Early in The Heterosexuals, Johnnie McNamara Walker asks us to reflect on the queer crushes of our childhood. It’s an introspective, nostalgic pause for the audience to consider the pop culture icons who made us giddy, to which Walker offers: “Why shouldn’t we be flustered?”
He tells us this in a winking tone, with a “if you know, you know,” sensibility that feels reassuring and affirming. There’s a casual comfort to it all. He reminds us that he’s picked up on “the fiercely queer vibes emanating from our very soul,” and asserts that these very same vibes are why we’ve been brought together. These moments of why and why-not soften the play’s satirical edges into something more inviting. They’re quiet oases of reflection in a busy but delightfully told story about the bliss of knowing oneself.
I was fortunate to catch a one-night-only showing of The Heterosexuals at the Fredericton Playhouse as part of its Spotlight Series, a showcase of touring performances featuring artists from across Canada. It’s a solo show written and performed by Walker, a Toronto-based artist who was in the middle of several performances in the Maritimes. The story is framed as a cordial invitation to an unapologetically queer underground meeting led by Walker. It consists of a deep-dive critique into the traps, tricks, and tests of heteronormativity.
Watching Walker make a space for himself with a Fredericton audience was captivating. As a performer, he’s wickedly charismatic. He talks with his hands, asks with his brow, and paces to keep up with his frenetic writing and delivery. At the performance I attended, Walker tried to rally us with a call and response showtune reference from The Pajama Game, something the audience wasn’t really there to meet. The Fredericton theatre crowd can be a quiet-when-engaged demographic: a gentle contrast to Walker’s electricity. Eventually, this odd couple embraced one another fully, with fast-talking fervor softening the quiet, humble Maritime sensibilities. To future performers coming through here, remember this: Maritimers cherish bleeding hearts, being asked questions of the self, and eyebrows in a state of perpetual motion. Bring these assets, and we’ll fall in love.
The play has a conversational energy that bounces between its different narrative threads: from opening with cathartic venting, to sifting through Walker’s childhood and giving flowers to the media that shaped him. Plot elements are often dropped as quickly as they are introduced. It can sometimes be hard to keep up with the narrative, which feels constrained by its hour-long timeslot.
Near the start of the show, we are introduced to “Other Johnnie,” a voice-over performance by Walker. Other Johnnie does get a satisfying payoff, but is absent from the majority of the play. It feels like we’re missing opportunities for these two versions of Jonnie to properly confront and comfort one another. When he does appear, however, Other Johnnie is subtle and effective character work. He is a muted, stifled shell — a “you-shaped hole,” as Walker once calls him. It’s a touching sequence of heartbreak that is missing room to breathe.
The Heterosexuals is an evening of rapid-fire comedy with scenes of softness and introspection, but its pace doesn’t always provide the room for those moments to land. Watching Walker spin so many plates is definitely part of the fun, but the plot often feels like it’s already on to the next thing. By the end, we’re left with a lot to carry home: a call to action to nurture our queer community, a promise to be faithful to our inner beauty, and the affirmations of a performer who is very much the kind of person he describes us all to be: “irrefutably and gorgeously true.”
The Hetereosexuals just wrapped up a tour through the Maritimes. More information is available here.
Anthony Bryan wrote this review as part of Page Turn, a professional development network for emerging arts writers, funded by the Canada Council for the Arts and administered by Neworld Theatre.
Intermission reviews are independent and unrelated to Intermission’s partnered content. Learn more about Intermission’s partnership model here.
WRITTEN BY
Anthony Bryan
Louis Anthony Bryan (he/him) is a theatre artist and educator from Trinidad and Tobago. A graduate of St Thomas University’s bachelor of arts in 2017 and bachelor of education program in 2018, Anthony is based in Fredericton, working primarily as a writer, dramaturge, and stand-up comedian. He has been affiliated with several theatre and film companies in his local art scene, including the Union of Black Artists Society, Notable Acts, Rebel Femme Productions, and Strike Pictures.
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