Evolving Men Express Their Feelings
When I saw a workshop reading of Sunny Drake’s play Men Express Their Feelings I was still living in Tkaronto/Toronto and had no idea I would become the Artistic Director at Downstage. The moment the reading was over, the audience leapt to their feet in rapturous applause and I knew that I wanted to direct Sunny’s brilliant hockey comedy. That night, I told Sunny about my desire and we agreed that it could be a wonderful project for us to collaborate on.
In autumn of 2018, I moved west to begin my work with Downstage. One of my first plans was to direct Men Express Their Feelings. It’s such a great play for our city! It’s a comedy about culture, hockey, relationships, and sex. Two dads and their sons are sequestered to a hockey rink dressing room to sort out a critical situation. Amidst a series of wild misunderstandings and ridiculous antics, these guys get to know each other and themselves a whole lot better, while redefining what it means to WIN. It’s a play that resonates with local conversations about hockey culture and male emotional literacy, while scoring big on father son bonding fun.
In March of 2020, Downstage produced the world premiere of Men Express Their Feelings and received exuberant response from audiences and critiques alike. The Calgary Herald’s Louis B. Hobson called it an “instant Canadian classic” and “wildly, unabashedly funny”. We closed the show on March 15, 2020, just as the pandemic was taking hold. Our original plan was to tour Men Express Their Feelings in the 2020-21 season. As it became clear that a tour would be unlikely given the shutdown, Sunny suggested an audio production of the play!
The original live version of Men Express Their Feelings is full of physical humour and visual storytelling. Sunny knew that he would need to rewrite the piece significantly for it to work as an audio play. In early 2021, Sunny and the Downstage team gathered with actors Conner Christmas, Ray Dhaliwal, Nathan Pronyshyn, and Isaac Thomas as well as experienced radio drama producer, Kathleen Flaherty, to workshop the audio version of this hilarious piece. Through the process, Sunny began focusing on the sons, Raj and Brad, as the storytellers of the play. It’s beautiful to see how this play has grown because of the need to translate it into an audio production. In the audio version, the audience is guided through the play by Brad and Raj, who share their private thoughts with us. It’s like we’re right inside their brains!
In the summer of 2021, we recorded all three episodes with Chris Bullough stepping in for Nathan due to scheduling. Sound designer, David Mesiha, has created a vibrant and dynamic sonic world for the characters to inhabit. It’s a fast paced, funny adventure that looks at important social issues. The online version will be available via the Downstage website from November 15, 2021 to August 15, 2022. So, there’s lots of time to catch all 3 Episodes.
Before we launch online, we are hosting a weekend of Live Listening Parties at Arts Commons in Motel Theatre! Each night will feature all 3 Episodes and will be hosted by well-loved local actor, Stafford Perry. We’ll have beer tastings thanks to our event sponsor, The Establishment Brewing Company. There will be interactive games set up between each episode and the chance to win a pair of Calgary Flames tickets each night. Come on down and enjoy a safe and fun event!
For more information and to purchase tickets, please check out downstage.ca.
Header image: Katy Whitt Photography
