Photo credit: Deb Stephenson, DLS Photography.

Jennifer Cox is a communications graduate from the University of Windsor who is now a computer trainer for the Avon Maitland District School Board. She lives in Clinton with her husband and two children. She writes when she can find the time.

***

I can’t tell you when I started reading Alice Munro stories, or why – likely for an English class – but for many reasons I have stuck with her and read everything she’s ever written. She is my pick for that one person I’d like to have dinner and conversation with.

Dear Life, Munro’s most recent collection, contains 14 stories. The last four, given the title Finale are in the author’s words, “not quite stories…autobiographical in feeling,” and “the first and last – and the closest – things I have to say about my own life.” Each of the first 10 stories are stories of women of all ages: a young Mom looking for a diversion, a single woman working away from home, women near the end of their lives, and girls in their childhood. The time period ranges from the ‘40s through to more current times.

In case you don’t know – and if you’re a local, this is a must-know – Alice Munro is a world-renowned award-winning writer, born and raised in Wingham, currently living in Clinton. Her stories often refer to the small towns in Huron County, sometimes by name, other times by landmark. Locals might catch glimpses of her here and there but she seems to live her life quite unassumingly and enjoys her privacy. My chances of getting together with her are slim and I often think of writing her a letter just to tell her that I appreciate and enjoy her writing and why I do. So here goes:

Dear Ms. Munro,

When I sit down with one of your books it’s like a breath of fresh air, not a breeze, just a nice calm breath. I can expect to be entertained, but subtly. It’s kind of like looking at a piece of art and being able to take your time to soak up all that it has to offer, details revealing themselves slowly, quietly, but distinctly. I don’t have to try hard to keep up and yet I am always surprised by a certain phrase, a turn of events, or dry humour. I like that your main characters are often female, and despite the varying ages, I can always find an understanding in each of them. They always seem to have clear insight regarding men and life, or in your stories they come to learn and experience a universal truth. It might just be a thought that they had or a reaction to another character or incident but I always feel like I could know these women.

These female characters are always real, less than perfect. Take Miss Vivien Hyde, young and naive, who arrives in the small northern town of Amundsen from Toronto to teach at the sanitorium for children with tuberculosis in the ‘40s. As she tells her story she seems to be mocking her own behaviour during the relationship she has with the doctor in charge at the sanitorium. When all I wanted was for Vivien to tell the good doctor where to go, she falls for him as though it’s simply her only option.

In the ‘40s I guess it might have been an expected way for women to be treated – especially by an older man. Despite his condescending attitude towards her she is attracted to him after their first dinner together at his home: “He put a dish towel round my waist to protect my dress…he laid his hand against my upper back. Such firm pressure…I could still feel that pressure…I enjoyed it. That was more important really than the kiss placed on my forehead later…A dry-lipped kiss, brief and formal, set upon me with hasty authority.”

Romance novel it is not but this is what I love about your writing. It’s real.

I also particularly enjoyed the story Haven with the nameless narrator retelling a story from when she was 13, in the ‘70s, and staying with her Aunt Dawn and Uncle Jasper, a doctor, while her parents taught in Ghana. The opening paragraph sums up life in a small town perfectly as towns, particularly in Canada, often experience societal changes and cultural shifts on the sidelines: “All this happened in the seventies, though in that town and other small towns like it, the seventies were not as we picture them now, or as I had known them even in Vancouver. The boys’ hair was longer than it had been, but not straggling down their backs, and there didn’t seem to be an unusual amount of liberation or defiance in the air.”

The contrast between the narrator’s mother and aunt is interesting, sisters but not alike, and the resulting comment on ways of life for females in the ‘70s: “She was used to holding back until she was sure that my uncle had said all that he meant to say…My mother would talk right over my father…”

The narrator is the only child in her aunt and uncle’s home as they never had children lest they get in the doctor’s way: “The house was his, the choice of menus his, the radio and television programs his…things had to be ready for his approval at any moment.” As the narrator learns more about the daily life of her aunt and uncle she is not so strong in her conviction that her parents and her much less structured family life are superior, “The slow realization that came to me was that such a regime could be quite agreeable.”

I loved the live music “incident,” occurring while the doctor is out, retold with all seriousness but laced with sarcasm and humour. I could feel the tension in the home when he returns. I could also feel myself losing empathy for the good, hard-working doctor as the narrator does: ���There was a quantity of things that men hated. Or had no use for, as they said…They had no use for it, so they hated it. Maybe it was the same way I felt about Algebra…But I didn’t go so far as to want it wiped off the face of the earth for that reason.”

I am grateful for the last few stories in Dear Life as you say they are as close to your own life as anything you will ever write. The last story, called Dear Life, was the most important to me. It was exciting to get a glimpse of your childhood in Wingham, growing up in the ‘30s and ‘40s near the Maitland River. I appreciated your openness to talk about the early onset of your mother’s Parkinson’s when she was in her 40s and how it affected you and your father. The retelling of the “visitation of old Mrs. Netterfield” when you were a baby was chilling, in the way that small town tales can be.

