Ottawa Little Theatre (OLT) is performing The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time from Aug. 21–Sept. 7.
“This is not the typical show that Ottawa Little Theatre audiences have seen before from this company,” says lead cast member Simon-Rys Landry.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is a story about a 15-year-old boy named Christopher, who tries to figure out who killed his neighbour’s dog. However, along his journey, Christopher finds hidden truths about his family and about himself.
Landry, who plays Christopher, has been studying acting at the University of Ottawa for the past year, and says that developing this role has been a joy, and a challenge.
Photo by Maria Vartanova.
“The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time tells the story of Christopher, who is ambiguously, but also kind of explicitly, neurodivergent on the spectrum,” they say. “I’m someone who is also autistic, so being able to just relax into myself and let those nuances come from me directly is really interesting.”
Landry says that one of the best things about the character is getting to see their similarities reacting to different circumstances.
“In situations where those same emotions arise, what happens?” they say. “Do I shut down? Do I feel like I am overwhelmed? Do I stop? And since Christopher is portrayed and written as someone who is very analytical, logical and takes in a lot of information, it’s very interesting to portray that on stage.”
Photo by Maria Vartanova.
This is Landry’s debut with OLT, and says that the company runs a pretty tight ship. The stage has been newly renovated, and the cast and crew really work together as a team.
“It just feels nice to be surrounded by such a well-meaning crew of people and a production team and staff and volunteers that are so willing to get this project off the ground and have it see success,” says Landry.
Landry also says that one of the ways they’ve worked with the character for this role is by using that camaraderie within the context of this production.
Photo by Maria Vartanova.
“Christopher by himself can’t really exist and be interesting without the presence of other people,” they say. “How can I, as an actor, be opposite to all of these energies and people? Countering the other performances is probably the most interesting part of the process.”
Landry hopes that audiences take away how different this performance is, and to appreciate the abstract.
“I think people will take away that this is a contemporary show, [and there will be] things that have never been seen before on the stage,” they say. “And I hope that people will take away that empathy is everything and that people face multiple struggles, but that doesn’t define them.”
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is playing at the Ottawa Little Theatre from Aug. 21–Sept. 7, Wednesday to Saturday at 7:30pm, and Sunday matinees at 2:30pm. To get your tickets, click here. For more information about Ottawa Little Theatre, visit their website.
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