Tracey Nepinak as Yaga (no attribution available)

I saw the Belfry Theatre production of Yaga by Kat Sandler this week. Sandler’s plays are always comic and smart, and this one follows that pattern. Rooted in the traditional beliefs around the myth of Baba Yaga, a witchy character in Ukrainian and Russian folklore who may or may not eat children, grinding their bones into soup broth. In this modern version, Yaga is a university professor with an aged mother and young daughter. She gets involved with a young man named Henry Yalles (Nicholas Nahwegahbow) who goes missing and later turns up dead. The case is being examined by a private investigator named Rapp (also played by Nicholas Nahwegahbow) who works on the case alongside a police detective named Carson (Anastasiia Ziurkalova) who gets romantically involved with Rapp, while having her own hidden priorities. Throughout the play, we travel along parallel lines, learning about the mythology of Baba Yaga as we meet a range of characters, including a local waitress at the diner, her daughter who has allegedly been raped by Henry, and others. This can get a bit complicated as the play continues, especially as the three actors have to carry out numerous costume and set changes that can feel a bit fussy across the 2.5 hour long play.

The three actors are appealing, in particular Nepinak and Nahwegahbow, and the set design by Stephanie Bahniuk is effective, although I felt that the curved upstage part was underused. Director Jani Lauzon has a good handle on things, but the over-busyness, too many quick changes all in view of the audience, proved distracting (at least for me). The play culminates in a scene where Rapp has to fight for his life against Yaga and her daughter, using his knowledge of the Yaga myth to (spoiler alert!) save his life. Overall, this was a pleasant evening at the theatre, although I don’t see this particular Sandler play standing the test of time, as it skates across the surface of things, rather than digging a bit more deeply, and dramatically, into the lives of these characters. Runs until October 8th with tickets available online at https://www.belfry.bc.ca/yaga/ or calling the box office at 250-385-6815.