I sensed regret, but not guilty regret, when you talk about writing poems as a youth, “…right around the time that I was being so intolerant of my mother, and my father was whaling the unkindness out of me. Or beating the tar out of me, as people would cheerfully say back then.”

I can’t describe what the last paragraph says to me other than it is real and true of humans: “I did not go home for my mother’s last illness or for her funeral. I had two small children and nobody in Vancouver to leave them with…We say of some things that they can’t be forgiven, or that we will never forgive ourselves. But we do – we do it all the time.”

As I close this letter, I will say that I enjoyed the realistic nostalgia of Dear Life and the glimpse into your life here in our great county.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Cox

Photo credit: Deb Stephenson, DLS Photography.

Jennifer Cox is a communications graduate from the University of Windsor who is now a computer trainer for the Avon Maitland District School Board. She lives in Clinton with her husband and two children. She writes when she can find the time.

***

The stories on the radio or in the news about cases of bullying seem to be increasing lately, perhaps more frequent and sometimes more violent than ever before. But, there’s always been a bully. I’m sure that almost every one of us can recall a time from childhood, maybe on the playground, that we dealt with the embarrassment, fear, or pain from a bully’s cruel words or actions. And others will remember, likely with regret, being that bully.

Due to school bullying awareness and prevention campaigns we are all much more aware of the bullying issues today. Hopefully we are also just as non-tolerant of it, but it’s not likely that we will ever eradicate the bully.

Today, added to the playground bullying, is the online bullying threat. Because my job involves technology and education I keep myself aware of what kids have available to them online. I pay attention to stories about cyber bullying and I try to talk to my kids often about what they are chatting about online or what games they are playing. They are not yet at the age where they are using social media but it won’t be long.

As parents and members of small communities, we have an opportunity and an obligation to keep tabs on the online life of our kids. We may not be able to always be there on the playground but I believe we need to work harder at understanding and taking more seriously what kids are doing online, monitoring it, or at least questioning them about it continually. They may never do anything inappropriate or participate in anything like cyber bullying but I can bet you they will witness it. And what have we been telling our kids for years about being a witness to bullying? That they should speak up about it, help the one that is being bullied. So, when the bullying is occurring on Facebook or in text messages, it’s in plain sight, it shouldn’t be as hard to catch the bully.

The bigger issue is what makes today’s bully far more powerful than yesterday’s. It’s the power that anyone, let alone bullies, can get from the use of the internet. This is something we can work to eradicate. It’s not hard to find out what sites kids have been to on a home computer. If children are going to be allowed on social media sites, parents should take the time to explain to them the implications when they post comments or pictures of their friends or themselves. Maybe something like, “If you wouldn’t be proud to have your Grandma see it then don’t post it.” I think it’s important that children be educated over and over again on the realities of having an online presence and what to do if something wrong is happening to them or someone they know. Just as a parent would contact a teacher or a coach about face-to-face bullying, parents should feel confident in following through with authorities and the online providers when they suspect something inappropriate is going on.

You may have heard the tragic Amanda Todd story. A 12-year-old girl makes a silly mistake online by allowing herself to be photographed topless. She ends up being cyber bullied by an adult who sends her image everywhere and she ends up in a downward spiral of more bullying by classmates, depression, alcohol and eventually commits suicide. But not before making a You Tube video telling the world the whole story.  There are so many issues in this extreme case of cyber bullying and abuse it’s hard to know where to begin.

Aside from underlying problems that we may never be made aware of, the biggest issue is that it’s painfully obvious many young people still do not understand the power of the online medium.  This power can be taken advantage of by those who otherwise would likely be of no harm to anyone. The online world provides a level of anonymity when the user wants it to. Anyone can be anyone they want to pretend to be. Those who are inclined can take advantage of that “protection” the internet provides, it’s just a screen, not a person after all.

I heard another story of social media gone wrong on a news station just last week. A girl in Grade 6 was asked by a classmate if she was on Facebook. The girl replied that she wasn’t and then learned that someone had created a Facebook account in her name and was posting inappropriate and disturbing content on her page as well as nasty comments about other people. It turned out, after an investigation by the social media site and police, that it was a classmate of the girl who had done this to her. Grade 6! In this case, it wasn’t some scary stranger from the big bad wide world, it was the girl next door.

Many people seem to believe that if we get rid of sites like Facebook and Twitter it would solve the problem. In my mind, that would be overkill…like when the whole class gets punished for something one kid did. I don’t think it’s the fault of the internet or these social media sites entirely. I think the bigger problem is that there is much less control of where the access point is to all of these sites. Give a kid a cell phone and all of a sudden a whole new world of potential exists to be online whenever they want, out of anyone’s sight.

