Mouthpiece (play)

Last updated
Mouthpiece
Written by
  • Norah Sadava
  • Amy Nostbakken
Date premieredApril 17, 2015 (2015-04-17)
Place premiered The Theatre Centre

Mouthpiece is a 2015 Canadian feminist play by Norah Sadava and Amy Nostbakken of Quote Unquote Collective.

Contents

Development

Nostbakken and Sadava began working on the play in 2013. [1] The play received dramaturgy from Orian Michaeli and features music composed by Nostbakken. [2]

The script was later published by Coach House Books in Canada with an introduction from Michele Landsberg. [2] It has also been published by Oberon Press in the UK and Mitos Boyut in Turkey. It has been translated into Spanish, French, Romanian, Albanian and Turkish.

Plot

Mouthpiece is a two-person play in which both actors play the same character, Cassandra. Cassandra is a writer who finds out her mother has just died and must deal with preparations for the funeral. She must write the eulogy but finds she has lost the ability to speak. [3] The play takes place in a span of twenty-four hours and is set in present-day Toronto. [4] [5]

Performance history

Mouthpiece premiered in 2015 at The Theatre Centre in Toronto starring Sadava and Nostbakken and directed by Nostbakken. [6] In 2016, the production was staged by Nightwood Theatre as part of a double bill. [7] In 2017, Jodie Foster brought Quote Unquote to Los Angeles to performa a two show run of Mouthpiece. Foster first saw the play in Toronto. [8] Also in 2017, they performed the play at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. [9] In 2018, 2b Theatre brought Quote Unquote Collective and Mouthpiece to Nova Scotia. It was performed at Alderney Landing in Dartmouth. Sadava said that this performance would be the last time she and Nostbakken would perform the play in Canada. [10]

Awards

YearAwardCategoryResultNotesRef.
2015 Dora Mavor Moore Awards - Independent TheatreOutstanding Performance by an EnsembleWon [11]
Outstanding Sound Design/CompositionWonfor composer Amy Nostbakken and sound designer James Bunton
Outstanding ProductionNominated
Outstanding New PlayNominated
Outstanding DirectionNominatedfor Amy Nostbakken
Outstanding Lighting DesignNominatedfor lighting designer Andre Du Toit
2016Capital Critics Circle Award (Ottawa)Best Professional ProductionNominated [12]
My Entertainment AwardsOutstanding ProductionNominated [13]
Outstanding ActressNominated
Outstanding Lighting & Sound composition & DesignNominatedfor Andre Du Toit, Amy Nostbakken and James Bunton
2017Toronto Theatre Critics AwardsBest New Canadian PlayWon [14]
Dora Mavor Moore Awards - GeneralOutstanding ProductionNominated [11]
Outstanding Performance - EnsembleNominated
Outstanding Sound Design/CompositionWonfor composer Amy Nostbakken and sound designer James Bunton
Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award n/aNominated [13]
Summerhall Jawbone Award (Edinburgh Fringe)n/aWon [11]
The Stage Awards Performance at the Edinburgh Fringe FestivalWon
2019 Merritt Awards Outstanding PresentationWon [15]

Adaptation

In 2018, Mouthpiece was adapted into a film starring Sadava and Nostbakken and directed by Patricia Rozema. [4] In 2025 the Spanish translation and adaptation was staged in Mexico City at Foro Lucerna and Sala Xavier Villaurrutia, produced by El Ingenio Del Caldero.

References

  1. ↑ Indy Staff (2019-01-15). "Norah Sadava and Amy Nostbakken's 'Mouthpiece'". The Santa Barbara Independent. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  2. 1 2 "'Mouthpiece', the play actor Jodie Foster calls unforgettable, comes to Peterborough". kawarthaNOW. 2018-01-30. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  3. ↑ Gardner, Lyn (2017-08-16). "Mouthpiece review – bathtub drama pulls the plug on everyday sexism". The Guardian. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  4. 1 2 Hopten, Alice (2019-06-15). "Canadian film director Patricia Rozema takes a chance adapting experimental play". CBC News. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
  5. ↑ Nestruck, J. Kelly (2016-10-26). "Mouthpiece is entertaining and unique on the politics of women's voices". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  6. ↑ Kaplan, Jon (2015-04-22). "Review: Mouthpiece". NOW Magazine. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  7. ↑ Hoile, Christopher (2016-10-24). "Review - Mouthpiece". www.stage-door.com. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  8. ↑ Wolfe, April (2017-06-09). "Jodie Foster Liked This Canadian Play So Much She Brought It To LA". LA Weekly. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
  9. ↑ "Mouthpiece review, Canada Hub, King's Hall, Edinburgh, 2017". The Stage. 2017-08-20. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  10. ↑ Thorne, Tara (2018-11-15). "Mouthpiece's brain matter". The Coast Halifax. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  11. 1 2 3 "Mouthpiece: She finds her voice at Peterborough's Market Hall, presented by Public Energy". Peterborough Examiner. 2018-02-16. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  12. ↑ Langston, Patrick (2016-10-12). "Nominees announced for Capital Critics Circle Award". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  13. 1 2 "MOUTHPIECE". Quote Unquote Collective. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  14. ↑ Fisher, Steve (2017-05-25). "The Winners From The 2017 Toronto Theatre Critics Awards". Torontoist. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
  15. ↑ Thorne, Tara (2019-03-26). "Here are your 2019 Merritt Award winners". The Coast Halifax. Retrieved 2020-07-31.
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