Review: Little Women at the Citadel Theatre full of engaging characters
Adaptations of classic works are tricky. In taking another crack at The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Jane Eyre or Anne of Green Gables, writers must convince an audience that the tale has contemporary relevance, while retaining enough connection to the original text to engage fans drawn to see the familiar story.
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In Jordi Mand's adaptation of Little Women, at the Citadel until May 25, the beloved characters of the Louisa May Alcott novel appear in all their comforting charm. Marmee (Nadine Chu) is wise and loving, though honest enough to avoid being Smarmee. Jo (Hayley Moorhouse) is rebellious and awkward, Amy (a captivating Christina Nguyen, who does double duty as the tittering Annie Moffatt) is fiery, though sometimes selfish… you know the drill. The challenge for this production, directed by Jenna Rodgers, is to bring forward the parts of the novel that still resonate with the audience 157 years after it was first published.
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The production opens with the performance of a play in which the March sisters struggle to realize the vision of its director and writer, the budding talent Jo. Soon, the character reveals the essence of this adaptation, as true today as it was in the beginning: What does it mean to be a woman? Throughout the play, an excruciatingly long three hours (with intermission), Jo tackles this topic in direct addresses to the audience. The other characters also reflect the issue. Meg (Donna Leny Hansen) wonders how to choose a partner after being pressured to marry into money to help her poverty-stricken family. What is a woman's purpose? How will we know when we have found our heart's desire, and will it be through love or vocation?
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The first act is stuffed full of familiar trials and antics. Father March (Steven Greenfield, who also plays professor Friedrich Bhaer) is a pastor and has gone away to serve in the American Civil War, leaving his wife to manage the girls. There is no money for Christmas presents, and the family gives away its Christmas morning breakfast to those in need. Meg and Jo go to a ball, where Jo and Laurie (Gabriel Richardson, who also plays Edward) feel a spark that might be friendship, or perhaps love. Amy takes pickled limes to school and is severely punished. The shy and sickly Beth (Erin Pettifor, who also plays Sallie Gardiner) connects over music with the grouchy Mr. Laurence (Troy O'Donnell, who also serves as Mr. Dashwood and Dr. Bangs). Hair is burnt, hair is sold. Amy nearly dies after falling through the ice. The numerous vignettes serve to stitch together the warm fabric of family life and emphasize the bonds of sisterly love.
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In the second act, the seeds of the story come to fruition, and the audience is fully drawn in, with marriage and career in sharp focus. While it's hard to imagine, it comes as a surprise (surely many folks have seen the Greta Gerwig-directed version released in 2019 if they didn't read the book in Gr. 4), there is a tragic death and a period of healing. Father comes back from the war as a different man, and yet, the family endures.
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While much has changed since 1868, it's fair to say that women still struggle with societal expectations (although now women are expected to do everything as opposed to nothing). Though marriage as an economic decision was obviously more common back in the day, couples still wonder how much emphasis to place on money in a relationship.
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Jordi Mand was commissioned to write the adaptation for a world premiere at the Stratford Festival in 2022. At least two respected critics said that the show was far too long, and yet, the Citadel production trudges in at a similarly interminable length. It's true that the story, loosely based on Alcott's own family and published in two parts as Little Women/Good Wives, is a challenge to adapt. There is a lot of ground to cover. But theatres are in service to their audience, and this production has not learned that lesson.
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