Social media has been around a while now, and it isn’t going anywhere. It has become a medium of interaction, of showing off your life, sometimes every moment of it good or bad. Of course, just like email, this interaction is often not at all similar to the interaction people have face to face. It can be misinterpreted, blown out of proportion, and worst of all, it is permanent and perpetual.

It can also be an incredible tool. Things like finding long lost family members, meeting up with old high school friends, learning, creating. Of course the flip side of this is that it can also be an incredibly powerful tool for causing pain, embarrassment, and shame.

It’s tough for parents as it’s no longer as simple as keeping the family computer in the kitchen where you can keep an eye on what your kids are doing online. Hand held devices and cell phones are something a child has to show responsibility with and respect for. Do you give a child a smart phone who has not shown maturity and responsibility otherwise? What do you suppose they are going to do with it? If a child continues to be irresponsible and disrespectful online what should be done? I suggest Googling the video of the man who shoots his daughter’s laptop because of her inability to follow the rules attached to having one. Extreme? Of course. But the message is clear. If the child cannot adhere to the rules of having A) a device and B) social media accounts, that child will lose the device and the account.

This is not the only answer and I don’t have all the answers. I know we can’t protect our kids from everything but that’s no reason to abandon the idea of internet safety. Discussion about how to be respectful and responsible should be continual. Kids need reminded of everything else so why not acceptable internet behaviour? Expectations of use should be clear and followed up on.

I say child because I think that’s where it needs to start. If I let my 10- or 11-year-old on Facebook then I will make sure they understand what it’s all about. I’ll make sure they know about privacy settings and what a “friend” really is. I will tell them that whether or not their grandmother is on Facebook, if they would be embarrassed for her to see something they posted then they shouldn’t post it – anywhere to anyone. I will maintain the conversation about what they are doing on Facebook and I, of course, will be their first friend. I will also explain that even though they are sending a private message to someone, it may not stay private. Who knows who might be reading over someone’s shoulder?

For example, I heard on the radio the other day that if a person has ever texted or posted a naked picture of themselves to anyone or anywhere, there is an 88 per cent chance that it will go viral. What you thought was private is suddenly anything but.

There is also the phenomenon that youth and even adults are more and more obsessed with sharing every aspect of their lives. I was recently informed by my kids that I had to stop posting images of them without first getting their permission! What an eye opener. Obviously I am posting things out of love and the desire to share their lives with family. I want people close to me to know my children and me as a parent. But it made me realize that I need to model respectful social media behaviour just as much as I preach it.

As I end this column, it seems very much about the “big bad world” but I don’t want to seem all doom and gloom. Bullying will never go away in any form but we have made progress with schoolyard bullying awareness and prevention campaigns and I believe we can do the same and more for the cyber bullying that is just beginning. Social media can be a great thing but like any tool it has to be used in the right way. When it isn’t, it must be addressed and treated as a great learning and discussion opportunity with our kids who will become responsible citizens digitally and personally.

Photo credit: Deb Stephenson, DLS Photography.

Jennifer Cox is a communications graduate from the University of Windsor who is now a computer trainer for the Avon Maitland District School Board. She lives in Clinton with her husband and two children. She writes when she can find the time.

***

At first I wasn’t sure if I liked Mara, the main character in local author Hayley Linfield’s first novel, The Truth About Dandelions. But as I read, I realized that it was what happened to Mara that I didn’t like.

I have to say, while I love to read and usually read books quickly, unable to put them down, I am not one to remember or dwell on details. A book often leaves me with a certain feeling, some thoughts, and some sort of meaning comes out of it. I learn something about myself, and how I feel about different issues, or people. I know that a book is good if it made me feel something. This book made me feel anger, sadness, disgust, relief and happiness.

The book centres around Mara’s life as a typical university student studying classic English literature. She spends too much of her time partying and sleeping around, trying desperately to bury her childhood emotional scars. It seems so contradictory that Mara reads Charlotte Bronte and Thomas Hardy novels, full of society’s expectations of what is proper and yet she behaves like a tramp. Throughout the book Linfield makes effective use of point of view when she switches from first person to third-person omniscient to take the story back to Mara’s childhood. We are immediately there, like in a movie where the scene suddenly changes to a different time and place.

I found the drunken anonymous sex scenes tough to get through because I knew that it was really damaging to Mara and I worried for her. I enjoyed the flashbacks throughout the book to Mara’s childhood that reveal why she struggles with extreme low self esteem and bitterness.

As a child, Mara is dealt a number of blows. She loses her apparently religious father when he leaves her mother for another woman. Her mother, who becomes bitter and harsh, is murdered by a homeless man. Mara must go live with her father and the other woman in London, England. He has become a drunk and he ends up committing suicide. If this is not tragic enough, Mara’s Grandma dies in a plane crash on the way to London to rescue her. In the middle of these tragedies, we see Mara has become hardened already to life when the young girl tells her Grandma to stop crying about her daughter’s death.

Mara ends up living with her cousin and her cousin’s partner “Auntie” in Toronto.

