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An elegant psychological portrait of motherhood

The Lost Daughter

(US, Greece, 2021) Directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal

Review by Iva Apostolova This Netflix original, released last December, is the directorial debut of Hollywood actress Maggie Gyllenhaal. While it was filmed on the Greek island of Spetses, the movie is far from a vacation flick. Relying heavily on flashbacks, the story follows the life of Leda, a British-born comparative literature professor living in the U.S., played by the phenomenal Olivia Coleman (the up-and-coming Irish actress Jesse Buckley plays young Leda).

While on a working holiday in Greece, Leda gets mixed up in the life of a young American woman, Nina, brilliantly portrayed by Dakota Johnson. Nina is the trophy wife of the possessive, borderline-abusive, shady businessman Tony, played by the handsome and talented English actor Oliver Jackson-Cohen, who manages an impeccable Bronx accent. Tony is not the only one who has Nina in his clutches – his large and noisy family makes sure Nina is never alone or too far away from her needy four-year-old daughter.

Leda finds herself drawn to young Nina as she recalls her own brutal struggles with motherhood and marriage. But it would be both an unfair judgement and an oversimplification to say that the movie is about the dark side of motherhood. For one, when people hear “the dark side” of anything, they expect a thriller of sorts, which The Lost Daughter is definitely not. In fact, it is an elegant, even-paced, psychological portrait that does not toy with the viewer or exploit her emotions but, on the contrary, puts everything on the table from the start.

The movie is based on a novella of the same name by the Italian writer Elena Ferrante. It is, in my view, one of her less well-developed stories. However, Ferrante (an alias), whose identity was unknown for a long time, is a very exciting writer whose four volumes of Neapolitan Novels are a must-read on every serious reader’s list. Ferrante’s signature is scalpel-precision analysis of the female psyche and the complicated phenomenon that is motherhood. In that sense, The Lost Daughter does not disappoint in exposing the many ways in which women from all walks of life can and do get trapped within the confines of one identity and one (very labour intensive!) role, more often than not that of the mother.

Gyllenhaal has done a great job with the adaptation of Ferrante’s novella – what a directorial debut! That being said, if the viewer is not familiar with Ferrante’s works, a few scenes may seem idiosyncratic and self-indulgent, at least on first watch. For example, the restaurant scene where Leda interacts with the cottage keeper Lyle, played by the indefatigable Ed Harris, is a little obtuse in its messaging. Regardless, I found myself going back to The Lost Daughter on quite a few occasions and rewatching scenes that stayed with me. I would definitely recommend watching the movie at home where one can “pause” and “rewind.”

Running time: 2hr 1min Streaming on Netflix Rating: 14A

Iva Apostolova is a professor of philosophy at Dominican University College.

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Ottawa Children’s Festival, live and in person!

By Kaitlynn Steele

The Ottawa Children’s Festival de la jeunesse (OCF) is bringing its full festival back to Lebreton Flats Park and beyond! We will have shows from May 19 to 29 at Arts Court and the Canadian War Museum as well as at Lebreton. Tickets are now on sale!

This multi-day, theatrical extravaganza features award-winning artists from around the world, taking the stage to inspire audiences of all ages to ignite their creativity and imagination through thought-provoking performances.

Full details can be found on our website (ottawachildrensfestival.ca). Shows include:

How to Catch a Star

Branar Téatar do Pháistí, Ireland (45 minutes, Ages 4+, non-verbal)

Arts Court Theatre, Arts Court

May 19-23

This adaptation of one of the world’s best-loved children’s books combines puppetry, a magical original score and the award-winning Irish theatre company, Branar. Signature storytelling to remind us all to follow our dreams.

A Story of a House That Turned Into a Dot

Teatret Gruppe 38, Denmark (40 minutes, Ages 8+, English)

Arts Court Theatre, Arts Court

May 26-29

Teatret Gruppe 38 brings their unique storytelling to life with this intimate shadow play about how long the road home is when you run away in anger.

Countries Shaped Like Stars

Di Gaetano and Pearlman, Ontario (45 minutes, Ages 6+, English)

Studio Black Box, Arts Court

May 26-29

In this love story for adults and precocious children, Gwendolyn Magnificent and Bartholomew Spectacular use a tin-can telephone to share their whimsical tale.

