Socially, you know it is going to be awkward. Tom has travelled miles for the funeral of his boyfriend who has died much too young. Deep in the countryside, Ágatha, the bereaved mother, has never heard of Tom and knows nothing of her son’s sexuality. Tom wants to grieve but, out of respect, cannot give voice to his true emotions – not least because the dead man’s brutish brother, Francis, is determined to keep Ágatha in untroubled ignorance.
The social awkwardness is part of Michel Marc Bouchard’s play, first seen in Montreal in 2011 and later adapted for the screen. What director Rodrigo Portella adds to this spellbinding production for Cena Brasil Internacional is a fierce physical awkwardness.