I was hopeful that things would turn around for Mara here but it was not to be. She is somewhat of an outsider and ridiculed because of her two “moms.” Her first sexual experience at a very tender age is heartbreaking as she believes that giving in to the boy “seemed easier than resisting.” She was grateful for the attention.

Mara struggles through high school as somewhat of a misfit, except with the boys. By the time Mara gets to university she has fulfilled the meaning of her name, bitterness. On the surface, she seems like a girl who knows what she wants. She lets on that she’s okay with anonymous flings but her behaviour escalates. Just when I thought she had learned her lesson she got herself into the most degrading and disrespectful situation which becomes a turning point, a wake up call to her.

Mara does have a few significant relationships on her road to self-respect and peace. I don’t want to ruin the plot by revealing how Mara ends up but I will say with relief that it ends well for her. But only after significant turmoil, several relationships, a car accident and a plane crash. Sound like a soap opera? It could have been, but there’s more depth and honesty to Mara than any soap opera character. She is a conflicted soul. I felt weak after finishing the book, feeling like I had gone through Mara’s life as her best friend, experiencing her pain, her strength, and finally her peace with her place in life.

The parenting in Mara’s life had greatly failed her and as a mom I felt a sense of protection over her. I wanted to go get Mara, and all the other girls like her, bring her home and tell her everything would be okay, that she didn’t have to allow those things to crush her dignity, that she deserved better. The harsh sexual scenes involving Mara were tough to read because I felt helpless and sad for her. I think that Linfield is reflecting in Mara a very common feeling in young women today…there are a lot of hurt and sad girls out there, acting tough, like it doesn’t matter at all when deep down it does.

I don’t think I am reading too much into the book when I say that Linfield is making a comment on the judgments we make of people by their actions and appearance when really our perception can be completely wrong. The novel reminded me that even people who appear to be intelligent and strong can be hurting so much that it pushes them to behave in not so intelligent ways. With Mara, Linfield shows that how a person functions in their daily life doesn’t always indicate the level of emotional health they are experiencing.

Thankfully Mara meets Jack in an unlucky/lucky kind of way when he runs into her with his car on a snowy day in the middle of an Ottawa winter. Jack becomes the presence that pushes Mara down the path of healing and feeling better about herself. She sees in him what she wants for herself: “There’s a vulnerability about him that’s beautiful…Jack’s beauty is different. With Jack, it’s his whole being. I wish I were beautiful in that way.”

Jack isn’t like any of the other guys she has known, or barely known. He seems to sense how Mara normally is with men and he does what he feels is right, not starting a physical relationship at all. He knows that he wants more from her, he loves her, but he needs Mara to know it as well.

I will leave the rest of the plot for you to discover. In the end I was happy to have read the book despite some struggles. I will never forget Mara and her life story. The book reminded me of many things that are important in life and the most important thing I am left with is how important it is to instill love and respect in our daughters and our sons, so they are able to feel these things without a doubt for themselves.

Hayley’s book is available through her website. It is also available for Kobo and Kindle.

Dominique Le Blanc as Annie and Company

Jennifer Cox is a communications graduate from the University of Windsor who is now a computer trainer for the Avon Maitland District School Board. She lives in Clinton with her husband and two children. She writes when she can find the time. This summer, she is reviewing Huron Country Playhouse and The Blyth Festival for Bullet News Huron.

***

Who needs the hassle of high-priced big city theatre when you can get the same calibre of entertainment right here at home? Annie opened last night at the Huron Country Playhouse and it was a delight.

Set in the FDR era, it is the familiar touching story of orphan Annie who wins the heart of billionaire Oliver Warbucks and spreads her optimistic outlook to everyone she encounters. Despite being abandoned as an infant on the doorsteps of a New York City orphanage, 11-year-old Annie still wears the half of the locket left to her by her parents and has never given up hope that they will return for her. She is the strong-willed leader of a group of orphan girls living with mistreatment and misery in Miss Hannigan’s orphanage. Annie gets lucky one day when Miss Farrell, assistant to billionaire Oliver Warbucks, arrives at the orphanage to choose a girl to take to the mansion for the Christmas holidays. Even though the lonely-at-the-top Warbucks ends up wanting to adopt Annie, he agrees to use his influence and money to help Annie find her real parents.  A plot to steal away with Annie and the reward money by Miss Hannigan and her sinister brother almost succeeds but Warbucks catches them in their act and justice prevails.

Directed by Alex Mustakas, the musical production Annie is a show stopper filled with a talented, energetic cast.

Dominique Le Blanc was the quintessential Annie mix of spunk and cute and her powerful voice easily handled the trademark song Tomorrow. I especially enjoyed the Annie number, I Think I’m Gonna Like It Here with Grace and the rest of the Warbucks staff.

