Skillful and sensitive Children’s Republic pays homage to a visionary
-Oracle theatre review by Wayne Current
On Thursday November 5, I was pleased to attend the world premiere of Ottawa native Hannah Moscovitch’s new work The Children’s Republic at the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre. The play tells the story of Janusz Korczak, a Polish-Jewish pediatrician and celebrated children’s author who runs a remarkable orphanage in Poland.
Korczak was a visionary who believed that an orphanage should be governed like a democratic adult community. Under his guidance, the orphans participated directly in the governance of their orphanage. This included the establishment of a “children’s court” to which everyone including the teachers and staff were accountable.
The first half of Moscovitch’s play introduces Korczak (Paul Rainville), his assistant Stefa (Kate Hurman), and the orphans. It becomes apparent that while the wards of the orphanage experience their share of conflicts, these are resolved with kindness and fairness. This is contrasted with the second act, which is much darker and takes place after the Nazis invade and occupy Poland.
The world outside the orphanage clearly operates on very different principles from those that Korczak embodies. Consequently, the children, Korczak, and Stefa are exiled to the Jewish Ghetto. Even in this more somber act, Moscovitch finds moments of humour and warmth and focuses on the ways the Korczak, Stefa, and the children suppport each other. Moscovitch handles what is undoubtedly very difficult subject matter (the treatment of the Jews by the Nazis) in a skillful and sensitive fashion. Because of this care, the play is appropriate for older children (11 and up) and can be used by parents to start a discussion about these important issues and historical events.
In fact, The Children’s Republic features many talented young performers in its cast. On Thursday night, Luke Letourneau was particularly strong in the role of “Misha” and gave a disciplined performance beyond his years. Leah Morris also gives a noteworthy performance as “Sara” a role, which showcases her talent as a young violinist. All the young actors (Juliana Krajcovic “Feiga”, Hannah Kaya “Mettye”, Adrien Pyke “Henryk”, and Louis Sobol “Israel”) should feel very proud of their effort. I am sure they have gained an immense amount from the experience. I would encourage them to stay focused and work on their commitment to their performances for the rest of the run.
Of the adult performers, it is clearly Paul Rainville’s portrayal of Korzcak that stood out. Rainville brings a warmth and sincerity to his performance that manages to avoid becoming overly sentimental. Rainville easily won over the audience.
The set and lighting design is simple and generally effective. The backdrop of chairs with objects of significance from the play’s narrative works very well. Though at times, because of the simplicity of the set design, the orphanage occasionally seems a little overly stark for a place that the children clearly feel very attached too.
The Children’s Republic is a successful collaboration between the GCTC and the Ottawa School of Speech and Drama. It is great to see a play written by an Ottawa native, starring local actors working in collaboration with a local drama school, performed on an Ottawa stage. Theatre with such a strong local flavour is worth supporting. I recommend seeing this show.
For more information and a listing of performance dates and times click here.
