WINE IN THE WILDERNESS – REVIEW OF 2026 PRODUCTION AT BERKELEY ST. THEATRE

Reviewed by James Karas 

Wine in the Wilderness is an intelligent and nuanced play by Alice Childress (1916-1994) that takes place in Harlem, New York during a riot in the summer of 1964. Canadian Stage gives this 1969 play a redoubtable production directed by Jordan Laffrenier with an exceptional cast.

Bill (Mazin Elsadig) is a painter in Harlem working on a triptych, three panels hinged together representing the life of Blacks. His friend Oldtimer (Andrew Moodie) barges into his apartment carrying goods that he stole during the riot. Bill’s friend Sonny-Man (Jamar Adams-Thompson) arrives with his wife Cynthia (L.A. Sweeney). They are accompanied by a woman called Tommy (Virgilia Griffith) who is the catalyst for the examination of the lives of Blacks in general. All of them are Black.  

Our attention is focused on Griffith’s Tommy. She is a poorly educated factory worker whose house was burned during the riot. The violent events taking place outside form the backdrop of the play. Tommy was brought to Bill’s apartment to be a model for the third triptych, a portrait of the downtrodden, the ugly side of the life of Blacks. She believed that Bill would paint a flattering picture of her, even the Queen of the Universe. She is shocked and furious and strikes back at their hypocrisy and middle-class blindness. She calls them “niggers” with relentless vigour and forces these educated people to open their eyes to their perception of blacks now and in history. Griffiths gives a sympathetic and powerful performance.

Scene from Wine in the Wilderness. Photo: Dahlia Katz

Moodie’s character Oldtimer is a pathetic alcoholic but he is a decent person and provides most of the humour of the play. He stands apart from the rest and is a survivor and Moodie gives a stellar performance.

Bill the painter, Sonny-Man the writer and Cynthia the social worker have no perception or real contact or awareness of the lower-class Blacks. Bill’s triptych is a figment of his  intellectual imagination, a myth, without any connection to real people. Elsadig, Adams-Thompson and Sweeney give nuanced and intelligent performances in their respective roles and it is up to Tommy to bring them down to reality.

The play examines the life of Blacks including references to historical figures with perceptiveness and brilliance. It reaches levels of poetic lyricism that hit you in the face and scream “wake up.”

The cast of Wine in the Wildwerness. Photo: Dahlia Katz

The set by Scott Penner consists of the interior of an apartment divided in three areas. There is Bill’s  working area with easels and samples of his work, a seating area in the middle and a kitchen on the right. The place looks dishevelled because Bill is working on renovating it.

Director Laffreiner has a huge job of representing the subtleties of a complex play that appears simple on the surface. He accomplished fine pacing and obtained the fine performances that make Childress’s play a superb night at the theatre.    

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Wine in the Wilderness by Alice Childress in a production by Canadian Stage, ran until October 11, 2026, at the Berkeley St. Theatre, 26 Berkeley St.  Toronto, Ont.  https://www.canadianstage.com/

James Karas is the Culture editor of The Greek Press, Toronto