Charlotte Moore as the tipsy orphan hater Miss Hannigan was hilarious and frightful with her loud whistle, barking orders to those little girls. The orphans were as cute as buttons, showing amazing singing and dance talent. The performance of Hard Knock Life was perfect and Fully Dressed, the orphans’ adorable version of the famous Oxydent radio ad by the Boylan Sisters, was one of my favourite numbers. The girls were all completely endearing with their orphan rag clothes, messed up hair and smiles and energy that lit up the theatre. An interesting side note: as so many talented local young girls were interested in being in the play, there are three groups in the Annie Children’s Chorus who will rotate performances during the three-week run of the show.

Keith Savage as the infamous cocky Rooster was hilarious, in his pin-stripe suit, joking and strutting all over the stage. He and his dame Lily, played by Melissa Thomson-Hicks, made a great conniving couple. The Easy Street number including Moore, is a huge hit, equally funny and obnoxious.

I loved listening to the smooth Oliver Warbucks, played by Victor A. Young, and Grace Farrell, the caring personal assistant to Warbucks, played by Jayne Lewis. One of my favourite lines comes when Warbucks doesn’t have a clue how to handle the emotional little girl so he says, “I’ll get her a brandy,” and stalks off, returning to see that she has been comforted by the staff and Miss Farrell and ends up drinking the brandy himself.

I could see the scenes from the Annie movie as the cast sang and danced but this show really held its own. The choreography by Gino Berti was impressive and performed with easy precision by the ensemble. The set design by Jean-Claude Olivier was a perfect complement with backdrops of city scenes, including one under a city bridge, and of course the impressive Warbucks mansion with showy pieces of art and vintage radios and telephones. The costumes were impressive as well, from the rags of the homeless group under the bridge to Miss Farrell’s classy dresses and of course the infamous little red dress worn by Annie in the final scenes. And I can’t forget the commanding four-legged star of the show, Sandy, played by the Nova Scotia Retriever, Chedabucto Bluenose.

You will not want to miss this Annie production at the Huron Country Playhouse. It plays until Sept. 1. In fact, I might find an excuse to go see it again.

Sponsored by Complete Interiors & Design, Funny 1410AM, ezRock 97.5 and BX93.

Tickets are available for purchase at the Huron Country Playhouse box office or by calling 519-238-6000 or toll free at 1-855-372-9866. Tickets may also be ordered online.

Tiffany Martin and Meghan Swaby as twin sisters in The Devil We Know. Photo by Terry Manzo

Jennifer Cox is a communications graduate from the University of Windsor who is now a computer trainer for the Avon Maitland District School Board. She lives in Clinton with her husband and two children. She writes when she can find the time. This summer, she is reviewing Huron Country Playhouse and The Blyth Festival for Bullet News Huron.

***

The Devil We Know, by husband and wife team Cheryl Foggo and Clem Martini, premiered last night at the Blyth Festival. This is the final Blyth Festival main stage production for the 2012 season and the farewell effort by Artistic Director Eric Coates, who is leaving for his new post at the Great Canadian Theatre Company in Ottawa.

It is 1944 in Regina, and teenage twin sisters Verna and Vivian, played by Meghan Swaby and Tiffany Martin, belong to one of the few Black families in the community. They are home alone for a night while the rest of the family sends off one of the brothers, who has enlisted in the Canadian army. Verna and Vivian must stay home as Vivian has polio and is not well enough to travel. An aunt is supposed to stay with them but Verna, the more outspoken twin, insists they will be fine alone. Martin and Swaby kept me in suspense wondering when the real scare on stage was going to come and just how things were going to end up for them. I would have enjoyed more contrast in the volume level of the actors’ voices as I think it would have contributed more to the suspense.

Verna and Vivian are as alike as hot and cold. Verna is impulsive, tough and dramatic and cannot wait to get out of Regina. She seems to be the protector of the siblings, she is always the one to rub her sisters afflicted leg. She not only watches out for her other siblings, she fights right along with them, and does not stand for any racist name calling from the neighbourhood white kids.

Vivian is much more of the “good girl,” sensitive, frail because of the polio, worried about getting her homework done, more soft spoken and calm. She doesn’t want anyone to make a fuss over her and is thrilled beyond belief with little things like the simple gift from her father of a new robe. She is not able to participate fully in the world outside her bedroom and relies heavily on her siblings to keep her informed as her parents would rather keep her sheltered and protected.

The twins are at different stages of youth. While Verna is ready to move on into teenage life, and worried about “not being the last one kissed at youth group,” Vivian is obsessed with reading Anne of Green Gables, play acting with her Anne doll and trying to speak as Anne did, much to her sister’s disgust.

Both Swaby and Martin were authentic in their roles as twins who can be the best of friends but always with the underlying sadness and frustration of dealing with Vivian’s illness. Martin was especially convincing as a girl wanting to be normal, not having to be protected all the time but also with a mature acceptance that this could be for the rest of her life.

