I only vaguely remember the piano room at Toronto singer-songwriter Suzy Wilde’s studio, where she taught me for a year when I was eight or nine. Our time together was short, but the impact of music on my life, including what she taught me, remains. What a beautiful experience to be re-immersed into her world, all these years later, through Tarragon Theatre and the Musical Stage Company’s world premiere co-production After the Rain.
Together, composer-lyricist Wilde and book writer Rose Napoli wrap the audience into the world of a song Wilde wrote about 15 years ago. Annika Tupper plays Suzie Evans Stone, a fictionalized version of Wilde, who lives the rock-and-roll life with her parents’ band, Evans Stone. Suzie is in her early 20s and exploring her own desires in life, which means going against those of her parents.
The story kicks off when her father Ashley (Andrew Penner) has to bail on a music lesson, leaving Suzie to cover for him. She develops an unlikely companionship with his eccentric mature student, Donna (Deborah Hay), set on mastering “Gymnopédie No. 1” by Erik Satie, and nothing else. Throughout her coming-of-age arc, Suzie is haunted by pieces of a tender melody that urge her to write a song.
Running two hours and 20 minutes including intermission, After the Rain is mostly diegetic, meaning the characters write and sing the songs within the world of the story, as opposed to the songs existing outside of it, as in most traditional musicals. Director Marie Farsi stages the songs so that they weave in and out of the concert-world and play-world, repeatedly taking the audience from a living room to a stage and back again. When Evans Stone is performing in a concert, sound designer Brian Kenny makes the music swell wall to wall. If it weren’t for the theatre seats, these scenes would’ve felt like being transported to a Lumineers concert. I caught a few audience members, including myself, tapping their feet and nodding along to the folk-rock tunes.
Lighting designer Logan Raju Cracknell completes the atmosphere with flashing colours and spotlights that pan over the audience. David Boechler designs the set to embody both worlds; he dresses the sides of the stage like a cosy, rustic loft, with brick walls, hanging lights, and overlapping rugs, but includes a centre-stage riser with a piece that pops up to make a keyboard appear like a grand piano.
Penner and Hay each take on two characters, portraying Suzie’s parents as well as student Donna and her husband, “Silent Frank.” With help from costume designer Ming Wong’s distinctions in style, Penner and Hay clearly embody the two couples, with charming chemistry in both. Tupper is captivating as Suzie, narrating throughout the show and confidently engaging audience members in playful bits where they briefly join the show as characters, sometimes being given lines by whisper or piece of paper. As an attendee, you could end up as anything from an emo-stoner boyfriend to a baby with a ukulele. Each actor has excellent comedic timing and hits each beat with seeming ease. They got a lot of laughs from the buzzing opening night audience, but make no mistake, they got quite a few audible tears out of us, too.
Tupper’s voice is resonant and clear, balancing well with Penner’s vocal richness, as well as Hay’s warmth. Joe Bowden as the quirky drummer Kunkel and Brandon McGibbon as the serial divorcé guitarist Mickey match the talent of the trio. Both Bowden and McGibbon are skilled instrumentalists and give Evans Stone a professional finish. Tupper plays endearingly alongside Shaemus Swets, who portrays Donna’s adorably awkward and blunt 16-year-old son, Julian. Their scenes together are some of the musical’s most heartwarming moments, illuminating how music can unite people. The epilogic narrations at the end of the show veer on the sappy side, but then take a turn that makes them justified.
Having reviewed The Wolf in the Voice in the Extraspace earlier this year, which was created in association with Nightswimming, I recognize a common thread between the two Tarragon co-productions. Both put an emphasis on the tensions and synergies between collaborating musicians, and the way that music can empower its maker; The Wolf in the Voice focuses on the singing voice as a tool for connection and vulnerability, whereas After the Rain portrays instruments as vessels for the characters’ inner worlds. We get to see inside the arrangement process of Evans Stone, and how that mirrors the tumultuous journey of being a family band.
In a moment of inspiration, Suzie rides her bike in the rain to chase her song. Without meaning to copy her, I took a city bike home and got caught in a light drizzle. The melodies from the show were stuck in my head as I cycled along Bloor Street West. Mirroring Suzie/Suzy’s reflections in the titular song, I became hopeful for what will grow after the rain, and that maybe something in me could grow, too.
After the Rain runs at Tarragon Theatre until June 22. Tickets are available here.
Intermission reviews are independent and unrelated to Intermission’s partnered content. Learn more about Intermission’s partnership model here.
WRITTEN BY
Gus Lederman
Gus Lederman (they/he) is a writer and performer in Tkaronto. Currently, they’re in their last semester of OCAD University’s Creative Writing program, where they were Editor-in-Chief of the first edition of the student literary journal, Pulse. Gus participated in the 2024 New Young Reviewers Program with Toronto Fringe, and has since written for Canopy Magazine. They enjoy composing original music, writing plays, and are passionate about climate justice, trans-ness, and puppetry.
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