Recent Experiences
2000–2006 | Theatre
Written and directed by Nadia Ross and Jacob Wren
Recent Experiences tells the story of four generations of a single family over the course of one hundred years, as their lives unfold against the turbulent historical backdrop of the 20th century.
The performers and audience sit together around a large table, sharing stories that unfold across four generations of a family. This simple arrangement creates an intimate atmosphere, as though everyone has gathered to listen to the histories, memories and experiences of people they have known all their lives.
Described as a micro-epic, Recent Experiences examines a gradual change in how people understand the world: from a belief that ethics and morality are rooted in tradition to a worldview that searches for meaning in the possibilities of the future.
Each generation struggles to avoid repeating the mistakes of its parents. The small details and melodramas of everyday family life unfold alongside the major historical events of the century, revealing how personal experiences and world history continually shape one another.
Through these interconnected stories, the production explores our shared beliefs about happiness, love and the search for truth. Questions of responsibility, mortality, guilt, solitude and despair emerge through the ordinary experiences of people trying to understand their lives and the world they have inherited.
With a minimalist theatrical approach that places storytelling and the performers’ presence at its centre, Recent Experiences transforms the history of the 20th century into an intimate family story.
The only thing left to do is take a seat at the table and share in this humane and tender work.
Premiering in Toronto in 2000, Recent Experiences toured internationally through 2006, with presentations in Europe, Asia, Australia and North America. The play was also produced independently by theatre companies in Germany and Iran.
Credits
Written and directed by: Nadia Ross and Jacob Wren
Performers: Learie McNicolls / Andrew Moodie, Tracy Wright, Andrea Davis / Ngozi Paul, Charles Officer, Ingrid Veninger, Nadia Ross
Set Design and Staging Concept: Paul Mezei
Lighting Design: Steve Lucas
Technical Director: Steve Lucas
Stage Manager: J.P. Robichaud
Touring Agent: Menno Plukker
Produced by STO Union in association with Candid Stammer Theatre.
With the support of the Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Council.
International Touring History
2000
- The Theatre Centre — Toronto, Canada (World Premiere)
2001
- Festival de Théâtre des Amériques — Montréal, Québec, Canada (International Premiere)
2002
- Kunstenfestivaldesarts — Brussels, Belgium
- Mousonturm Künstlerhaus — Frankfurt, Germany
- Melbourne International Theatre Festival — Melbourne, Australia
- Theater der Welt — Bonn, Germany
- Wiener Festwochen — Vienna, Austria
2003
- Hong Kong Festival — Hong Kong
2004
- Belfast Theatre Festival — Belfast, Northern Ireland
- The Simple Life Festival — Berlin, Germany
- Theater Regentes — The Hague, Netherlands
2006
UCLA Live — Los Angeles, United States
Independent International Productions
In addition to STO Union’s original production and international tours, Recent Experiences was produced by other theatre companies.
2003–2004 — Stuttgart, Germany
Stuttgart Stadt Theater presented an independent production using the original script by Nadia Ross and Jacob Wren.
2003 — Tehran, Iran
The Tehran Center for Dramatic Arts presented an adaptation of Recent Experiences. The Iranian production subsequently toured to several international locations.
Selected Press Reviews
“With RECENT EXPERIENCES it’s above all magnificent, funny and moving. At the end of the show, we force ourselves to applaud. Because what we really want to do is to leave the room quietly, warmly embracing each of the actors, like we sometimes do with certain people we have been close to but have not seen in a long while, but who, nonetheless, will never leave our hearts.”
Le Soir, Belgium, 2001
“Ross and Wren are masters of nuance and theatrical ease: in the game of life there are winners and losers – a fact which these guests from Canada meet with humor and wisdom. Beautiful.”
Vienna Kurier, Austria, 2002
“So simple it could hardly be more complex.”
Stuttgarter Zeitung, Germany, 2002
“Life is not simple, but theater is beautiful. …This time, in any case, it is.”
Bonner Rundschau, Germany, June 24, 2002
“Failed relations, violence, racial hatred, isolation, mourning. At the end the realization comes that life is rather simple – if one can take it as it comes. Recent Experiences is a European Premiere and a beautiful example of how theater can be intense without excess.”
Wiener Zeitung, Austria, June 17, 2002
“Low key, quietly intense performances and the intimacy of the actors’ presence, the refusal to fill in the narrational gaps, and the way north American performers hymn their delivery all make for a poetic evocation of a century at once terribly familiar and utterly strange.”
RealTime Arts, Australia, 2002
Script
Recent Experiences
38 pages | English
The script is available upon request for reading, research and educational purposes.
For inquiries about the script or permission to produce the play, please contact info@stounion.com.
Permission to reproduce, adapt or publicly perform the work must be obtained from the appropriate rights holders.