Theatre review: Peace Country looks at B.C. environmental issues from a complex range of perspectives
The often funny story set in a fictional small B.C. town is rooted in an all-too-familiar reality
Peace Country. Photo by Pedro Augusto Meza
Rice & beans theatre presents Peace Country at the Firehall Arts Centre to October 22
RICE & BEANS THEATRE’S latest production, Peace Country, presents a speculative environmental narrative that dispenses with dystopian futures. Instead, this story set in a fictional small B.C. town is firmly rooted in reality.
A hauntingly familiar ecological menace—a forest fire—encroaches as five friends confront the increasing disruption of their familiar hometown life, suddenly facing new leadership that could potentially offer long-overdue solutions. Drawing inspiration from writer and director Pedro Chamale's experiences growing up in Chetwynd, B.C., the locally relevant and highly topical play boldly delves into multiple facets of a complex issue.
As they gather over drinks and card games, a group of lifelong friends engage in spirited political discussions while awaiting the results of a regional election. Candice (Kaitlyn Yott), the fiery owner of the town’s only other coffee shop apart from the newly established Tim Horton’s, advocates for the environmental platform of the newly established BCEA (British Columbia Environmental Alliance). To everyone’s surprise, the party sweeps votes across the province, promising transformative changes bound to shake things up.
Melissa (Sara Vickruck), a sawmill worker and a leading figure in the town's first gay alliance, and Greg (Angus Yam), who juggles managing his family's Chinese restaurant with roles as a town councillor and volunteer firefighter, bring more industry-focused perspectives. Despite her limited interest in politics, Alicia (Sofía Rodríguez), a contracting business owner, a mother, as well as the group’s former babysitter, conveys some apprehension.
Tensions escalate with the return of Alicia's sister, Julia (Manuela Sosa), BCEA’s newly elected MLA. As the close friends reunite, their existing anxieties and varying views on the future of Peace Town boil up.
With a runtime of about two hours, the show encourages the audience to grapple with the complexities of the issues at hand. Using a fairly original structure and opting for authenticity, the play provides slices into the friends' backgrounds, hopes, and fears via flashbacks and monologues, offering an intimate window into the diverse experiences and worldviews contained within the little town.
In a place where idyllic landscapes and a close-knit community coexist alongside run-ins with close-mindedness and an uncertain future, each character finds unique purpose in living there. Even Julia, who left for university and continually insists that Peace Town is her “hometown, but not [her] home anymore,” shares the same profound love for the town that binds the friends.
Peace Country covers a wide range of topics, including small-town life, intercultural friendship, government inaction, and the exclusion of certain communities from climate discussions. Occasionally, it all feels like too much material to cover, but the construction of the characters is robust and the ensemble's chemistry helps holds it together.
To amp up the tension across time shifts, Andie Lloyd's video projections powerfully remind us of the fiery threat at the town's doorstep..
That's not to say the play is devoid of lightness. As Melissa, Vickruck stands out with well-timed and genuinely funny comedic relief. The whole friend group, especially during their youthful interactions, infuses the play with appreciated levity. Their dynamic seamlessly shifts from endearing debates about slushie flavour combinations to rowdy underage-drinking escapades in Alicia’s car, and then back again to thoughtful arguments about coming times.
Chamale's storytelling prowess ensures that the inherently political becomes personal. Offering a heartfelt but nonetheless sobering view on the realities of climate change, Peace Country isn't just timely—it is original storytelling that underscores the urgent need for collective action.
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