Review: ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ is an expert display of verbal sparring
‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ remains one of the rawest depictions of a married couple on stage or screen.
In 1966, real-life couple Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor delivered unmatched performances as a mature couple who keep the fire in their marriage burning by exchanging scathing remarks while entertaining a young couple in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Mike Nichols’ feature directorial debut would garner widespread acclaim and earn five Oscars, including Taylor’s second Academy Award for best actress. While this is the quintessential presentation of Edward Albee’s 1962 play of the same name, many have made the characters their own in countless theatres. The latest is Canadian Stage’s production, starring another real-life couple, Paul Gross and Martha Burns, which is now playing at Toronto’s Bluma Appel Theatre.
George (Gross) is a history professor and Martha (Burns) is the daughter of the school’s president — one of many matters of contention between the long-married couple. After returning from a faculty cocktail party organized to welcome Nick (Rylan Wilkie), a new teacher, and his wife, Honey (Hailey Gillis), Martha informs George the pair of young people are coming over for a nightcap. As the hours drag on to dawn and everyone becomes more inebriated, the older couple play a game of doing their best to embarrass each other in front of their bewildered guests.
The play opens by introducing audiences to the coarse dynamic between George and Martha, which will inform the rest of the evening’s mood. Gross is excellent as the disenchanted husband who wavers between ignoring his wife’s harsh remarks to retorting with equally witty barbs. Burns’ performance is slightly less brash than Taylor’s, making her appear less venomous but equally spiteful. Honey’s breezy naiveté is always a delight as her intoxication compels her to unknowingly encourage their impish quarreling with Gillis playing the innocent waif to a tee. Unfortunately, Mac Fyfe, Gillis’ real-life husband who was meant to play Nick, needed to step away from the production for undisclosed medical reasons, so Wilkie stepped into the role with only five days of rehearsal. While his delivery is on point, he regrettably still required a copy of the script for reference, which was occasionally distracting.
Unfolding within the confines of George and Martha’s living room, the play is three hours and 30 minutes, including two intermissions — though it did feel as if the first break could have been later, negating the need for a second. Gillis infuses her scenes with misplaced whimsy and “dances like the wind,” while Wilkie expresses Nick’s frustration at being made a pawn in George and Martha’s toxic diversion before deciding to join in the contest. Most notably, Gross and Burns have flawless timing, never missing a beat in their paltry attempts to outmanoeuvre each other until neither has any moves left and the illusion must finally end.
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? runs from January 18 to February 16, 2025.