The play has some eerie music, lighting and effects to contribute to the suspense: a moonlit night, a scarf placed over a bedside table lamp, and a breeze eerily blowing the curtain in the girls’ bedroom. The sound however was not over done, a few well selected clips of traditional country bluegrass and towards the end of the play a loud collection of sounds that took me a second to realize it was the sounds of someone tearing apart a house from the inside.

The girls’ night alone involves scary stories about a recent violent murder in the town, strange noises, doing hair and talking about boys, and it also shows the tension between the girls. Vivian is tired of being “poor” Vivian and she is worried that she is holding her sister back. Her sister is torn between caring greatly for Vivian and being sick and tired of playing second fiddle to her sister’s disease.

I kept waiting for something to happen that first night the girls are alone…I will only say that it doesn’t happen until the next day.

Tony Munch plays Walter, the derelict homeless man obsessed with finding something that he has heard is hidden in the girls’ home. Walter has had some tough breaks and is desperate to find this hidden treasure in order to make a fresh start. He sees a kind of kindred spirit in Vivian, who has also had a tough break. I was impressed with Munch’s ability to transition between Walter’s unpredictable mood swings, from lighthearted to psycho serious, hanging on to reality by a thread. I was almost convinced when he first walked into Vivian’s room, startled by her presence, that he really was there to clean the eave troughs for her Dad, just like he said.

I was surprised with the way that Verna ends up involved in Walter’s hostage taking/home invasion but I won’t ruin it for you.  Things do get physical and bloody but despite all of this violence there is still some humour to lighten things up. It can’t be easy to pull off a thriller on stage complete with blood and weapons. I thought the final fighting scenes were as well done as could be expected on a stage.

If you’re ready for some action, drama and suspense on the stage, The Devil We Know runs until Sept. 1.

For more information, please visit online or call 1-877-862-5984.

The Devil We Know is sponsored by Ideal Supply.  Media Sponsor is 104.9 the Beach. The 2012 Season Sponsor is Sparling’s Propane Company Limited and the Season Media Sponsor is CTV.

Jennifer Cox is a communications graduate from the University of Windsor who is now a computer trainer for the Avon Maitland District School Board. She lives in Clinton with her husband and two children. She writes when she can find the time. This summer, she is reviewing Huron Country Playhouse and The Blyth Festival for Bullet News Huron.

***

The Melville Boys, a comedy by Norm Foster, directed by Chris McHarge, opened last night on the Playhouse II stage at the Huron Country Playhouse in Grand Bend. It is a comedy surrounding two brothers on a weekend cottage getaway who meet up with two sisters. Each pair of siblings could not be more unlike in personalities. Owen Melville, played by Brad Austin, is young, brash, spontaneous and three weeks shy of becoming a husband. His older brother Lee, played by Richard Quesnel, is a married father of two, conservative, careful and moody, understandably though. The weekend away is intended to be bonding time for the brothers as Lee has been told he has limited time left to live. Until this weekend, Owen has refused to acknowledge what is happening to his brother.

The brothers are expecting a quiet couple of days fishing and reminiscing until Owen spots a boat on the lake containing two women. The two women are sisters, Mary and Loretta, and are also as different from each other as night and day. Loretta is wild, carefree and outspoken. Mary, the older sister, played by Anita La Selva, is straight, reserved and calm. Loretta, played by Shauna Black, is the younger more outgoing sister and the match to Owen. Much to the dismay of Lee, the brothers end up going on a “date” with the sisters to the local legion dinner and dance. After the night out, we learn more about the individual struggles each sibling is facing in life and what they plan to do about it – or not do about it.

I was interested to meet these brothers and sisters. It seemed like an intriguing plot with lots of opportunity for conflict and humour given the opposing personalities on stage.

I did enjoy some of the humour. There were some great one-liners from Brad Austin as the goofy, playful younger brother, Owen. He sees the women in the boat through his binoculars and proclaims that they are “filled with lust” – for him, of course. And, clearly Lee’s vision of a quiet, solemn weekend with his brother has gone out the window. A scene where Lee discovers that Owen, in charge of the food for the weekend, has provided nothing but chips, peanut butter, bread and beer got lots of laughs and helps develop the frustration between Lee and Owen. Another memorable humorous moment is Shauna Black’s demo to the others of Loretta’s five minutes of fame as the Price-is-Right-girl role in a TV commercial. Richard Quesnel’s Lee becomes the unwilling poker face partner in her vixen-like rendition of the low budget commercial.

The few musical interludes were appropriate with classic songs such as Trooper’s We’re Here for a Good Time and The Eagles’ Heartache Tonight. I still felt like something was missing throughout most of the play and I finally realized during the last act what it was. There was never any background sound, like waves rolling in the lake, a boat motor, oars paddling, or birds calling or crickets or something. At a cottage especially it would seem fitting to have nature and water sounds somewhere in the play to add to the environment.

