Spirited Halley Armstrong (Matreya Scarrwener) is a 12-year-old Pathfinder, eager to earn all of her badges. When she volunteers to read stories to a young soldier (Mik Byskov) injured in Afghanistan, he responds with his own shocking story—one that throws Halley’s cherished beliefs about life and hope into question.
“Funny and heartfelt, Armstrong’s War touches on many themes—imagination versus experience, fiction versus reality, hope versus hopelessness, the deep honour between soldiers, and the ethics of mercy killing,” according to Colleen Murphy, playwright, Armstrong’s War. “But it is Stephen Crane’s masterpiece, The Red Badge of Courage, that brings the young Pathfinder and the wounded soldier onto the same emotional battlefield.”
Colleen Murphy has served as guest playwright at Edmonton’s Citadel Theatre since 2010. Her new play, Pig Girl, will premiere at Theatre Network in Edmonton in November. Murphy won the 2007 Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama for her play The December Man (L’homme de decembre). Murphy is also an award-winning filmmaker; many of her films have played in festivals around the world.
Armstrong’s War, a world premiere, stars Mik Byskov and Matreya Scarrwener and is directed by Mindy Parfitt.
Arts Club Theatre Company’s Armstrong’s War
Dates: October 17 to November 9; Mondays and Tuesdays, 7:30 pm; Wednesday through Saturday, 8 pm; Wednesday and Saturday matinees, 2 pm
Venue: Revue Stage, 1601 Johnston Street, Granville Island, Vancouver
Tickets: $25 and $35, including tax and fees; available online or via phoning 604.687.1644
