Night Journey

Stephen Low's NN review of Night Journey from NEXT Magazine.

The playwright and cast were aiming for one of those cosy group of misfits coming together and learning about themselves and others type of narratives, but this one just couldn't come together.

Characters were pretty flat and stereotypical and none of the attempted emotional beats were earned. The attempted dramatic climax was weak and felt less impactful than your standard real-life student politics drama.

Some competent to well-done acting from a few of the performers who were able to wring out some life and interest from what they were given, but none of them were helped by limp writing and characterization.

I first heard about this play during Doors Open at the Arts and Letters Club, and the premise immediately caught my attention, particularly with the new movie adaptation coming out soon.

Unfortunately, the play never really lived up to that promise. For a story dealing with such timely themes, it felt surprisingly disconnected from today's conversations.

Even when I was in school many years ago, teachers were encouraged to show how classical texts remained relevant to modern life. I also found it difficult to believe that a right-wing podcaster would dismiss the classics so readily, especially given how often that perspective embraces the traditional canon. Whether that was an issue with the writing or the performance, I'm not sure.

There were, however, several excellent performances. Thomas Gough, as Professor Zuke, was particularly convincing. His accent, pacing, and thoughtful line delivery felt completely authentic. Brynn Bonne also impressed me as Ashley. She brought warmth and sincerity to dialogue that wouldn’t have sounded natural to an inexperienced performer, and she remained fully engaged throughout, whether in quiet moments or more emotional scenes.

The rest of the cast was generally strong, although there were occasional pacing issues. One actor sometimes seemed more concerned with "performing" than inhabiting the character. My biggest disappointment was a supporting actor who consistently projected his lines to the audience instead of the characters beside him and, unless I misheard, even referred to the professor by his own character's name.

As for the production itself, I felt Gregory Light's writing was stronger than his direction. The frequent blackouts became repetitive, and the scene changes felt awkward. Because the music didn't begin until after the lights went down, the audience mainly heard shuffling feet and moving furniture. Better integration of music into the transitions would have made them much smoother.

Overall, Night Journey has the foundation of a good play. With more imaginative direction and a more consistently matched cast, I think it has the potential to become something quite special beyond the Fringe.

I went into Night Journey expecting a fairly dry retelling of The Odyssey. Instead, I found myself genuinely intrigued.

What surprised me most wasn't the source material, but how invested I became in the relationships that developed within the classroom setting. The rapport between the characters felt natural and compelling, and I found myself increasingly drawn into their dynamics as the play unfolded. The performances across the cast were consistently strong, with particularly engaging work from Zuke, Ash, and Joan, all of whom brought authenticity and nuance to their roles.

Unfortunately, the production took a dramatic turn for the worse when Carla entered. The performance felt noticeably underprepared—lines appeared to be read directly from a script, there were frequent stumbles, and much of the dialogue was delivered while facing away from the audience. It completely broke the immersion the rest of the cast had worked so hard to build.

I appreciate that Fringe is a space for experimentation and emerging artists, and I think audiences generally come with that understanding. But there's a difference between taking creative risks and appearing unprepared. In this case, it came across as unprofessional and ultimately undermined what had been a surprisingly engaging production.

It's disappointing because Night Journey had all the ingredients to be a memorable Fringe show. For some of its runtime, it certainly was.

So interesting to learn the stories of the 4 adult learners. The professor also changed his teaching style for the better, but I'm not sure it was self-motivated - rather, inertia.

The pacing was slow, and the first half absolutely crawled. (It was 1 1/2 hours long, when it should have been closer to 45 minutes to an hour.) The script felt somewhat uninspired and plodding, despite the promising synopsis. And while the acting was okay, one male actor in particular really overdid it, especially compared to the low-key performances of the rest of the cast. Also, the subplot involving the podcaster felt very out of place and somewhat bizarre. Getting a chance to peruse the amazing collection of Canadian art inside the Arts & Letters Club was great, though.

night Journey is great. well rehearsed, strong actors, great set and script the monologues are wonderfull, which everyone had one. one negative is there are way too many blackouts and totally unnessesary with music to lengthen the blackouts to silliness. could easily be reworked and possibly less stage stuff so the flow of movement is a bit easier in the dark. really lovely venue

So worthwhile and needed in these days. Making liberal arts relevant. The right-wing influencer could have been more focused. Could have been smoother technically--not the best stage.

A promising story and some briefly effective moments between characters, but the whole thing is dragged down by clunky transitions and ploddingly slow pacing of dialogue (you could drive a truck through some of those pauses).

I never really felt fully connected with the characters, partly because the show is staged on a traditional proscenium stage elevated above the audience which creates distance. A far more effective staging would be to perform this play in the round, so the audience feels part of the action (immersed in the seminar).

Finally, the play needs some major dramaturgy, e.g., advancing the story of the professor’s personal life to earlier in the play (we don’t learn anything about this character until very late).

The premise, four unlikely students encountering The Odyssey, is a promising one but the play fails to deliver despite some strong performances.

See full review at link

Thought-provoking script with skillful staging, casting, and acting, presented in a historic venue - performances are understandably selling out.

Night Journey is a beautiful play about the life trajectories of students of various ages who come together in a college building basement to read and talk about Homer's Odyssey under the guidance of an aging classicist professor. They form friendships in the process and learn from each other as they absorb the lessons of Odysseus' 10-year voyage home to Ithaca. Well written, directed and acted. Highly empathetic characters. Not to be missed! -Philip Jessup

Night Journey is theatre at its best: beautifully written, subtly directed, and brought to life through excellent acting and sharply defined characters. As the story unfolds, we are drawn deeper into the lives of people who are marginalized, flawed, and carrying heavy emotional baggage — and, almost without noticing, we begin to care for them. The backdrop of The Odyssey gives the characters a way to  think and grow. There is also a proper villain, providing just enough contrast to make us truly root for these imperfect, struggling classmates and their professor. The direction is understated and intelligent, allowing us to understand complex relationships without being explicitly told what to think. A true gem. Highly recommended.

Night Journey is a world class play. It is funny and serious and an excellent reflection of our times.

Even if you haven’t read the Odyssey, you know the legend: the ten year journey of Odysseus in his quest to find his way back home after the Trojan wars. Night Journey, staged at the Arts and Letters Club, is a moving depiction of each character’s personal journey through a night class studying the Odyssey. Sympathetically guided by their ‘prof’, each character finds a new understanding of their own life and compassion for their fellow students and teacher.

This is a well acted, carefully staged play with original music that is well worth your journey to the Arts and Letters Club. This Fringe play affords the special opportunity to explore the Arts and Letters Club, a legend in its own right. Founded by members of the Group of Seven it is a legend in the arts community in Toronto. Come early to explore the heritage building and stay late to share drinks with the play writes and actors.

experience that will keep yoThis is one of the best fringe plays i have seen in a long time. Well written, interesting and timless story of life's journey. I would have liked to hear more about Ulysses ' dilemma but perhaps not everyone shares this preference. The play was also very well acted. With perhaps one exception of a side role, all very professional actors. Perhaps the director shouldn't worry so much about changing costumes and tighten scene pauses. But overall, an enjoyable u thinking well beyond the performance. This belongs to a main theater. Karin