Review: (Toronto) Threads (Fringe)

A Story Well Told
by Lisa McKeown
@lisammckeown

This one-woman show written and performed by Tonya Jone Miller is based on the true story of her mother’s time in Vietnam during the war. Opening night, Miller was already playing to a packed house, and just a few minutes into the performance I understood why. This show is definitely a gem of the festival – beautifully written and acted by Miller, both narrating and playing the various characters in her mother’s journey from Indiana around America, and then to Vietnam where the majority of the story takes place. The timeline is broken, though fairly easy to follow, much like when you meet someone for the first time and they tell you a story, but need to backtrack to give context, jump back to the story, then back to context. Indeed, this story is incredibly human from the content to the acting – Miller doesn’t need a set beyond her red suitcase, because the audience sees what she sees, hears what she hears, feels what she feels. She manages to evoke various atmospheres effortlessly, leaving the audience laughing, weeping, and leaping to their feet at the end. A definite must-see! 

Threads is at the Toronto Fringe