Tiger Bride; which opened at Soulpepper on Tuesday is an adaptation of one of the stories in Angela Carter’s collection The Bloody Chamber. All of the stories take traditional folk tales but twist them to give the female protagonist a great deal more agency than in the original. The Tiger’s Bride, on which Tiger Bride is based, is in its turn a version of Beauty and the Beast and the adaptation, by Frank Cox-O’Connell (who also directs), Hailey Gillis and Andrew Penner has turned it into a sort of eclectic rock musical.

A Russian daughter and her father; clearly of upper class origins, are journeying South after the father has gambled away the family fortune. In a small town somewhere on the railway line the Father is enticed into one last card game against the Master; an enigmatic masked creature,, supported by his Valet. The Father (of course) loses everything including his daughter. At first the Master seems only interested in seeing the Girl naked but complications ensue (not least her refusal) and a strange series of rituals involving the characters and various animated puppet/dolls, all choreographed by the Valet, play out. The true nature of the Master is revealed and the Girl makes her choice; a perhaps surprising one.

It’s very energetic. The rock music (mostly played and sung by the actors) adds a kind of pulsing energy to a story that has enough twists to keep us engaged. The staging (sets and costumes by Shannon Lea Doyle) allows for entrances and exits in surprising ways and it’s backed up by a spectacular lighting plot (Frank Donato) that also facilitates equally surprising appearances and disappearances. With sound design by Brian Kenny and the enigmatic songs created by the adapters it all combines into a sort of fever dream about love, power, desire, sex and much more. It’s pretty compelling.

The cast is first rate. Hailey Gillis plays the Girl and demonstrates yet again what a versatile actor/singer/musician she is. The sheer energy of her performance is remarkable but underneath it is something quite disturbing. Cat-like perhaps? Andrew Penner plays the Father as a sort of happy go lucky addict but really comes into his own as a truly weird and frightening masked Master. Lyndon Doak is interesting as the Valet. At times he seems entirely likeable and harmless but there’s always an edge. He’s almost a Puck like figure; always ready to do his master’s bidding but with a mischievous twist. All three show great versatility; acting, singing, playing assorted guitars and keyboards and some fairly complex percussion. Musically it’s not really the sort of thing I would listen to on its own but in the context it works really well. In short, the whole is much more than the sum of the parts and that whole is weird, compelling and great theatre.

Tiger Bride continues at the Young Centre until June 21st.

Photo credits: Dahlia Katz