looks exactly like old shag carpeting, and a walker off to the side set the scene for 80 minutes of personal conversation with Joan. It is a testament both to Lipman’s acting and to Scott Reid’s set design that it felt like we were sitting on the chesterfield across from her rather than in the audience.
The play is not just about the titular home invasion, but also about the events of that week that brought Joan to her current situation. Joan’s husband Alec, who we are led to believe conquered alcoholism earlier in his life, is now suffering from dementia. Joan spends most of her time caring for Alec, and also campaigning to get a placement at the highly coveted Kiwanis retirement home in their neighbourhood that has rooms for couples and will afford Joan the ability to remain with Alec while being relieved of the burden of his care.
Joan’s daughter Bethie is of little help to them, her two sons live in Calgary and Toronto, and her granddaughter Amber comes over once a week to do the vacuuming but does, we are told, the absolute minimum required. The overall picture is quite a lonely one, and Joan’s one respite during the week is her Aquafit class at the gym.
By creating a story around a home invasion that highlights Vancouver’s devastating drug problem, MacLeod effectively suggests to the audience that the problems of elder care in our society are as pressing and as political. The writing offers such a strong voice for Joan, and Lipman has created such a strong and compelling character, that the audience cannot but admire Joan’s strength and tenacity; we are all devastated when Joan and Alec do not get a spot in the Kiwanis home.
MacLeod, Lipman, and director Richard Rose have created a beautiful and moving play that sheds light on the challenges of ageing and causes the audience to shed a few tears.
