Got any embarrassing stories about your family? Appropriate now on stage at The Theatre is the kind of script that may make your own family history feel banal.
This is the Alberta premiere of Appropriate, which first premiered off-Broadway in 2014, and went on through subsequent productions to win numerous accolades, including four Tony awards.
The play is set in the American south, as a Caucasian family arrives at their traditional family home on an old Arkansas plantation to settle the estate of their father. What they find pushes the boundaries of what they hold to be true in terms of their own sensibilities and their family history with racism and slavery. The script itself is written from a unique perspective, the playwright is African American.
Actress Emily Brown says that perspective gives the production more freedom to freely depict things like racial slurs and question the responsibility of family history being connected to slavery and racism.
“I find there’s like a lot of permission in the script, likely because of that,” she explains.
Brown says expect to be confronted with people saying the quiet part out loud.
“So there’s the vitriol that these people speak with and speak with abandon, like they’re not even aware of their cruelty sometimes,” she says. “And sometimes they wield it as a weapon for fun.”
Director Jakob Schäefer says the trigger warnings are many, including sexual assault, racial slurs, heavy family dynamic conflicts, violence, and strobe lights. It is not designed to be a comfortable viewing experience.
Aliza Sarian plays the part of Racheal, she says the discomfort can inspire action.
“We’ve been approached by folks after the show being like, ‘It’s made me want to call my brothers and apologize. This made me want to check my bank account, make sure that my future is secure. This made me want to come on stage and slap you.’ We’ve gotten all kinds of those reactions.”
Appropriate is at The Theatre until April 4.
Tickets here.