What are we really hungry for? That’s the burning question at the heart of Feast, the latest work from acclaimed playwright Guillermo Verdecchia (Fronteras Americanas), opening at Tarragon Theatre on April 9. Directed by the visionary Soheil Parsa in his Tarragon debut, Feast is a biting, darkly comic reflection on privilege, consumption, and the existential hunger that seems to define modern life.
With a cast stacked with Toronto theatre royalty—Rick Roberts (The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?), Tamsin Kelsey (The Other Place), Veronica Hortiguela (MONKS), and Tawiah M’Carthy (Fat Ham)—the play follows Mark, a world-traveling businessman who indulges in the most extreme of culinary experiences: rare and endangered delicacies. But while he consumes, his world unravels. His wife builds walls, his daughter quits school to fight climate change, and his son disappears entirely. Set against a backdrop of environmental and societal collapse, Feast serves up biting social commentary with a side of absurdity.
Ahead of the production’s Toronto premiere, I spoke with Verdecchia about balancing humor with gravity, working with an all-star creative team, and what Feast ultimately asks of its audience.
On Finding Humor in Existential Dread
“Yes, I think there is a streak of dark comedy throughout the play,” Verdecchia says. “I don’t consciously try to leaven what I’m writing with humor—it just arises as part of my response to whatever I’m thinking about. One response to the void, to the indifference of the universe, to life’s absurdity, is laughter.”
He references Chaplin’s famous quote: “Life is a tragedy in close-up but a comedy in a long shot.” For Verdecchia, Feast moves fluidly between those perspectives—sometimes zooming in on personal pain, sometimes pulling back to reveal the absurdity of our struggles.
A Stacked Creative Team & the Power of Simplicity
When asked about working with an ensemble of Toronto theatre heavyweights, Verdecchia is quick to defer to Parsa. “It certainly is a great cast and creative team. I feel very lucky to have them all working on this piece.”
On Parsa’s directorial vision, he elaborates: “I’ve admired Soheil’s work for years, and what I love about him is how ‘simple’ his work is. Of course, that simplicity requires a tremendous amount of skill and effort. His theatre is visual, sculptural, multi-sensorial. He understands that theatre isn’t just narrative—it’s poetry in motion.”
Consumption, Privilege, and the Search for More
At its core, Feast interrogates the human need for more—more experiences, more power, more satisfaction. “Mark is looking for something quite particular through his pursuit,” Verdecchia explains. “But he’s not alone. Every character in Feast is restless, dissatisfied, and driven by forces larger than themselves. The youngest character, Isabel, is the only one who really unpacks our restlessness and asks, ‘What is this hunger for more really about?’”
The Conversation After the Curtain Falls
So what does Verdecchia hope audiences walk away discussing? “I hope Feast captures something they might be feeling—that it acts as an irritant to consciousness, like the grain of sand in an oyster’s gut,” he muses, quoting playwright Howard Barker. “That interaction between the audience’s reflection and the play—that’s where something valuable, something beautiful, might emerge.”
Don’t Miss Feast
📅 Dates: April 9 (opening night) – 27, 2025
📍 Location: Tarragon Theatre, Mainspace (30 Bridgman Ave, Toronto)
🎟 Tickets: $15 – $72 | Available at www.tarragontheatre.com or by calling 416-531-1827
With a powerhouse creative team and a script that cuts deep while making you laugh, Feast is sure to be one of Toronto’s most thought-provoking theatrical events of the season. Will you leave satisfied, or hungrier than ever?
Cover photo featuring Rick Roberts by Roya DelSol
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