Directory points way to fresh, local options

Here’s a quick reminder that my opinion doesn’t really matter. But, if I do something right, you may be able to glean whether a particular show is something you would like, no matter my mood. Mostly, I’m just trying to shoehorn in a couple jokes.

I recall a review I did years ago where I described a performance as “... like Stuart McLean, but funny.” An editor lopped off the “but funny” bit.

“Dancing Lessons” is the meeting of two neighbours in New York, strangers living a floor apart. Ever is an esteemed prof and an Aspie (person with Asperger syndrome). Senga is a professional dancer, sidelined indefinitely with an injury. Ever, ever wary of overstimulating environments, and Senga, a recently minted recluse, have had little reason for overlap in their social spheres before Ever knocks on Senga’s door.

Their friendship or courtship or ships passing in the night... uhm... ship develops over a series of strained chats at Senga’s modest pad. In the centre of her apartment is a futon which, as we all know, gives one the option to be uncomfortable sitting or uncomfortable lying down. Melissa Kramer and Jeff Schissler play Senga Quinn and Ever Montgomery in “Dancing Lessons” by Mark St. Germain. The production is at the Victoria Playhouse, Tuesday through Sunday until July 29.

The script is solid. Mark St. Germain has been around the business for a long while. He knows how to cut away fat and sprinkle in some lessons.

The tone harkens one of the better Norm Foster pieces staged at Victoria a few years back. The title will only sidetrack me more, but note that it, too, was quite delicately directed by Ted Price. Here, however, I find more substance and comedy in the realitybased dialogue.

I haven’t brought up two Canadian icons so far just to get in some backhanded shots but because they are familiar flavours to work from. Yes, one makes me roll my eyes too often and the other can be like a round of golf playing in the background. But where those two storytellers succeed, this play meets somewhere in the middle of it. We have some of the reliable crowd-pleasing notes of Foster and some of the clever reflections on mundanity that McLean achieved.

What elevates “Dancing Lessons” from solid to very good is the fine cast. I have just earned my critic credentials with that pretentious sentence.

Melissa Kramer has great presence. When she is alone on stage, she is alone in the whole theatre. Throughout, Senga swings from casually mopey to testy to playful to a most sallowed stare.

Though we are only rationed the character’s backstory until later in the piece, Kramer ensures that, as things are revealed, it doesn’t feel like mere heavy accessory or fabricated depth.

Her internalizing and bubbling over always comes from a full person. A lost person, but a full person.

Jeff Schissler’s portrayal of Ever is wonderfully empathetic. At no point are we laughing at his neurotype, but rather at the awkward interactions between two imperfect humans who are feeling each other out.

His mannerisms are well studied, but natural. In one scene, Ever laughs hysterically at something, and he is the only one getting the joke, and it is just so earnest and unguarded. A very real and really very rare performance.

Entwined into the hyper clumsiness of this blossoming relationship, there is a satisfying rhythm to the plot. An audio gag when the lights go out for some futon fun seems a little dated, but that is an exception.

The script presents plenty of briefing notes on what it means to be on the autism spectrum, including that some Aspies prefer that moniker to the more general “on the spectrum.” But the fact sharing doesn’t feel too pedantic. Maybe a touch. It is genuinely motivated in the dialogue, however, and comes from a man who really just loves to share information.

Near the end, there is a connection and a dance that is truly beautiful.

And it is a release.

And it is sad.

And it shows that fleeting moments are sometimes the richest part of the human experience. This is a sensitive piece that doesn’t lop off the funny bits.

The 2018 edition of the P.E.I. Fresh Products Directory is now available.

The guide includes a map to allow for easy navigation from one fresh-food location to another.

A “what’s in season” chart shows when products are available.

“Educating consumers about our Island food products and where they can get them is important for local producers,” said Charlottetown Farmers Market manager Bernie Plourde.

“The Fresh Products Directory is a great way to showcase our great food products and support our local producers.”

Find the directory online at www.peiflavours.ca or by phoning 1-866-PEIFARM. It can also be found at any of the province’s visitor information centres, liquor stores, Access P.E.I. sites or Department of Agriculture and Fisheries offices.