With all the hype these days surrounding the Vancouver production of Rent, we often forget that there are actually other theatrical performances taking place in this city. While I must admit that I have had the pleasure of attending a staging of Rent and thoroughly enjoyed it, I think I've reached the point where I can say "enough is enough". Between plastic covered texts at the local bookstores and heaps upon heaps of cd's at every music shop, I have frankly grown tired of this oozing mass of cheese (I mean it's a heart warming story but the songs..., come on, Corey Hart could have done better). It is time we ignore the hype by focusing our attention elsewhere. And there is no place better to begin than in our own backyard (if there is such a thing in this cement jungle) at the SFU. theatre's production of Naomi Wallace's One Flea Spare.

Set in the ominous surroundings of plague infested London, England, in the 17th century, the play takes us inside the barren, unfurnished home of a bourgeois ship-builder (Mr. Snelgrave, played by Maury Tyre) as a young abandoned orphan, named Morse (played by Nneda Croal), recalls the tragic events of this horrific tale from the confines of her cell. As the play moves from the introductory statements of Morse to the actual re-enactment of events, we are gradually introduced to the various characters in the play. Along with Mr. Snelgrave and Morse, there is Bunce (played by Billy Marchenski), the transient sailor who, like Morse, sneaks into the boarded home, Darcy Snelgrave (played by Toni Rozylo), Mr. Snelgrave's hooded and gloved wife, and Kabe (played by Derek Whidden), the street watchman who escorts the dead bodies to the "pit" while ensuring that no one leaves their quarantined homes. Together these characters drive the play along until eventually, as the characters gradually develop and interact within this microcosm of society, we become increasingly aware of how the madness outside (i.e. the plague) merely becomes a symbolic catalyst through which the polemics of society can be investigated.

Directed by Mallory Catlett (with the help of a multitude of assistants), the SF.U. Theatre production of One Flea Spare combines a compelling set (thanks to the exquisite set and costume designs of Mariko Heidelk) with a superb set of actors and some haunting music (supplied by Carey Dodge and Jay Lind, a.k.a. The Flying Buttress Orchestra) to present a unique, yet faithful, adaptation of Naomi Wallace's script. Although the play can be quite trying on its audience (since it is an hour and fifty minutes without any intermissions), it is worth the sacrifice. As Walt Disney might say, "it is time well spent".

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