A hit show from last year’s Vancouver Fringe Festival arrives at Gateway Theatre this week.
“It’s like a childhood story for adults,” said writer and performer Beverley Elliott.
The play Sink or Swim introduces the audience to five-year-old girl Smelly Elliott, who leaves the safety of her family’s farm for the chaos of a one-room schoolhouse. The young girl’s fears and foibles are revealed in a series of songs and poignant anecdotes.
Elliott said the name Sink or Swim comes from a story about water in the show, but it’s more of a metaphor about life.
“In every situation that’s given to you, you either have the choice to sink or you learn to swim,” said Elliott.
“It’s a metaphor about coming of age and rising to the challenges that you are presented with. Sometimes you fall down and you’ve just got to get back up again.”
All the stories are based on Elliott’s real experiences and she plays all the characters herself, accompanied by on-stage pianist Bill Costin.
“I go back and forth, acting the kid as well as narrating the story. I also play other characters such as the mom, the teacher, the bus driver and the police,” said Elliott.
She said she wanted to explore the first time a child leaves home as separation is an important theme in life.
“It’s funny that, for some reason, I have a crystal clear memory of Grade 1 while other times at school are kind of blurry,” said Elliott.
She remembers the big classroom where students from Grade 1 to 8 all studied together. Here, there were Grade 8 bullies, a scary teacher and a kind bus driver. A near-death experience was also performed in the play.
“We go through different ages during our lives. We separate from our parents, became teenagers, fall in love, get married and start a career,” added Elliott.
“This play takes place in the time zone when you first realize you’re a separate individual from your parents.”
Elliott differentiates characters through voices and body language, and sings songs written by herself to express the feelings of the young girl she was.
“Sometimes I speak like a child, very innocently, and then when I’m playing the teacher, I become more aggressive, then I play my mom and become very caring,” explained Elliott.
Projected images on the stage also help bring the audience back to the 1960s, when the stories are set.
“It’s my story, but not just my story. It becomes universal because it strikes a chord with other people,” said Elliott.
“Everybody has a mean teacher at some point, and everybody may encounter a bully at school, a kind bus driver, a kind older person, or have a near-death experience.
“And people know a situation where there was a lot of fear that leads to an epiphany.”
Elliott hopes her play will make the audience start to think of their own experiences and tell their own stories.
“When I did the show at the fringe festival, so many people wrote me an email and said I have to tell you about a teacher I had or about this one time I almost drowned,” said Elliott.
“Theatre shows us our lives on stage. Even though the faces are different and the situations are different, the themes are often the same. It reminds us that we are not alone.
“I promise you this will be a very heart-warming show.”
Sink or Swim will be performed from Nov. 16 to 25. Tickets are $29 and are available at GatewayTheatre.com or by calling 604-270-1812.
