Of Mice and Men

Whether it’s a case of life imitating art or the other way around, Norm McLeod cracks a wry smile when he discusses how he came to direct Theatre Kent’s Production, Of Mice and Men, playing next week at Kiwanis Theatre.

“People make plans … God laughs,” McLeod said during a rehearsal last week.

McLeod, named outstanding director at the Western Ontario Drama League Festival last year for Theatre Kent’s production of Doubt: A Parable (which also won as best production in the Festival) had planned to take this year off.

When the director slated to do Of Mice and Men had to bow out due to a family emergency, McLeod was asked to step in. He’s dedicating the production to the former director whom he describes as a “dear friend.”

“There’s a real parallel going on here because (writer John) Steinbeck changed the title of the work after reading Robert Burns’ poem To a Mouse,” McLeod said. “It’s in that poem that Burns wrote ‘The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft agley (The best laid schemes of mice and men / Often go awry)’

“My best plans have gone awry, just as those of the characters in the play.”

The drama features a segment in the lives of two drifters, George Milton (veteran local actor Chris Aldred), an intelligent but uneducated man, and Lennie Small (Graeme Millington in his first Theatre Kent role), a man of large stature and great strength but limited mental abilities.

The two share a dream of settling down on a farm someday, but life has other plans for the two.

Also in the cast are Bill Tye, Tom Coatsworth, Lee Highgate, Chris Davidson, Tori Franks, Neil Wood (winner of last year’s outstanding performance by an actor in Doubt), Andre Paradis, Joseph Benoit, Eric Bristow, Steve Reinhardus and Bill Presant.

The play also includes a dog, Robin, which McLeod “auditioned” on a downtown sidewalk on his way to work.

“I noticed a woman walking a dog which I thought would be perfect for the play,” McLeod said. “I walked up to the owner with the introduction, ‘I hope you don’t think I’m strange but …’ and that’s how he ended up in the play.”

Robin is the pet of Susan Nixon of CK Animal Rescue, who said after being taken aback momentarily, agreed to see if the dog would like being involved.

“Robin’s such a well-adjusted dog, despite all he’s been through,” she said. “He’s adjusted well and everyone likes him.”

Robin was one of several dogs rescued from Joplin, Missouri several years ago and is a permanent feature at CK Animal Rescue.

Of Mice and Men is the third play in Theatre Kent’s season and it will be the troupe’s entry in the Western Ontario Drama League Festival. Casting is already under way for Steel Magnolias that will be performed May 7-9.