The Moonlight Sonata of Beethoven Blatz

Armin Wiebe's first play The Moonlight Sonata of Beethoven Blatz was a big success.

Playing at the Rachel Browne Theatre from April 7-17, 2011. It was so popular that most nights sold out, and they added an extra show. Though the theatre is quite small, the intimacy of it made the viewer feel like part of the play.

The story is so intimate, and difficult to understand in some ways, as there is a lot of low german script so this location was perfect for the type of show. Not too big, not too small. The message could've easily been lost in a bigger space such as MTC or Pantages Playhouse.

The play itself was very entertaining, and not what I was expecting at all. The title does infer that it is a mennonite culture play (last name Blatz) but I was not expecting the sexual content. Generally, I would be very uncomfortable in a theatre environment where there is promiscuity, sexual tension, actions, and even nudity, but in this play I was okay with it. I think it's because the blocking was so well done, and the tone of the play was not of a sexual nature that it felt good.

Watching the play was very enjoyable, the actors were superb, perfect for their parts. As Wiebe in his talk to the students on Thursday April 14, 2011 said they were lucky to find someone who could play piano, as well as act (Beethoven Blatz - played by Eric Nyland). The most interesting part I thought of his talk, was how he said they had workshopped the play in Calgary. I've never had the opportunity to workshop any plays but I would love to as an actor, and that really intrigued me. Though I was disappointed to the lack of detail he gave of the changes that the actors had made, and the great impact that generally comes out of workshopping, I was impressed that his play got to do this and right away saw why it was so well done. Nyland was part of the workshopping, and it showed. When everyone gets to be a part of the creative process, it makes for a greater production. In high school, my drama class, wrote, and acted in a play for the Festival Theatre Jeunesse. Since it was our "baby" and we all contributed, everyone was more passionate about it and this same vibe was felt when watching Wiebe's first play.

I was also a bit puzzled by his response to the question "why did you choose Beethoven's Moonlight sonata?" asked by classmate Tom Asselin. I was expecting some kind of background story, one that I had already developped in my head from watching the play, and referrencing his past work (much of which is in low german as well), but all he said was "because I liked it, and it's easy to play." So I guess playwrights aren't always as profound in their choices as we think. Maybe I was over analyzing.

Though the play was good, and talking to Wiebe was nice, I thought it was a bit of an overkill having it twice. I was expecting to be able to talk back with the actors, ask them about their experiences, especially since this is what we were told and the fact that Wiebe was already scheduled to talk to us two days later. As an actor, I wanted to know what they were thinking, and though I did have an opportunity to greet them afterwards as they were just kind of standing around, it would have been much more beneficial to have an open Q&A with them.

Overall, the experience was great and I hope that Wiebe writes more plays so I can try my best to solve the puzzle that is mennonite drama written in half low german, knowing not a word but "nine" which means no from a little german girl I met on an airplane from Germany to Montreal in 2008.