Between the Lines
All the Daze Productions Brings a Storybook to Life
By Taylor Onski
Sometimes, a good book allows us to escape the real world for just a minute. A musical does, too. But what happens when these two things collide? All the Daze’s latest musical Between the Lines will answer just that. Based on the acclaimed young adult novel by Jodi Picoult and her daughter, Samantha van Leer, Between the Lines follows Delilah McPhee who, after her parents’ divorce and difficulties fitting in at her new school, turns to a fairy tale book for comfort, escape, and friendship.
“There’s a good duality present,” says 18-year-old Kiki Klages, who plays Delilah. “As it’s such a big musical, we can have a realistic contemporary story and fairy tale with all the characters.” Klages notes while the character of Delilah feels alone at times, Klages herself feels far from it, working with this troupe of All the Daze Alumni putting together this performance.
Sixteen-year-old Julian Tonkens is the youngest member of the cast, and he’s tasked with a pretty big duality of his own, playing both Ryan the boy and Frump the half-dog tap dancer. “Usually you only play one character. But in this show, [I play] complete opposites. It’s really fun and a good acting exercise,” says Tonkens. “Everyone here is so nice and welcoming and awesome to hang out with. It’s always just a blast acting with all my friends.”
Along with the musical’s powerful story and delightful tap dances, its music is something vocal director Aislyn Douglas says really captures the show’s exploratory nature. “There’s a little bit of everything for everyone in every song. You’ve got those really emotional musical theatre ballads, beautiful love songs, really fun, upbeat, comedic songs, jazz, blues, rock, and cabaret style music,” says Douglas. “The ensemble has just as big of a part vocally as do the lead roles. So it’s really nice hearing the entire cast together on basically every song.”
Whether it’s the genre-ranging music, tap-dancing animals, tales of mermaids, or the emotional bond between a mother and daughter, Between the Lines has something for everyone, and gives audiences their own form of escapism—like that of a good book, in the best way possible.
Catch Between the Lines at Magnus Theatre on January 31 and February 1. To purchase tickets, visit magnustheatre.com. To learn more about All the Daze, follow them on Facebook or Instagram, or visit allthedaze.ca.