The Wars by Timothy Findley
The Vancouver Playhouse’s Production Directed by Dennis Garnhum
The Wars opens the Playhouse Theatre Company's 45th Season in Calgary, Alberta and Vancouver, British Columbia.
The Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company and Theatre Calgary start their theatre season with Timothy Findley’s The Wars. Former UBC student Dennis Garnhum takes the reigns as dramaturge and director of this beloved Canadian novel.
From the time Garnhum, also artistic director of Theatre Calgary, directed two of Timothy Findley’s plays in 2002, the two men had built a rapport. “I had the great fortune to work with Mr. Findley directing his last two premieres at he Stratford Festival of Canada,” Garnhum remembers. “He was kind enough to call me a colleague, and a gentleman enough to call me a friend. It is his generous spirit that allows us to bring his glorious novel to our stages.”
The Wars by Timothy Findley
The novel The Wars was published in 1977 to great acclaim, eventually winning the Governor General’s Award for fiction. Timothy Findley has been held in high esteem by his fellow Canadians after winning them over with The Last of Crazy People (1967) and The Butterfly Plague (1969). The Wars was adapted for film in 1981 and debuted in Calgary this September on the stage.
In the novel, Robert Ross is a young man in 1915 Canada who has just enlisted in the First World War. Memories of his family intersperse his journey from an innocent boy to a man who has seen bullets fly, the atrocity of trench warfare and the everyday occurrence of death.
A Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company and Theatre Calgary Co-Production
Under the lead of remarkable set designer Allan Stitchbury, The Wars takes off with Robert Ross waiting at the train station in Lethbridge, Alberta on his way west for basic training.
His mind quickly flashes back to his sister and the first scenery change takes place. A sense of moving between his present-day war years and his recollections of his life before the war is created with subtle backdrops that add gorgeous layers to the scenes.
As time moves forward, Robert must learn to act like a Second Lieutenant in a whorehouse, on the battlefield, in the barracks and in the trenches. His memories keep seeping into the hardships him and his soldiers must endure.
Spectacular Visuals
One of the most haunting images is when the men must lay down gun beds within eyeshot of the German lines. Climbing down into the crater, they’re soon gassed. The image of smoke slowly seeping into the area as the men panic over their survival is gripping.
As they all take cover with urine-soaked cloth over their faces, the audience is left with the lingering feeling of being right there with them.
Show Dates
High production values and committed actors make The Wars an astonishing feat. The tour began in Calgary on September 21, 2007 and continues in Vancouver until November 3 at the Playhouse Theatre. Tickets can be purchased at: (604) 873-3311.
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