One’s real life is often the life that one does not lead. —Oscar Wilde
When history is made in Hogtown, it’s a pretty big deal to Torontonians. From the city’s cameo in the Oscar-nominated I Met The Walrus to becoming the final stop on the Spice Girls’ farewell tour, Toronto becomes more established with each historical notch on our belt.
A lesser-known Toronto story is explored in Martin Hunter’s production Stephen and Mr. Wilde, which opens at Hart House this Thursday. The play centres on British author Oscar Wilde (Jonathan Schuster), and his 1882 lecture tour through the United States and Canada. This was the journey that made Wilde notorious for his wit and decadence, a reputation that remains unchallenged even today. Stephen and Mr. Wilde, however, imagines the role of the writer’s intellectual equal—his African-American valet, Stephen Davenport (Drew Ngomba).
During the 24-hour period fictionalized in the story, Wilde is beleaguered by reporters from the Toronto Chronicle and the Toronto Empire, forerunners of today’s Globe and Mail. Already, critics were ridiculing Wilde for his role in Aestheticism, an art movement already gasping for air. The drama sets in, though, when one journalist accuses Davenport of being a fugitive murderer. Through a combination of truth and fantasy, the strain of the relationship between Davenport and Wilde is deeply examined.
Based on the play by Toronto writer Jim Bartley, performances of Stephen and Mr. Wilde have remained limited to the Canadian stage. It premiered in 1993 at Saskatoon’s Persephone Theatre, then made it to Toronto in 1995 and Stratford in 2000 for a CBC-sponsored performance. This production, directed by Hart House veteran Martin Hunter, has given the play a chance to shine once again on a prominent Toronto stage. Hunter, who started out acting at Hart House Theatre in the 1950s, has a long history here. In 1967 he saw his first play Out Flew the Web produced there, and in 1969 directed a production of Sergeant Musgrave’s Dance. Soon after, Hunter became Hart House Theatre’s artistic director. His last stint at Hart House saw him direct 2006’s superb production of Timothy Findley’s The Stillborn Lover.
Hart House’s revival of Stephen and Mr. Wilde arrives just in time for U of T’s Festival of the Arts, which runs through March 20. Just as students and faculty emerge from the depths of winter and midterms, all three campuses are participating in a celebration of creative culture with music, literature, dance, film, and more. Stephen and Mr. Wilde launches the festival on a charming, homegrown note, setting the stage for over 100 local pieces and performances over the course of the month.
Be sure to travel back in time this week to a different, yet oddly familiar Toronto with Stephen and Mr. Wilde. You may just find yourself heading over to the lobby of the Four Seasons with a copy of The Importance of Being Earnest. Let Oscar Wilde’s Toronto story become yours as well.
Stephen and Mr. Wilde runs from Thursday through March 8. Tickets are available at uofttix.com or at the Hart House Theatre Box Office.
