Graduate student Marianne (Emily Anne Corcoran) and beekeeper Roland (Anthony Goncharov) meet at a party. Do they go for a drink or not? It’s not clear, but it might be. (How’s that for confusion?)

As the story progresses, Marianne and Roland fall in love and start dating but eventually break up. They meet again in a chance encounter in a supermarket and get back together again. Or do they? Maybe they just run into each other in a chance encounter in a supermarket where Marianne says she’s engaged to someone else, and that’s that. Or perhaps Roland is engaged.

Do Marianne and Roland get married? Or is their time together short-lived?

Icarus Theatre’s website describes Nick Payne’s 'Constellations' as a play about free will, friendship, quantum multiverse theory, love, and honey.

But it’s more than that.

Again, it’s one of the plays that begs discussion in an audience talkback. I hope Icarus has planned at least one for future audiences.

Tarragon’s Extra Space provides a suitable environment for Payne’s engrossing script. Upon entering, it’s an empty dark stage, but there are orbs of light suspended from the ceiling. I wonder if other audience members find the dimly lit stage alarming or frightening.

I didn’t.

There’s nothing eerie at all in looking at the stage. I felt serenity and calm, just focusing on the lights. Is this what the universal cosmos looks like in space? Very creative.

When performers Anthony Goncharov and Emily Anne Corcoran (real-life partners) enter, they wear comfortable clothing and socks, no shoes. This makes sense because ‘Constellations’ occurs in a world unfamiliar to audiences, so there’s no need to hold to familiar conventions in a world we know. There are many worlds in ‘Constellations.’ We’re in another galaxy.

Some of Payne’s dialogue is presented two or three times, during which the actors may reposition themselves on the stage under the hanging orbs of light. Some of the continuity of the dialogue is out of order as the text jumps back and forth. Something said initially might not make sense at that point, but it will a few minutes later. There are moments where the dialogue focuses on quantum physics and astronomy. There is a great deal of wordiness that may seem confusing because so much is told to the audience.

Many serious themes abound in the play that strike close to my heart. Grief and death are only two that struck me as I continue moving through the grieving process of losing my mother three months ago.

All these heady and emotional issues are smartly handled under director Connor Briggs’ care as he pays the tiniest, most minute detail in Goncharov and Corcoran’s performances. There are moments when Goncharov may slightly raise his eyebrow in his dialogue or respond to Corcoran with a slight head turn. That meaning is conveyed only by that simple movement.

Goncharov and Corcoran deliver enticing performances as Roland and Marianne. They understand there is a through line from all the wordy dialogue. They listen carefully to each other and respond naturally. The fact that they are real-life partners also brings comforting believability to their on-stage work. At one point, Corcoran slightly strokes Goncharov’s arm or hand with such a tender connection she feels for him. Another time, he lies on the floor, looking up at her. From my seat in the house, I couldn’t see Anthony’s face, but I could imagine the look of compassion on his face and in his eyes as he spoke to this woman for whom he cared.

Another Concluding Thought: ‘Enigmatically puzzling at first, but WOW is Nick Payne’s engrossing ‘Constellations’ good theatre. Playwright Nick Payne and director Connor Briggs dig deeply into the human psyche and an individual’s place and relationship to others and within the cosmos.

Icarus Theatre, the little theatre that’s starting out, is one to keep an eye on in future.

Looking forward to the next.

Running time: approximately 70 minutes with no interval/intermission.

‘Constellations’ runs until August 23 in the Extra Space at Tarragon Theatre, 30 Bridgman Avenue, Toronto. For tickets: https://www.icarustheatre.ca/constellations.

ICARUS THEATRE presents
‘Constellations’ by Nick Payne
Directed by Connor Briggs
Co-Producers: Connor Briggs, Anthony Goncharov, Emily Anne Corcoran
Sound Design: Amit Kumar
Lighting Design: Lidia Foote
Stage Manager: Monique Danielle

Performers: Emily Anne Corcoran, Anthony Goncharov