Most people know veteran Newfoundland actress and comedian Mary Walsh from her Canadian television roles spanning three decades, including “CODCO” and “This Hour Has 22 Minutes.”
A lesser-known part of Walsh's impressive resume is her work behind the scenes as a writer, director and producer.
Walsh is the creator of a new touring comedic show in marking Canada's 150th birthday called the “Canada, It's Complicated Tour.”
The tour, supported by a grant from Heritage Canada, reaches Sudbury as part of its cross-country tour on Sunday, Oct. 15. You can check out the show at Laurentian University's Fraser Auditorium starting at 8 p.m.
Sorry, Marg Delahunty fans, we've got bad news — Walsh herself doesn't appear in the show. In fact, although she's a producer and writer with the show, as well as its creator, she won't even be on site.
Walsh was supposed to join the tour's Ottawa shows this week, but she was injured while hiking last weekend, and can't travel right now.
The show features young talent performing what the tour's website describes as “satirical sketches and songs that examine the joys, foibles, tragedies and triumphs of Canada as it is today – and where it will be in the future.”
As you might expect from a show penned by Walsh, as well as other Canadian comedic talent including Thomas King and Derek Seguin, the show pushes the envelope, skewering traditional representations of Canadian history.
The production's opening song is entitled “The Foundation of Our Country is a Big Fat Lie.”
In a phone interview, Walsh said there's a quote from a Dene chief pertaining to Canadian history that's really stuck with her.
“One of the Dene chiefs said not that long ago it's hard to discover a place that's totally occupied,” she said. “It would be like if he decided right now to go over and discover England.”
Walsh said she'd always thought about explorers such as Jacques Cartier and John Cabot “discovering” Canada, until she realized how ridiculous this is, “when there have been people here for thousands of years.”
She said she thinks Canada's sesquicentennial has not just been a celebration of the country's birthday, but also a questioning of our history, some of which is not-so-nice.
“If we can come to terms with who we really are and want to be, maybe the next 150 years can be extraordinarily glorious,” Walsh said.
There's actually a Sudbury connection to the “Canada, It's Complicated Tour.” Now based in Yellowknife, Greyson Gritt, the show's co-musical director along with Tiffany Ayalik, was born in Sudbury and raised in Warren.
Gritt and Ayalik together form the band Quantum Tangle, which won the 2017 Juno Award for Indigenous Music Album of the Year.
“Working with Mary Walsh was incredible,” said Gritt, who won't be there in person for the Sudbury show, but whose relatives will likely take it in. “Tiffany and I got to even throw our hats in the ring and write some sketches for the show, which was a lot of fun.”
As an Ojibwe-Métis person, Gritt appreciates the show's take on Canadian history.
“Mary Walsh has broken down so many walls and glass ceilings,” Gritt said.
“You name it, she's done it. It's really great to have such a great ally bring this to the forefront, and also be so open to hearing even more criticisms on her opinions and what she has to say.”
If you'd like to take in the show, tickets cost about $24, and are available through Sudbury Theatre Centre's box office. Visit www.sudburytheatre.ca.
