For many, Michael Healey’s The Drawer Boy is considered a gem in Canadian theatre. A three-person, two-act play that takes place on a farm, The Drawer Boy blends humour and drama into a tale about memories and stories, and the blurred lines between them.
As their tenth season begins to wind down, Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre is tackling this Canadian classic, transforming the Roxy Theatre into an Ontario farmhouse.
Director Jacob Richmond took on the challenge of bringing this show to Victoria with enthusiasm.
“It’s a beautiful story. Just beautifully written, beautifully constructed,” says Richmond. “It just packs a really emotional wallop, and you never really see it coming.”
For Richmond, one of the biggest draws was the intimate cast of Michael Armstrong, Griffin Lea, and Gary Farmer, a group of actors with great chemistry who Richmond had worked with in the past and was enthusiastic to work with again.
“I’ve known Gary Farmer as an actor since I was a kid, and Michael and I have done a couple of shows together,” says Richmond. “Griffin works a lot with another company I work with.”
This dream team has allowed the production process to run fairly smoothly, according to Richmond; however, that’s not to say it hasn’t been without its challenges. Although the play is on the shorter side (the first act clocks in at around 50 minutes, the second about 40 minutes), with only three actors on stage, there’s a hearty amount of dialogue for the characters.
“It’s a tricky one because it is a play about memories, but actually, believe it or not, when you’re always talking about memories and losing your memory, it’s really hard to remember your lines,” laughs Richmond. “So, that’s been a challenge.”
Richmond believes that because the writing is so strong the audience feels like they’re peeking inside a house, watching three people talking.
“Because it all revolves around one particular story they tell each other, whether it’s true or false, you leave feeling that it’s quite an uplifting piece on that front because you leave realizing what’s important is friendship, connection to things, and people trying to protect each other,” he says.
Richmond hopes that people will walk away from the play with an appreciation for humanity.
“It’s always great to see something that reminds you of the beauty of friendship and collective stories,” he says. “The beauty of these three characters is something that will really resonate with the audience.”
The play centres around the stories the three tell each other while unravelling the past, and leaves audience members to question whether what the characters are saying is true or false and wondering, on a larger scale, who gets the right to tell a story.
“Who does a story belong to?” muses Richmond. “It really gets into those kinds of things. It really creeps up on you.”
The slow build of the play gives multiple facets to the characters and plot, something Richmond has enjoyed discovering through the rehearsal process.
“The more I’ve worked on it, the more I’ve discovered how many actual layers are in it,” says Richmond. “There is quite a bit to actually think about after you leave the theatre, as well.”
The Drawer Boy
Various times, until Sunday, July 15
Various prices, Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre
bluebridgetheatre.ca