Play explores complexities
of human emotions

Conversations about community, queerness and the subconscious in Infinithéâtre’s Sinkhole

By Mai DaSilva

February 6, 2025

During a remarkably hot summertime in Montreal, a sinkhole forms, and a resident in a neighbourhood goes missing. Premiering this past January, this beautiful intergenerational story, Sinkhole (or Six Ways to Disappear) by Adjani Poirier, tells the stories of everyday people within queer and racialized communities coming together and what happens when the feelings they try to ignore find their way to the surface.

Directed by Keith Fernandez, the feature production of Infinithéâtre’s 2024-2025 theatrical season had consistently passionate crowds bustling into Théâtre La Chapelle to see the action until February 1.

The piece follows a restless teenager, Benita, and her neighbours, as one of the members of their apartment complex, Elsie, goes missing. Benita attempts to do whatever she can to control the uncontrollable, as her neighbours find other ways to occupy their minds.

Throughout the story, these six neighbours combat their subconscious dreams and fears in their way, just as those feelings make their way to the surface. Alongside other eager spectators and creatives, I had the privilege of seeing the production’s public preview on January 20.

… Adjani Poirier, has an innate understanding of how to express the complexities of human emotions, allowing for remarkably relatable moments throughout the piece.

One of the first things I noticed about this world-premiere production was how nuanced and well-developed the characters are. The playwright, Adjani Poirier, has an innate understanding of how to express the complexities of human emotions, allowing for remarkably relatable moments throughout the piece.

The use of magical realism within this play was captivating; it was the first of many things that submerged me into the world of this performance. Sinkhole plays with both reality and fantasy and throughout the play, there are moments of pure contrast between the two and others where they blend.

Alyssa Angelucci-Wall, who played Benita, beautifully portrayed her character’s curious nature and constant need to do more. Concerned for her mentor and friend Elsie, the only thing that seemed natural to Benita was to try to find the cause. Angelucci-Wall’s portrayal of this inquisitive personality felt very natural, capturing the naive interest in the world you usually only see in a younger teen.

Unfortunately, in a lot of fiction, the childlike wonder that lingers at fourteen years old is often lost with frequent depictions of teen angst, while Angelucci-Wall’s portrayal of Benita shows a deep understanding of this feeling. She did a wonderful job keeping this fascination with the world at the forefront of her character, especially as this character is grappling with the disappearance of her mentor and friend.

Roo, portrayed by Alexandra Laferrière, is another performance I felt connected to. Roo, a queer woman, is too afraid to leave the comfort of her heterosexual marriage to love Elsie, the person she truly loves, and then feels like she’s the one to blame when things go south. Roo is constantly in conflict with her mind and dreams – it’s as if the audience could see the thoughts running through Roo’s head in real-time. Laferrière portrayed this character with such attention to those details, giving a convincing, lifelike performance.

‘[Alyssa Angelucci-Wall] did a wonderful job keeping this fascination with the world at the forefront of her character, especially as this character is grappling with the disappearance of her mentor and friend.’

The chemistry of the entire cast emphasized the sense of community these neighbours built together. Within this marginalized group of people, who admittedly know that their government doesn’t care about them as much as they do others, they find solace in each other’s company. No matter their ages or genders, their relationships with one another demonstrated the beauty of caring for others and having trust in one another.

Théâtre La Chapelle is a very intimate space, allowing theatrical experiences to foster a profoundly personal experience and Sinkhole was a perfect example of this; with the collaboration of Keith Fernandez’s direction, Bruno-Pierre Houle’s set design, and the collective effort of the performers, the production felt naturally immersive.

While the space onstage at La Chapelle may seem smaller at first glance, the design team maximized it in a way that made the story feel more potent, as if we were a part of the characters’ journey through their minds. Possibly my favourite thing about the environment is the way the sinkhole expanded. We witnessed a gap between two curtains growing and the lighting forming cracks on the surface.

Once they entered the sinkhole, the curtains dropped, and the characters left behind the flat yellow-tinted curtains and entered this dreamlike iridescent world. The contrast between these two designs was a simple change, yet one that helped drive the message along and bridge the gap between the fantastical and the real world making each distinct.

Sinkhole was a strong production. For days after seeing it, I kept asking myself more questions and reflecting on minor details because I was so enthralled by the ideas in it. I left beyond fulfilled, feeling a deeper understanding of my own communities and the fears I hid from myself. While the curtains may be closed, the production’s thought-provoking ideas and designs and beautifully nuanced performances will leave people wishing for more.

Images: David C Wong

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Mai DaSilva is an up-and-coming multidisciplinary artist based outside Montreal. She has performed in various plays and independently produced several of her scripts. Currently a theatre student at John Abbott College, Mai is ecstatic to delve deeper into the world of Montreal theatre.