Drama 4m/3f
David French’s Leaving Home is a Canadian classic: The play has been produced across the country and internationally, studied in universities and high schools, and named by the Oxford Dictionary of Theatre as one of the “1,000 Essential Plays in the English Language.” In 1972, when Leaving Home burst onto the scene, it transformed Canadian theatre — and it has lost none of its emotional power in the intervening years. In Leaving Home we are introduced to the Mercer family, immigrants from Newfoundland to Toronto, struggling to find their way in the late 1950s. Ben has just graduated from high school, and his brother Billy’s wedding is imminent. But conflicts with their volatile father, Jacob, threaten to destroy the family and the life they’ve carved out for themselves.
“A play of remarkable dynamic life…the lacerating quality of inter-family warfare carries both superb comedy and powerful emotional force…an overwhelming dramatic experience.”
-Toronto Star
“Splendidly played…immensely moving…universal.”
-Washington Post