Review: COPENHAGEN Haunts The Walterdale Theatre

Copenhagen, 1941. Nobel Prize-winning physicist Niels Bohr and his wife, Margrethe, tentatively receive a German guest. Tension sparks from the moment Werner Heisenberg strolls through the door and escalates throughout the evening as the men debate the ethics and implications of nuclear warfare.

Written by Michael Frayn, Copenhagen premiered at London's Cottesloe Theatre in 1998 and went on to play at Broadway's Royale Theatre in 2000. It subsequently won 3 Tony Awards including Best Play and received a 2002 BBC film adaptation. Now playing at Edmonton's Walterdale Theatre, it is a passion project for director Martin Stout and a tremendous undertaking for the talented cast and crew.

Bob Klakowich dons Niels Bohr's stoic persona, shifting between exasperation and fatherly concern towards his younger counterpart. As Heisenberg, Kendrick Sims captures both the zeal of a passionate scientist and a boyish vulnerability as he asserts his arguments with a Sheldon Cooper-like fervor. Despite Heisenberg's own accolades, he exudes a subdued effort to gain his mentor's approval. Caught in the emotional crossfire is Bohr's wife, Margrethe (Donna Call), whose razor-sharp wit lends moments of lightness. Together, the trio disappear into these challenging roles, making it easy to forget that they are not the real people themselves.

The production's sense of foreboding is further amplified by Leland Stelck's set and Adam Luijkx's lighting designs. Two chairs occupy the stage on either side of the floor's large colourful rendering of Niels Bohr's nuclear model and backed by 1940s esque props including Nordic travel posters and Van de Graaf generators. Though scene transitions are occasionally fuzzy, Copenhagen's non-linear storytelling and character's soliloquies add additional depth to the tense narrative. Despite imagining the past, the play's wartime descriptions eerily mirror those of current events and give additional resonance to Heisenberg's musing that we all sometimes need help from our friends. As director Martin Stout says, Copenhagen demands that audiences pay attention and consider the responsibilities of their own actions while still finding a voice for themselves.

Copenhagen plays at Edmonton's Walterdale Theatre until March 19. Masks and proof of vaccination are requested of all audience members.

Image: Poster design by Glenn Cook

To post a comment, you must register and login.