There are some humorous lines and moments that the cast seemed in synch on stage but there were times the play lost me and I was not fully engaged in their stories. Each of the people in the play is searching for something, and this is what seems to bring them together. Lee is obviously distraught over his diagnosis and is concerned that his brother is not going to be there for his family when he’s gone. Owen is not able to accept that his brother only has a year to live and he is also unsure of his fiance and upcoming wedding. Owen becomes infatuated with Loretta, the vivacious small time actress with big dreams. Lee, trying to make sense of dying, is left to chat with Mary who is still holding out for a husband that up and left her without a word two years ago. These stories have so much opportunity for expression and drawing the audience in and there were moments that I really cared what happened to the siblings. I enjoyed Shauna Black as Loretta who was most convincing as the small town hopeful actress, ditzy but wise in her own way.

I was entertained, I laughed, and I enjoyed the ambience of the Huron Country Playhouse and after this play gets a few more showings under its belt I think it will be even more entertaining and genuine. The Melville Boys runs until Aug. 11 at Playhouse II. Tickets are available for purchase at the Huron Country Playhouse box office or by calling 519-238-6000 or toll free at 1-855-372-9866. Tickets may also be ordered online.

Rebecca Auerbach as Caroline and JD Nicholsen as Johnny in Dear Johnny Deere, now on stage at the Blyth Festival. Photo by Terry Manzo

Jennifer Cox is a communications graduate from the University of Windsor who is now a computer trainer for the Avon Maitland District School Board. She lives in Clinton with her husband and two children. She writes when she can find the time. This summer, she will review The Blyth Festival for Bullet News Huron.

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Until yesterday I had never heard the name Fred Eaglesmith before. But after last night’s opening performance of Dear Johnny Deere at The Blyth Festival, I cannot get the song “Wilder Than Her” out of my mind. I’ve never been much of a country music fan but I have been searching iTunes for each of the 15 Eaglesmith songs from the play. Whether you are a dedicated Fredhead or not, you will be impressed with not only the music in the play but the way the story is told with the music, making it come alive.

I know that I’ve enjoyed a play when I come away realizing that I cared about what happened to the characters on the stage. I know it’s been a great experience when I leave the theatre feeling like I’ve been somewhere else for a while. Last night was no exception. With minimal but significant props and scene changes involving more movement of actors and musicians than props, Dear Johnny Deere transported me to a small farming town with dirt roads, farm houses, and vast fields and big old red barns. Especially during the final scene, under the soft light of the summer lanterns, not only could I hear Johnny and Caroline singing, it was easy to imagine the crickets and the frogs and the night time sounds and the light breeze in the air.

Written by Calgary playwright Ken Cameron, the world premiere of Dear Johnny Deere is the life story of a struggling small time Canadian farmer told through the songs of Fred Eaglesmith, a Canadian alternative country singer-songwriter raised in rural Southern Ontario. The farmer, Johnny, can hardly make ends meet and the play takes us through the challenges he and his wife Caroline face both on the farm and in their relationship.

I felt like I really got to know the characters, the nosey but kind hearted old neighbour Mac and of course Caroline and Johnny, the young farming couple trying to get ahead but not having much luck – in farming or marriage.

Mac, or McAllister, played by Jeff Culbert is the longstanding town newsman, despite the lack of news and interest in it. His charming, eccentric character took on the role of narrator at times, curmudgeonly helping the audience transition between present day and past history of the farm. I enjoyed that the play gave us the background story of the town and the farm itself, of how Caroline and Johnny met, and what their lives were like before they met. It all helped me want the best for Johnny and Caroline’s relationship and the success of the crops on their farm.

J.D. Nicholson and Rebecca Auerbach, the actors playing Johnny and Caroline, impressed me with not only their musical talents but also with their ability to use the music to tell me so much about who they are. There was never a time when they were singing that they were not Johnny and Caroline, they stayed so true to their characters. The smooth transitions into song were made easier by the clever placement of hooks on stage used to hang guitars, so that they seemed to disappear into the set when the actors were finished. It was almost like I never noticed how the instruments got into or out of the actors hands. I was impressed with how the actors seamlessly wove the music into the flow of the play. There was no awkward transition between speech and song. It really worked.

There were some great “small town” lines, giving the audience some laughs about the unique name of the local paper, Caroline’s “city jeans,” and Johnny’s big old car, Lucille, a Lincoln I think it was with a “Bench Seat Baby.”

I can’t forget to mention the villain of the play, Mike, played by Matthew Campbell, who made it easy for me to feel sincere dislike for his character as the evil city boy in frustrated business man disguise. I also can’t forget to mention the other talented musicians on stage, Capucine Onn and David Archibald, who amazed me by being on stage but never being in the way unless they were involved in the scene. They always fit into the scene perfectly, sometimes using their playing to interact directly with the characters on stage as with the violin in the song “Freight Train.” And I’m not sure if it’s widely known or not, but the chicken sounds from Ms. Onn were extraordinary! It took me a few seconds to realize there were not real chickens in the theatre! (This likely stood out for me more than other audience members due to my chicken phobia.)

