Our first show of 2025 was
Dinner With the Duchess at Crow’s Theatre. This is a play by Nick Green (known for writing The Last Timbit, Casey and Diana) that was initially workshopped as part of Toronto Fringe’s Next Stage Festival back in 2019. The action takes place at the condo of violin virtuoso Margaret who is at the end of her career and giving one last interview before her retirement. Margaret hopes that the interview will secure her legacy, concentrating on her career, talent and accomplishments. The interviewer Helen may have a more salacious piece in mind, initially gently and eventually aggressively requesting comments on reports and rumours of Margaret’s diva-esque behaviour. There is much interaction with a little cassette recorder that Helen wants to use to capture the interview.
Added to the mix is Margaret’s spouse David who arrives to help her with the interview, with the intent of preventing her from saying anything damaging to her reputation. They try to appear as a united, loving couple but cracks show with the little resentful barbs that Margaret continually throws his way. The couple insist on holding the interview over dinner, which consists of takeout from their favourite Italian restaurant where David took cooking lessons, using his skills to jazz up the meal with extra ingredients. He enthuses about lemon zest, adding a bit of humour to the play. The dinner is intended to create a more intimate, convivial atmosphere in an attempt to control the flow and narrative of the interview. It is a bit of a cat-and-mouse game as Margaret dodges, evades and erupts defensively while Helen probes, especially about why Margaret is nicknamed ‘The Duchess”.
This play delves into the themes of celebrity, misogyny, perception and legacy. There is a quick reference to Taylor Swift and all that she had to endure to make it in a male-dominated music industry, which brings the issues into perspective for those of us not familiar with the world of classical music. The actress who plays Margaret carries this piece as she goes through an emotional gamut, culminating in a mesmerizing final speech where she compares her life and career to the beat of a musical piece.
The simple set design representing a chic, modern Toronto condo consisted of a kitchen island and a small dining space with a glass table and four chairs delineated by an area rug, where most of the interview and meal took place. Two large photographic images of the Toronto skyline represented the windows of the condo. A couple of coffee-table books on a trolley included titles such as “Noire et Blanc”, perhaps to highlight Margaret’s sophistication but also her contrasting nature? But most telling and interesting is the colourful cubist-like painting of a seated woman with a musical note on her left side (possibly near her heart). Credited in the digital programme as the “Duchess painting” by visual artist Mark Uhre, the fragmented painting encapsulates Margaret’s passion for music but also her complexity and turmoil. In one scene, Margaret uses candles, wine bottle and wine glass to illustrate the very small group of top female violinists who influenced her. Her actions reminded me of a scene from the classic 1939 movie Four Feathers where objects on the dining table are used to act out a battle.
Dinner With the Duchess was not the most cheerful play to start off the new year, but the stellar performances made it a memorable one. Before the start of the play, the stage manager made a special thank you to Tulia Osteria for providing the food each night for the dinner scenes. The dishes certainly looked good and hopefully get eaten after the performances.
