When asked to describe The Girl From North Country, Chemon Theys says it's a tragic sitcom.
The musical, which had its opening night at the Canberra Theatre Centre on Friday, is set in 1930s Minnesota. It's there that Theys, who plays Marianne, works at a boarding house owned by her parents, Elizabeth and Nick Laine (played by Lisa McCune and Peter Kowitz).
It's within this boarding house - which the Laines are struggling to keep afloat - that the story plays out, describing the troubles faced by those who live there, or are passing through.
And this is all set to the music of Bob Dylan - including Hurricane and Like a Rolling Stone - with each song capturing the feeling of a moment, rather than talking directly to it, as is the case with traditional musicals.
"I love that it shows that you don't need a song to drive a narrative but that it just adds emotion," Theys said.
"The characters step out and they can just find a way to capture the essence through Bob's lyrics, and [playwright] Connor McPherson's writing drives the story around. But it's fun to see all of these actors and performers just show the magical, holy greatness.
"But there are certain plot twists in the story for Marianne, mainly at the beginning, that make her feel stuck in the situation that she's in.
"She is looking for an escape, she's looking for a home and belonging - without spoiling the story. So people have to come and watch to find out one has got her feeling this way. And what has got everyone else feeling a certain way within the show."
Among all of the issues that the characters are facing is Marianne's pregnancy with an unknown (at least to the audience) man and Elizabeth's dementia.
The effect on the mother-daughter relationship when it comes to the latter, in particular, plays out in one of McCune's favourite scenes. It sees Marianne bathe her daughter in what is one of the musical's tender moments.
"My character, yes, she has dementia, but in some ways, she's the least afflicted person on the stage, because she's not aware of it," McCune said.
"But the impact is on her family, and what it does to them, and how they have to manage their lives. So there's lots of that cause and effect that happens in the show.
"But I think this is what's amazing about McPherson's writing, not only has he had a young girl - my daughter - who's pregnant in the show, and we never really find out who the father is.
"And people sometimes come up with different ideas about who it might be and things are not tied up neatly, which is extraordinary."
The Girl From The North Country is at the Canberra Theatre Centre until September 3. Tickets from canberratheatrecentre.com.au.
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