I love it when a play gets me interested in something I didn’t know about before. Not that I am going to become a Fredhead tomorrow, but I certainly have a new appreciation for his music. His songs for me are now much more than down on your luck country songs. Although the play was full of music I would hesitate to call it a traditional musical as the plot and the songs were so nicely intertwined.

All in all I really enjoyed Dear Johnny Deere. The love story, the excellent music, the use of the strategically placed props on the stage as instruments, it all worked well together to give yet another satisfying, entertaining theatre experience at the Blyth Festival.

Dear Johnny Deere plays at the Blyth Festival until July 7. The Blyth Festival’s 2012 season runs until September 1 and also features Having Hope at Home by David S. Craig, The Lonely Diner: Al Capone in Euphemia Township by Beverley Cooper, and The Devil We Know by Cheryl Foggo and Clem Martini.

For ticket information, please visit the Blyth Festival website or call 1-877-862-5984.

Photo credit to Jakal Photography

Jennifer Cox is a communications graduate from the University of Windsor who is now a computer trainer for the Avon Maitland District School Board. She lives in Clinton with her husband and two children. She writes when she can find the time.

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Have you heard of “summer brain drain?” Even though I had heard of the term I thought I should Google it to get the expert definition. Basically, summer brain drain means that during the break kids lose some of the knowledge and skills they gained in the past school year. The experts say in the summer parents should spend time with children reinforcing strengths with extra projects as well as working on weak areas in order to improve before the next school year begins. One article I read actually stated that we all need to rethink how we see the summer break and that it needs to be more than having fun lazing around pools and beaches. Pardon?

I will bet you my summer vacation these experts are not actually parents. I think my husband and I have worked hard enough all year helping with homework and projects and reports and math concepts. I would argue that our children’s brains deserve a little drain.

I don’t believe that the knowledge lost in the summer drain is gone forever.  Even if a small amount of drain occurs, it is replaced by other beneficial experiences.

In my current position with the school board I am not employed in the summer. I can almost taste that first day of not having to go to work. That sunny, birds-chirping, bees-buzzing morning when I don’t have to rush around barking orders at my kids like a drill sergeant…”Did you take your vitamins? Do you have your bag packed for school? Did you brush your teeth? Put the iPod down and get your shoes on!” I know that my kids are also looking forward to that same day when they won’t have to listen to me freak out about being late or forgetting something. In many ways I am grateful to have a job that doesn’t exist during July and most of August. I get to spend the long, lazy, hot days of summer with my children doing whatever we want.  We all need that break by the time it gets here: a break from running to hockey and dance and soccer and piano and of course school.

It appears though that I may have to step it up a notch or two and get some intellectually stimulating activities planned so my kids don’t lose their smarts over the summer. I wonder if these supposed experts have heard of that other phenomenon where kids feel so much pressure to perform and do well that they have anxiety and stress? Don’t they deserve a little time away from it all?  What could be so harmful about tuning out for a while? We are so caught up in high performance in everything we do that we forget to nurture that part of our brain that allows us to truly relax. Then we wonder why we always feel so stressed and busy. What a great skill for a child to learn – how to be content with just being. Without getting all new-age-y, I think it’s this time “off” that helps us in many ways we don’t even realize.

It is only during the glorious relaxing days of summer that my kids and I have time to reconnect, regroup, regenerate, and leave behind the stressful, busy days of the school year. I really don’t see anything wrong with some doing-nothing-except-taking-it-easy days for a while in the summer. When I think of how much we pack into a school year, it amazes me that we all make it through. And I think our family schedule is probably a lot less booked than some.

We get so caught up in all this doing stuff that we forget to just be – be a family that is close and connected. It takes time and effort to maintain this significant part of a child’s life. When summer rolls around I am so relieved to have the time to just enjoy a slower pace.

I don’t really feel like organizing lessons and maintaining a routine all summer and I’m pretty sure my kids don’t feel like it either. I say bring on the brain drain! For a little while, let the brain rest. It will make room for greater things to come.

I will be enforcing things like piano practice and screen free days  -which will be as hard for me as it would for the kids! I think if the experts spent a regular summer day with me and the kids they might be surprised to see how much kids can learn on their own just being kids, when they least suspect that they are learning. I will have more time to bake and cook with them. They will have time to get out the art supplies or the Lego and create. They can help more with household chores. You can’t tell me they won’t get some learning out of these activities. I have a few plans in mind for activities this summer – have to be prepared for the odd rainy day after all – but I don’t intend to drag out flash cards or work books.

At the beginning of summer, it feels like we have so much time and by the time the end of August rolls around I wonder where all that time went. But I know that I am lucky to be able to spend that time with my kids. Whatever we get up to, even if it’s nothing but some brain drain, I want to make sure that we enjoy the moments and savour every second.

I am confident they will learn many things this summer despite not being “taught” and I know that after several weeks of no routine and no expectations my children start looking forward to getting back to school. I don’t think they would feel that way without letting their brains get a little drained first.