Review: AT DEATH'S DOOR at the Ottawa Fringe Festival

What happens if you die, but you are not quite ready to face judgment? What are your options? Can you choose to hover at Death’s door, never crossing the threshold? How long will Death let you linger?

At Death’s Door, created and produced by Vivid Strokes Collective, imagines the world between life and death. A young woman (Andrea Romero Cartas) is waiting at a bus stop when a stranger (Meadow Agar) approaches and engages her in conversation. The stranger asks what the woman is waiting for. The woman replies that she is waiting for the bus, as she is going to a family gathering at her sister’s place. Through ongoing discussion with the stranger, the woman is forced to reconcile with the fact that the bus will never come, and she must choose whether to keep waiting in the void or to continue on a different journey with the stranger.

The simple set works really well to create a desolate atmosphere, as well as to keep the audience’s attention on the actors. There are a lot of non-verbal movements and sideways glances that add to the feeling of discomfort and melancholy.

At Death’s Door’s producer/director, Mariana Gómez, is from Mexico and Mexican symbolism figures heavily into the show’s narrative, especially the importance of family and traditions taking place around el día de los muertos, or the Day of the Dead. Some of the dialogue is in Spanish, but it is simultaneously translated into English by the actors so knowledge of Spanish is not required.

I highly recommend this show; the artists have created a moving piece of theatre. There were only three people in the audience when I saw the show; I know that there are a lot of shows to choose from during the Ottawa Fringe Festival, but At Death’s Door really deserves a much wider audience. The actors are fantastic, the story is compelling, and the conclusion is satisfactory, despite the play’s short run time.

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