Shallaway Youth Choir presents ‘Sidewalk Dandelion’

Musical features talented neurodiverse ensemble

Ask cast members of “Sidewalk Dandelion” why you should go see the show in St. John’s this weekend and you’ll get a list of reasons that will make it hard for you to say no. The music is incredible, they’ll tell you. The band is awesome. The costumes are amazing. The story is an important one.

“And there’s Alan Doyle,” performer Amanda Tobin, 18, points out. “We obviously want people to know that.”

No disrespect to the legendary Great Big Sea frontman, but he’s about to be outshone.

“Sidewalk Dandelion,” presented by Shallaway Youth Choir, stars members of its neurodiverse ensemble, Lauda, in an original musical that follows sisters Emily and Sophie as they tend to the fantastical characters in their back garden. There’s a vaudevillian four-leaf clover, a hungry aphid with a European accent, a boy band called Storm and a message about how the most beautiful flowers can blossom anywhere at all with a little nurturing and acceptance.

“Hey look, there’s a dandelion growing on the sidewalk,” one character says to another. “Want me to pull it up?”

“No, it’s cool,” the other replies, saying the flower is best left to grow where it is.

The show was created by local teacher and theatre producer/creator Kyle Mcdavid, after Shallaway’s artistic director Kellie Walsh approached him with the task of coming up with a musical about the kids in Lauda, for them, and with them. Mcdavid spent months attending Lauda rehearsals, interviewing the performers and getting to know them before a story started to emerge in his mind.

“I started with the overall feeling I wanted the audience to leave the theatre with, something that would honour the neurodiverse cast members’ experience of daily life,” he explains. “The lead character’s neurodiversity isn’t explicitly mentioned in the script. It’s just implied. But my hope is that anyone facing an obstacle can relate.”

In Walsh’s experience as an educator, there aren’t many people who won’t be able to relate to the theme.

“The world is a hard place,” she says. “I don’t know one child that hasn’t been bullied. There’s not one kid who hasn’t questioned themselves because of what another human being has said to them. Our theme is truly universal: regardless of who you are, you should be celebrated.”

Some members of Lauda, who range in age from nine to 20, may have autism, ADHD, anxiety or hypersensitivity to sounds; others may be considered neurotypical. Some have extensive performing arts backgrounds while others are new to acting. With “Sidewalk Dandelion,” Mcdavid and Shallaway have created a close-knit, diverse community where everyone is encouraged to be a star. The cast includes some local musical theatre veterans like Dana Parsons and Kiersten Noel, but there’s no sense of anyone helping someone else; it’s all about learning and nurturing on an even level.

Apart from Covid-19-induced online rehearsals and delays, one of the biggest challenges in producing the show, Walsh and Mcdavid agree, came with getting experienced performers who had an established view of what a “proper” rehearsal needed to look like to let that idea go. It wasn’t at all a matter of lowering a bar, Mcdavid says; it was a matter of expanding it.

There was a learning curve for many of those involved, Walsh says.

“I have learned more about being a better educator, a better musician and a better human being from this choir and these kids than I’ve learned anywhere else in my life. I’ve learned that just because a child might be walking around in the back of the room, it doesn’t mean they’re not learning. I think a lot of us need to look at what the ‘norms’ are and tear away at them. You know what? It’s not OK that some kids have grown up under certain expectations and they don’t have the same opportunities as others to shine.”

These performers are looking forward to their time in the spotlight when “Sidewalk Dandelion” hits the St. John’s Arts and Culture Centre stage this weekend, and they’re quick to share their excitement.

Patrick Penney, 12, delivers a captivating and comical performance as Daffyd the Aphid, his first acting role, complete with a German accent he perfected by studying Youtube videos.

“There’s nothing I don’t like about him,” Patrick says of his character. “He’s energetic, he’s funny, he eats the arms of plants. I’m nervous, but mostly excited. It’s been a mix of fun and challenging.”

Amanda plays Riley, whom she fittingly describes as a “kind and smart young woman.” A member of Lauda since the beginning, Amanda is comfortable with musicals, often watching them online at home and teaching herself to sing as different characters.

“I’m definitely loving this choir. It’s a beautiful choir and I’m very thankful,” she says of Lauda. “I’m thankful for Kyle and this beautiful cast as well.”

Henry Doyle, 16, plans to get in full-on Brit pop mode when he takes to the stage as Rain, who is the lead singer of boy band Storm (which is nothing like his father’s band, Great Big Sea).

“I’m going full Harry Styles,” Henry says, breaking into the chorus of “Watermelon Sugar” in the pop star’s voice. “I expect (Rain) is going to break the internet.”

Henry, who has performed onstage multiple times in the past, mentions the show’s costumes, band and choreography as highlights, as well as the diversity of the cast when it comes to experience, personality, neurodevelopment or otherwise.

“It’s nice. I like how some people act,” he says. “I have lots of good friends here.”

Walsh can’t remember ever being this excited for opening night and tears up when she speaks of her pride in the young performers.

“I wish that every human being had five minutes to feel what it feels like to be truly and full accepted for who you are in a space like this,” she says. “As a teacher, I believe nothing feels better than being proud of yourself. I’m so proud of them and our whole team.”

“Sidewalk Dandelion” will run Friday and Saturday, July 8-9, at 7 p.m. at the St. John’s Arts and Culture Centre, with a 2 p.m. relaxed/sensoryfriendly performance (including reduced sound levels and light brightness, additional house lighting, mobility access and a designated quiet space outside the theatre) matinee on July 9. Tickets are available by calling 729-3900 and online at artsandculturecentre.com.

“Our theme is truly universal: regardless of who you are, you should be celebrated.”

Kellie Walsh