Is there a better month than February for settling into a warm theatre seat? This February, three of Saskatoon’s main theatre companies are tackling some tough topics. Yet all three plays take the view that while life can be hard, there is also humour, and love and family and even kind strangers support us as we face the difficult times of our lives. Here they are.

SOUFFLER LA VEILLEUSE/ GETTING TO ROOM TEMPERATURE

By Arthur Milner, translation by Jean Marc Dalpé La Troupe Du Jour, Until Feb. 9 at Studio 914, 914 20th St. West In French with English subtitles

Tickets: https://www.latroupedujour.ca/ getting-to-room-temperature/

La Troupe du Jour brings the difficult topic of MAID to the stage, but with humour and sensitivity, says Bruce McKay, artistic director and cogeneral manager. The play examines aging and illness and death, but it is also about a family, and family relationships, and how people respond when faced with these sorts of challenges, he said. “Arthur Milner has done great work exploring the humour in the family dynamics.” Milner says that when facing dire circumstances, “it’s important to keep one’s sense of humour — this informs his approach to the subject matter. Those of us working on the production are following the path Milner has laid out for us.” The play deals with Milner’s own 93-year-old mother and her readiness to die before MAID was legalized in Canada. “It frankly examines the options, or lack thereof, at that time. It shows ordinary people grappling with some of life’s biggest challenges,” said McKay. The company decided to stage the play because theatre can provoke reflection and conversation about important issues. “In acting, we often talk about raising the stakes, making sure what the character wants is very important to them. Souffler la veilleuse is literally about life and death — so, pretty high stakes!”

18 JEWS ORDER CHINESE FOOD

By Jenna Berenbaum in partnership with the Jewish Arts Festival Persephone Theatre, Feb. 5-16

Tickets: https://persephonetheatre.org/ shows/play/18-jews-order-chinese-food/

In this world premiere from local playwright Jenna Berenbaum, the main character’s husband has just died. The family gathers around her to grieve and support — and drive each other crazy. “In 2015, I attended my greatuncle’s funeral,” Berenbaum says about the play’s inspiration. “We all piled into my great-aunt’s apartment to order Chinese food before his funeral. Chaos ensued and I thought, ‘I have to write a play about this.’” They said the number 18 is a special number in Judaism representing the Hebrew word “chai,” which means life. “It is considered lucky and often gifts are given in denominations of 18. It was also the main inspiration of the play — 18 Jews were trying to order Chinese food and it was way too comical and frustrating to not be shared with the world.” Berenbaum originally wrote a 10-minute version for the Short Cuts festival in 2021 and then lengthened it to an hour for Sum Theatre’s First Monday series. In early 2024, they extended it to a two-hour version and held a reading with the support of the Saskatoon Jewish Community. “The play is really about people being and existing and navigating with their families regardless of cultural background. I hope people see themselves reflected in the story regardless of where they came from.”

THE UNPLUGGING

by Yvette Nolan, A Burnt Thicket Theatre production, presented by Live Five Theatre Feb. 27-March 9 at The Refinery, 609 Dufferin Ave.

Tickets and details: burntthicket.com or On the Boards’ Box Office 306-653-5191

The Unplugging, a postapocalyptic tale set in a future frozen Saskatchewan, pits a “survival of the fittest” mentality against Indigenous land-based knowledge. While the setting may seem unsettling, “The Unplugging is so funny, smart, and nuanced…” said The Snipe of Vancouver in a review. “Our company is inspired by the way The Unplugging speaks to the indifference and paralysis about today’s environmental crises,” says Stephen Waldschmidt, Burnt Thicket’s artistic director. Written just before 2020, this play deals with much of what the pandemic forced us to face, said Waldschmidt: extreme social isolation, how quickly our ways of life can be radically changed beyond our control, and how easily our communities can prioritize self preservation and tribalisms over all else. Waldschmidt said the play is “a wake-up call heralding the need to make real change, one that is urgently needed in our province.” But that invitation “unfolds in the intimate, often funny human relationships, and the emotional journeys of the characters, moving audiences by getting under their skin and wooing their hearts.”

– Joanne Paulson