In Seven Days, written by Jordi Mand is on now at the Grand Theatre. Co-produced with the Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company, this 90-minute show has no inter- mission, and attendees can expect a comedy filled with a variety of emotion. Performing until March 2, this production focuses on that time that we all fear, the time to say goodbye to our loved ones. As the cast takes the Spriet Stage at The Grand, emotions and heart strings are pulled after actress Shaina Silver-Baird (Rachel), realizes that she has much more to worry about than whether she’s brought the right bagels back for her stepmother or not.

This production has quite an interesting backstory to it and really goes to show how paths can truly cross again. Mand’s father had a childhood friend with whom he lost touch after one of them decided to go to university out of town. Funny how things work out, as years went by, and they got the opportunity to rekindle their friendship. After Mand’s parents moved to London and joined a synagogue where her father’s friend also happened to go to, the two friends shared a few get-togethers and it was like “no time had passed,” according to Mand. Unfortunately, the

friend of her father was not in great health and had qualified for medically assisted death.

“In Judaism, medical stuff is really problematic,” Mand said.

After seeing the process of how this all took place, it started to create questions in her head such as, “What if my father was ill enough and qual- ified for medically assisted death?” and, “What would the people in my life be like?” and, “What would I be like?”

Those questions sparked the imagination of a play for Mand, and thus, In Seven Days.

Ron Lea, who plays the character of Samuel, explained that the play showcased him as a very successful lawyer and the father of Rachel. Without giving away too much, Lea indicated that Samuel suffered from a type of cancer and as mentioned above he qualified for medically assisted death. He mentioned that his character battled with cancer for eight to 10 years and had even gone through remission for five years, until the cancer came back.

Lea, who feels connected to his character in the sense that he has his own kids and indicated that questions such as, “What are we leaving for our children?” resonated with him.

There’s so much that can be taken from this play. Whether you’re Jewish or any other religion, there’s a relation that anyone can take from the play, especially with the main consensus of saying goodbye to loved ones.

“I think it’s a really challenging topic, and one that we don’t see in the theater very often,” Mand said. “Medical assisted death is a very specific journey for people. The crux of this is that even though it’s legal in Canada, it’s considered murder in Judaism.”

After six professional productions, Mand believes that this is her

best one that she’s written thus far. As a frequent theatre goer myself, I have high expectations of what the cast will bring to the stage for such a compelling story.

If we have any frequent Toronto visitors or any Toronto readers, look out for In Seven Days as it makes its way to the Median Arts Centre’s Greenwin Theatre in North York after its run here.

A reminder that there is a student rush which includes special pricing for students that can provide a valid student ID. Instructions on how to book a student ticket at The Grand can be found online under the Ways to Save subheading.