Toews hits the stage
MTC Warehouse presents adaptation of Miriam Toews’ first novel
Grant Burr

Come on, Steinbach — this could be worth the trip.

Summer of My Amazing Luck, the second production at the MTC Warehouse, is an adaptation of the Miriam Toews novel of the same name.

Toews, who was born in Steinbach, fixed herself in the literary consciousness of the public when her 2005 novel A Complicated Kindness won the Governor-General’s Award. Summer of My Amazing Luck was Toews’ first novel, originally published in 1996.

The tale has been faithfully adapted by Chris Craddock, who also plays several characters in the show, which also features Beth Graham and Caroline Livingstone. Craddock says adapting a text isn’t necessarily any easier or any harder than creating something from scratch.

“It’s tough. Equally hard, but in a different way,” he says.

The writer and actor says the challenges he did encounter were made less imposing by the fact that he and Toews share a dark sense of comedy.

“We both employ comedy in a certain way… We both use comedy and pathos equally,” he explains.

While Craddock says the play has a “Prairie mentality,” he stops short of saying the characters are uniquely local. This play has connected with audiences wherever and however it’s been presented.

The production was first developed as a radio play and has morphed through several drafts to reach its current stage form. It focuses on the character of Lucy, whom Craddock describes the emotional centre of the play. She’s a young single mother who is still dealing with the death of her mother and struggling with her relationship with her estranged father.

Craddock and Livingstone play a variety of characters, and Beth Graham anchors the play as Lucy, who narrates this production. Graham says the show is a mix of serious issues and humour.

“As an audience member, there are opinions that are amusing in some ways and thought-provoking at the same time,” she says. “It’s about family for me. You have all these opportunities in life to make connections, and I guess it shows that we’re not alone.”

Graham developed her own ideas about her character while reading the novel, and she believes Craddock has done a great job of staying true to the original text while also dealing with her frequent suggestions about other scenes that should be included. While Graham’s passion for her character is clear, it’s perhaps a good thing she didn’t get her way. If she did, audiences might have been sitting for several hours.

Most of all, she’s happy to have the chance to develop such a creative piece of theatre and present it in Winnipeg, right where the play is set.

“It’s a fantastic experience working on this play. I can’t wait to bring it to Winnipeg,” she says.