Director Toms Treinis stages new play exploring men as fathers, sons and husbands

Dirty Deal Teatro has premiered a new play titled "The Strong Sex," directed by Toms Treinis (32). The production focuses on men and fatherhood, allowing its characters to show tears, laughter and love without idealizing the male experience.

Three men on stage

The play features three actors whose portrayals are both physically and emotionally raw — they joke, sweat from exertion, turn coarse at times, and cry at others. The staging repeatedly shows the actors partially undressed, both literally and figuratively, highlighting the characters' vulnerability.

A creative team of fathers

The play was co-created not only by playwright Matīss Gricmanis but also by the actors themselves, who contributed as co-authors. A key element behind the production is that every man on the creative team is himself a father. This allowed the themes of being a son, a husband and a father to be explored through each person's own lived experience rather than invented characters.

A coincidence with Father's Day

Director Toms Treinis says the timing of the premiere — a week before Father's Day — was not planned but happened by chance. He describes it as a beautiful coincidence that added extra symbolic meaning to the production.