Anne of Green Gables: The Musical

Nearly 150 years after Lucy Maude Montgomery’s birth, her feisty Anne (‘with an e’) Shirley is as beloved as ever – as numerous theatrical, film and television adaptations of the Anne of Green Gables books attest – and Donald Harron and Norman Campbell’s musical has run uninterrupted (but for Covid) in Canada since its premiere in 1965 in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island (LM’s and Anne’s home). Anne Blythe Cooper’s production of this musical for Hobart Rep captures the nostalgic charm of Anne Shirley’s world. While the script is a little dated and won’t blow your mind in terms of dramatic journeys, this production embraces the good-hearted spirit behind the musical, delivering an enjoyable few hours’ entertainment.

Anne, a young individual of consummate imagination, soaring spirit and wide-eyed authenticity, is reluctantly received by elderly childless siblings Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert, disappointed to receive a girl from the orphanage instead of the boy they requested to help on their Avonlea farm. Marilla (Jill Holloway) is more reluctant than Matthew (Raymond Dunstan), who is immediately charmed by the precocious, sweet-natured yet trouble-prone redhead and remains firmly and desperately fond of her until the last. Anne’s schooldays adventures, with kindred spirit Diana Barry (Miki Browne) and academic-rival-so-bitter-he-could-only-be-a-later-friend Gilbert Blythe (Will Norris), are innocent and jolly, and fans of the books will recognise many familiar incidents. Beyond this, the musical never dives particularly deeply into Anne’s emotional life, nor gives any of its characters much chance to grow.

The role of Anne in this production is double-cast, with Amelia Millington performing on opening night (alternating throughout the season with Meophy Smith-Williams). Millington’s Anne is suitably playful, confident, larger-than-life, and irrepressible, although she doesn’t always capture the vulnerability and earnestness of Montgomery’s Anne (to some degree the musical itself is to blame); there are glimpses in the final scenes but it would have been nice to see a little more transition. The musical doesn’t specify the children’s ages, and this sometimes feels a bit rocky in the main performances, as though the actors aren’t always certain how young they should be pitching their performances. On the whole, though, the cast are very comfortable, with some in supporting roles shining – Dunstan delightful as the sweet, awkward Matthew; Clare Ebsworth lovely as a Mary-Poppins-esque Miss Stacy; and even minor ensemble members such as Hannah Wigston as Moody Spurgeon MacPherson exemplifying the whole company’s commitment, energy, and sense of fun.

Blythe Cooper brings together a huge cast (25+) on the Playhouse’s tiny stage, always maintaining tightness and balance in the staging, whether in the intimate scenes inside the Cuthberts’ house, or in the full-cast scenes at school or the church picnic, and the stage almost never feels too big or too small for this story, with the company doing a lovely job of world-building. (This doesn’t quite extend to capturing a sense of place, though, and some heavily Australian accents work against any efforts to portray small-town Prince Edward Island. However, this is probably still a smarter choice than risking inconsistent Canadian accents.)

For a company of predominantly younger performers (except in key adult roles), the ensemble is notably mature and well-bonded, both musically and in terms of dynamic connections. The whole cast is vocally assured and manage to work well with the recorded orchestral backing tracks (necessities and limitations of scale in a low-budget context), even if the recordings are at times a little hard for the audience to hear. Janet Smith very fruitfully tackles the epic challenge of multiple period costumes for each cast member, and the overall look is complemented by Rogan Brown and Andrew Cooper’s lovingly constructed set featuring Green Gables itself, and a scrim on which is projected outdoor scenery (an excellent concept, almost successfully realised).

Anica Boulanger-Mashberg

Anica Boulanger-Mashberg is a Hobart-based writer, editor and reviewer.

Photographers: Wayne Wagg and Bob Linacre