Review: The Little Years

Bethany Jillard and Chick Reid (photo credit: Cylla von Tiedemann)

The Curse of Passing Time
by Beat Rice

The current version of The Little Years was commissioned by the Stratford Shakespeare Festival last year where it was part of their season in the studio theatre. The production now has a new life at the Tarragon with recreated designs and some different casting. It shows us the beautiful and malicious ways people can affect others unintentionally. 

We are introduced to young Kate, played by Bethany Jilliard, at the beginning of the play. We meet a bright, curious pre-teen with questions and ideas about time, space, and physics, as big as the universe.  We instantly have high hopes for her, but unfortunately her ideas are deemed unacceptable and foolish for a young girl in the 50’s. Her mother, played by Chick Reid, discourages her from even talking of such subjects, and instead encourages her to go out, be social, and meet boys. She decides to place her daughter out of regular school and place her in vocational school, a move that alters the fate of Kate drastically. Irene Poole plays adult Kate, who grows up to be a bitter young adult who constantly has to hear about how well her brother William is doing in life. William is an invisible but ever-present character in the play. His wife Grace, played by Pamela Sinha, gives Kate love and support to try to pull her out of her negativity. She never gives up, even as Kate descends into a darker place as she approaches mature adulthood. 

All of John Mighton’s text was beautiful and important, and not for one second do I think any of it should be cut...

The exploration of the passage of time and what it does to people is the most fascinating aspect of the play. Every element of the production contributed to the mystery that time is. The play takes place over 50 years and during each mini-time period we see how the characters have changed, and also how they have stayed the same. The actors transformed through time, aging gracefully and convincingly through physicality and voice. Wigs, costume, and make-up showed us the decade and how much time had passed. The sound design by Thomas Ryder Payne also alluded to the time period in a subtle underscored manner. Kim Purtell’s use of moving lights in the small venue was truly fascinating. The dual ability for the lights to isolate and to merge together created an almost cinematic feel, with cutaways, vignettes with wide and close shots. It was also very interesting for her to light the stage with no colour. It appeared natural on Julie Fox’s white floor and minimal, perhaps you could say, timeless set. 

Speaking of time, the latter part of the play felt like it dragged a bit. All of John Mighton’s text was beautiful and important, and not for one second do I think any of it should be cut. The premise of the last few scenes where different characters essentially take turns speaking to older Kate, was strange and slowed things down. Chris Abraham held a fairly steady pace for the majority of the show, but in the end time seems to stop. Thematically it works but no one should want to check their watch.

The Little Years run until December 16 (With a small casting change in the final week)