Hard Ice Cream and Gas aboard the ship
by Janna Graham, Truro Daily NewsThe MacGregor’s corner store sells hard ice cream and gas, but it’s never sold a drop of gas. In the dead of a Saskatchewan winter, ice cream isn’t exactly breaking sales records either.
In the opening scene of Hard Ice Cream and Gas, the latest play at Parrsboro’s Ship’s Company Theatre, Jack MacGregor steals his father’s casket from a two-day wake. To keep the dead man’s body comfortable, he packs buckets of the family’s specialty hard ice cream inside the coffin.
From here, the plot makes surprising turns in a small-town tale about the delicate balance between family dynamic and demon.
The set design is eerie and ambitious. Steel railroad tracks run through the middle of the stage, representing the train that goes through town, yet never stops. Another section of rail line leaps up into a blue sky to symbolize, presumably, a possible escape. Columns of ice and soft snow on the ground bring a chill to the playhouse and frame the interior of the house, which is always too cold.
Far from a light, slapstick comedy, the play is tinged with dark humour and bitter irony. The writing is moving and imaginative; the plot narrative weaves a seamless stitch between past and present where family members, Jack, his older brother Fred, middle sister Missy and Mom struggle to deal with their own expectations of life against the cards they were dealt.
Nathan Pilon makes his professional acting debut as Jack, a man caught in childhood-adult limbo.
His youthful optimism and manic character make for a touching performance, though he shines brightest in the second half of the play.
Charlie Rhindress gives a consistently stellar performance as Fred, the straight and narrow accordion playing eldest son.
Ship’s veteran actor, Gaye Hauser, anchors the show with a graceful portrayal of a mother who silently washes dishes, desperate for attention and adventure.
Her daughter, Missy, played by Natasha MacLellan, ran away only to return two decades later, 10 months pregnant. MacLellan’s wry wit and typical teenaged sarcasm bring lightness to an otherwise heavy home atmosphere.
Although the first half is slow at times, the second half has enough quirky and bracing moments to carry the show.
Director Pamela Halstead has successfully brought the world premiere of this complex and beautiful story to stage on the ship.
In his notes, P.E.I native playwright Daniel MacDonald writes: “Minus 40 on the prairie seems like a far cry from a summer’s day in Nova Scotia, but no matter where we are, the land, the climate, and our sense of place at times makes us do strange things.”