The Libravian

Brú Theatre, Ireland (40 minutes, All ages, English)

Courtroom, Arts Court

May 19-23

A one-person tour de force that celebrates the love of reading, the joy of language and the sheer delight of words!

Tweet Tweet!

Femmes du Feu, Ontario (40 minutes, Ages 0-5, English)

Tent 2, LeBreton Flats Park

May 19-23

Two performers take on the roles of young birds, exploring the relationship between babies and their parents in this interactive show. A show for the wee ones!

The original “Machine de Cirque” show, Machine de Cirque

Quebec (90 minutes, All ages, non-verbal)

Tent 1, LeBreton Flats Park

May 19-23

The best in Nouveau Cirque, five acrobats and musicians amaze with their breathtaking and hilarious reckless acts.

La grenouille au fond du puits croit que le ciel est rond (The frog, at the bottom of the well, believes that the sky is round)

Vélo Théâtre, France (75 minutes, Ages 5+, offered in English and French)

Barney Danson Theatre, Canadian War Museum

May 19-23

Vélo’s “memory” play introduces us to a world half forgotten, half remembered, a world of half dreams and half being wide awake, a universal storyteller who takes us by the hand through his world of collected dreams and memories. A story told through objects, light and magic!

Returns Department/Département des retours

Les Soeurs Kif-Kif, Quebec (50 minutes, Ages 5-10, Bilingual French/ English)

Studio Black Box, Arts Court

May 19-23

Combining physical theatre, circus, visual arts and puppetry, this is a playful look behind the scenes of a production line.

The Ottawa Children’s Festival is thrilled to welcome audiences back to in-person events in a safe, familyfriendly environment. In addition to captivating performances, the festival also includes a variety of on-site educational workshops and activities to enhance your visit and make artists out of each and every one of you.

For ticket information, visit ottawachildrensfestival.ca. The festival is proud to offer great discounts for schools, day cares, and any group of 10 or more. For more details, contact our festival coordinator Joni Hamlin at joni@ottawachildrensfestival.ca.

Kaitlynn Steele is the outreach and digital specialist at the Ottawa Children’s Festival (ottawachildrensfestival.ca).

Eleanor Crowder stars in Shakespeare’s Will

A career peak despite the pandemic

Eleanor Crowder, notable Glebite, stars in Shakespeare’s Will at The Gladstone Theatre April 20 to May 7.

PHOTO: ANDREW ALEXANDER

By Rachel Eugster

For theatregoers and theatre makers, the last two years have been a desert. Even down to recurrent mirages of Opening Soon…No, no, cancelled…Shut the theatres! Yet another tantalizing shimmer on the horizon, yet another lockdown. Again!

Well, this time, after three postponements, beloved Ottawa actor and Glebe resident (and Glebe Report volunteer!) Eleanor Crowder is finally able to welcome you to The Gladstone Theatre to enjoy Shakespeare’s Will.

The one-woman play, written in modern English by Canadian playwright Vern Thiessen, offers a marvelous role for an actress in prime form. Anne Hathaway married William Shakespeare, eight years her junior, and then held the fort in Stratford while he built the career we all know about. Anne is not on record like her famous husband, so Thiessen’s imagining invites us to consider her life through a modern lens. A modern feminist lens, in fact.

Who would she be now? Her life too includes pandemic. Plague swept England three times in the Shakespeares’ lifetimes. War loomed: the Armada was defeated off England’s coast (by an apparent act of God) when Anne’s younger kids – twins – were three. Her story of joy, loss and survival makes for vivid theatre and invites comparison to our own lives. How do our tales of crisis and joy add up?

Diana Fajrajsl directs, Bear & Co. produces. The Gladstone remains cautious, requiring vaccine passports and masks, guaranteeing distanced seating. And if, just if, the upswing closes us down again between deadline and press time…well, count yourself invited to celebrate the joys of gutsy resilience just as soon as we can open.

If we can run, Anne Hathaway invites you to wear your Easter bonnet to come celebrate spring and the return of theatre! Or go in for a pound and dress in full Elizabethan regalia for Shakespeare’s birthday on April 23.

The show runs April 20 through May 7. Tickets can be found at thegladstone.ca.

Rachel Eugster is a singer, author, actor and founding member of Bear & Co. and the Dragon’s Tea Trio.

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