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Culture Musicals

Interview: Deborah Hay

CAROLINE, OR CHANGE book and lyrics by Tony Kushner, music by Jeanine Tesori, directed by Robert McQueen, with Arlene Duncan, Deborah Hay, Michael Levinson, Cameron MacDuffee, Sabryn Rock and Alana Hibbert. Presented by Acting Up Stage and Obsidian at the Berkeley Street Theatre (26 Berkeley). Previews from Saturday (January 21), opens Monday (January 23) and runs to February 12, Wednesday-Saturday 8 pm, Sunday 7 pm (except February 12 at 3 pm), matinee Saturday 2 pm. $32-$45. 416-368-3110. See listing.

Your first clue that Caroline, Or Change isn’t a traditional musical is when you meet the title character, a black maid in 1963 Louisiana, in a basement doing the laundry.

The washing machine – belonging to her employers, the Gellmans – is a toe-tapping female singer, the dryer’s a seductive James Brown type and the radio Caroline flips on becomes a Motown trio like the Supremes.

The show, with book and lyrics by Tony Kushner (Angels In America) and music by Jeanine Tesori, plays with “change” in lots of ways. It’s about the budding civil rights movement, the coins that Caroline finds in the pockets of young Noah Gellman and the rigidity in the uncompromising, proud Caroline, a single mother trying to care for a family of four on $30 a week.

“Ironically, a lot of the impetus for change comes from Rose Gellman, who’s recently married into the family after the death of Noah’s mother,” explains actor Deborah Hay. “She’s a savvy, liberal woman raised by a left-wing father, but she’s a Northerner thrust into a foreign situation.”

When Rose suggests that Caroline keep the change in Noah’s pants to teach him not to be so careless with money, she sets up a treacherous situation for everyone in the household.

“A lot about Rose is naive,” admits Hay, a leading Shaw Festival performer who moves to Stratford next summer. “She sees herself as a friend to Caroline, but can she be that, given the South’s sociopolitical dynamic?”

Stuart, Rose’s new husband, is emotionally unavailable and retreats into playing his clarinet Noah doesn’t want a replacement for his mother.

“Rose’s tactic is to be aggressively kind,” says Hay. “Her modus operandi is to get in there and overwhelm with compassion. At first, her determination made me cringe, but I’ve come to admire Rose.”

All the action takes place to an instrumental accompaniment in this sung-through musical. And what a range of music it is: blues, rock, 40s Andrews Sisters, Eastern European Jewish tunes, Mozart, even well-known Christmas and Hanukkah melodies, all with Kushner’s clever, suggestive lyrics.

Download associated audio clip.

“The Gellmans often sing patter songs with a klezmer feel,” smiles Hay. “They’re the kind of tunes we’re encouraged to talk-sing, a means of communication. On the other hand, the music for Caroline and her daughter Emmie is big and beautiful, some of it rooted in gospel and spirituals.”

Download associated audio clip.

The evolution of musical styles brings Hay back to the theme of change, an often-discussed topic during rehearsals.

“As humans, all we’re certain of is that everything changes and that eventually we die. Ironically, those are the two things we can’t easily accept.

“I love the show for the fact that it’s a beautiful journey toward the acceptance of change. Things are going to move ahead whether we consent or not, but happily, here people come to terms with the fact that’s the way it’s going to be.”

Additional Interview Clip

Deborah’s most challenging moment in the show:

Download associated audio clip.

jonkap@nowtoronto.com

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