Jamaican-Canadian Actor Leads Pulitzer-Winning Drama

Jamaican-Canadian Actor Durae McFarlane Stars in “Primary Trust” in Toronto

By Neil Armstrong

Actor Durae McFarlane is excited to be starring in Eboni Booth’s Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, “Primary Trust”, his first main stage production in Toronto since 2019.

His role as the protagonist, Kenneth — an isolated young man who maintains a regular routine which includes having a regular end of week drink with his imaginary best friend Burt — received rave reviews when the play was staged at the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario, earlier this year.

For years, Kenneth has found solace in the mundane routine of his daily life — days spent working at a local bookshop, evenings spent nursing a single mai tai at his favourite bar. But when the shop closes and he suddenly finds himself without a job, his carefully ordered world is upended. With nothing left to anchor him, Kenneth must step beyond the quiet life he’s built and confront the fears, dreams, and unspoken grief that have kept him at a standstill, notes a synopsis.

It further states that with warmth and delicate humour, Booth crafts an affirming and tender portrait of a man standing at the brink of profound change. The play won the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and is a poignant meditation on connection and the courage it takes to transform your life.

McFarlane, 29, a queer Jamaican-Canadian writer, is a Dora-nominated actor who graduated from the University of Windsor’s BFA Acting Program, and was named a breakthrough artist by Now Magazine in 2019.

“I think in some ways acting chose me. My experience of being on stage was in elementary school, in grade 1 or 2. I remembered being on stage and it feeling so exciting and electrifying,” says McFarlane who was a very shy kid but his anxieties faded away when acting.

This prompted him to pursue theatre in school and afterschool programs, and he kept going until he did Annie Baker’s play, “The Flick,” upon graduating from theatre school in 2019. His performance was nominated for a Dora Award.

Embodying the character Kenneth meant having a lot of respect and empathy for him, said MacFarlane, noting that having done enough therapy himself he understood the circumstances that shaped Kenneth.

He enjoys working with Peter N. Bailey, who plays Burt, describing him as a fantastic actor and artist.  The other members of the cast are Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, Ryan Hollyman, and Danilo Reyes.

McFarlane says he feels privileged and lucky to take on the role of Kenneth and he hopes that audiences love the play which is a great story.

Underscoring that Kenneth’s story is relatable, he said many individuals have gone through things that made them fearful and difficult to trust other people. But for McFarlane, the story is also about community and being kind to one another.

McFarlane was also a part of Cahoots Theatre’s Hot House Playwrights Unit, 2021, and his recent credits include: “Jane,” Greenhouse Festival/Tarragon Theatre; “The Foot Doctor,” Choripán Theatre; “Sincerely, Sincerity,” Stage Reading; Obsidian Theatre; “Lone Island Lovers,” Common Boots Theatre; and “The Flick,” Outside the March & Crow’s Theatre.

The Crow’s Theatre and the Grand Theatre co-production is directed by Cherissa Richards and runs at the Guloien Theatre from May 26 – June 21.

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