DIRECTOR’S NOTE
Keep Good Theatre Company has a mandate that simply asks that we continue to produce theatre that is honest and attentive to the audience. We produce work that fascinates us and what we hope will fascinate audiences. I was drawn to The Children by Lucy Kirkwood because it was so completely unlike any kind of play I had directed before. It was ‘traditional’ and that was exciting. In an age where theatre has become increasingly more abstract, immersive and sight specific it feels really good to do a play about people in one space, in one time, dancing around each other like a bunch of stray atoms until a reaction is made. Lucy Kirkwood writes deeply nuanced characters, while navigating some of the most critical issues of our time. She has written several hit plays that have gone on to have success all over the world and she is only thirty-five. Kirkwood takes you on a journey through the past, present and future of three retired nuclear scientists all in their sixties, and all grappling with guilt, denial and the world they will leave behind for future generations.
For me, the joy of directing is the process of helping the actors craft relationships that are rich with active emotional tension. This play makes this work both thrilling and terrifying. Luckily, some of the best seasoned actors in the province who have agreed to come on this journey with me. Thank you so much to this wonderful cast, Martha Irving, Mauralea Austin and Lee J Campbell. You guys made these past few weeks such a joy. You proved to me that intergenerational collaboration is both exciting and fruitful. Thank you to this wonderful production team, Stephen Osler, Vicky Williams, Christine Oakey, Patricia Vinluan, Tori Morrison, Andrea Richie, and Véronique Mackenzie. And a big thank you to the amazing co-producers Karen Gross and Rena Thomas for your true genius.
Thank you,
Laura Vingoe-Cram
Director
CAST
Mauralea Austin as Rose
Lee J. Campbell as Robin
Martha Irving as Hazel
CREATIVE AND PRODUCTION TEAM
Laura Vingoe-Cram, director
Stephen Osler, set designer
Patricia Vinluan, assistant set designer
Vicky Williams, lighting designer
Tori Morrison, sound designer
Andrea Ritchie, costume designer
Véronique MacKenzie, choreographer
Patricia Vinluan, production manager
Christine Oakey, stage manager
Hunter Stanway, production assistant
Taylor Andrews, scenic carpenter
Karen Gross, producer
Rena Thomas, associate producer, photographer (promotional photos), and videographer
Justin Thomas, graphic designer
Stoo Metz, photographer (production photos)
OPENING ACTS
Abi Hodson, Electro Jacques Therapy, The Big Sing, Elizabeth Marshall, Colin Lee, Eliza Knockwood, Rena Thomas, Rebecca Fairless, Véronique Mackenzie, and Inner Light Kitchen.
BREAD SPONSOR
SPECIAL THANKS
Alanna MacNevin, Andrew Crawford, Atlantic Filmmakers Cooperative, Audrey Eastwood, Benoit Gravel, Carolyn Bembridge, Catherine Banks, Chelsea Code-McNeil, Chelsea Dickie, Colleen MacIsaac, Garrett Barker, Gay Osler, Greg Puncher, Halifax Sexual Health Centre, Heather Chambo, Jessie Harold, Jocelyn Pringle, Laura Simpson, Lauren Dial, Lisa Hammett Vaughan, Matt Downey, Melinda Robb, Mike Parsons, Neptune Props, Olivia Rose Mansveld, Philomena Hughes, Radstorm, Sally Robertson, and Tony Owen.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Children was first performed at the Royal Court Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, Sloane Square, London, on November 17, 2016, and was produced on Broadway by the Manhattan Theatre Club (Lynne Meadow, Artistic Director; Barry Grove, Executive Producer) and the Royal Court Theatre on November 28, 2017.
The Royal Court commissioned The Children with a generous grant from the Berwin Lee New Play Commission.
Keep Good (Theatre) Company engages under the terms of the INDIE 2.2, professional Artists who are members of Canadian Actors’ Equity Association.
Keep Good (Theatre) Company gratefully acknowledges funding from Arts Nova Scotia and the Canada Council for the Arts that makes this project possible.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This performance takes place in Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq people. This territory is covered by the Treaties of Peace and Friendship which did not deal with the surrender of land but actually recognized Mi’kmaq title. In reflecting on our shared responsibilities to this land we encourage you to learn about Mi’kmaq water protectors’ resistance to the Alton Gas project, which also takes place on unceded Mi’kmaq land. You can learn more from the Stop Alton Gas website, this editorial by Michelle Paul and Sadie Beaton in The Coast, and this CBC article. You can donate to the Treaty Truckhouse Legal Fund here.
Keep Good (Theatre) Company 