Photo Credit: @briannejang of @bb_collective

Set Design: Scott Spidell, Lighting Design: Alison Yanota, Costume Design: Josée Chartrand

A review of the show and how the Canadian musical found its premiere at MacEwan.

After years of workshops across the country, Monoceros, a Canadian musical based on the award-winning novel of the same name by Suzette Mayr, has found a home for its world premiere at MacEwan University. 

Monoceros follows high school student Faraday through her navigation of grief after the death of her classmate Nathan Furey. Seeking purpose, Faraday gathers everyone who had a connection to Nathan and aims to achieve one of his dreams: a unicorn assistance certificate from the Unicorn Society of Lethbridge. 

By the end of the show, the audience is left with a newfound understanding of what it means to be yourself and how communities come together and grow out of sorrow. 

The musical is a beautiful balance of grief, comedy, and warmth. Shawn Henry, the music director, describes it as a “perfect mix of a show.” 

“I remember thinking back then, ‘I hope this goes somewhere.’”

— Shawn Henry, music director of Monoceros

The work towards creating the first adaptation of a musical is unique. Anna Kuman, the choreographer of Monoceros, says that the increased freedom that comes with creating an original piece is both exciting and scary. “I feel like everyone is so excited that we’re getting to do this here, and we have had a lot of opportunities to change and make suggestions of the script based on the students that we have creating the show with us,” she says.

Henry was first introduced to the musical in 2021 at a student workshop at a university in Vancouver. He says he was surprised by the quality of the music right at first listen, and saw significant student engagement with the material.

“I remember thinking back then, ‘I hope this work goes somewhere,’” says Henry. Now, four years later, he’s in the position of music director for the world premiere of the production. He describes the soundtrack of Monoceros as a beautiful indie sound, making it a departure from typical Broadway stylings.

Along with Henry, Kuman also saw the musical in its early stages in Vancouver. Her involvement in the show began early through her connection to its creators, and upon moving her work to MacEwan, she felt that Monoceros would be “a natural fit” for the university to take on. 

Kuman’s choreographic process focused on developing motifs that reflected the two vastly different worlds within Monoceros: the bleak, rigid high school environment and the imaginative Unicorn Society. “We just got to create from our imaginations, and let our imaginations run wild,” she says.

“I think that the audience is in for a lot of surprises,” says Kuman. “I hope that the audience is brought away with just a lot of pride in building a community where you can be yourself and where a community that’s there for you and for others.”

While the creative team shaped the world of Monoceros, the actors’ performances are what anchor the story’s impact. Kenny Bye’s portrayal of Faraday makes the character both relatable and inspirational, even if the audience occasionally isn’t on her side. Bye’s performance in the opening number, “Ordinary,” immediately hooks the audience and makes Faraday the relatable character she’s designed to be.

Paired with Ashlin Turcotte’s performance as Petra, the uptight pretty girl, the two main female characters balance each other while being connected by the desire to be understood. Countered by Jésus, the comedic relief played by Malachi Short, the differences in the main characters of the show create breadth and versatility.

“I hope that the audience is brought away with a lot of pride in building a community where you can be yourself and a community that’s there for you and for others. ”

— Anna Kuman, choreographer of Monoceros

Beyond the self-discovery highlighted through Faraday’s character, Monoceros does a fabulous job of highlighting the queer experience. The representation never feels forced and rather feels genuinely relatable. Nathan Furey’s character, played by Evan Lloyd, spent most of his life being made fun of for his sexuality. Lloyd brings a sort of nonchalant energy to the character, who never feels any shame for his colourful personality.

In contrast, Trason Ridgewell plays Tom, Nathan’s secret boyfriend and Petra’s public boyfriend, who never displayed his queerness to anyone but Nathan. After Nathan’s death, Ridgewell gives a beautiful performance of how Tom’s character evolves and becomes more confident in himself. Tom’s development is solidified in Ridgewell’s beautifully chilling performance of “In a Flash,” sung alongside Camryn Bauer, who plays Nathan’s mother, Jess Furey.

Kuman and Henry both saw MacEwan’s world premiere as a step towards making the university what Kuman calls a “hub for new Canadian musical theatre.” 

Henry says he hopes that MacEwan can continue to be part of the developing journey for Canadian artists. “We kind of all agreed that we want to start to foster these Canadian works in the hopes that, you know, these new works can go on to the bigger stages kind of down the road,” he says.

Henry revealed that he is working on an original cast album recording of Monoceros with Bent River Records, which would ultimately solidify MacEwan’s theatre work as an original. He also mentioned that, come fall, MacEwan design students will allegedly have the opportunity to design the album’s cover. Monoceros has the potential to be remembered not only for its story of grief and self-discovery but as the beginning of something larger. The team hopes the musical will go on to see more productions abroad.