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Home for Boys
by Robin Taylor Wright
"One day you'll be home, safe at home.
One day we gonna get home."
- Casey
It's 1996. Randall and PJ live in a small town group home called Butterbur Children Services. Although many boys have come and gone for various reasons, the two stick together like the assigned brothers that they are. Randall, although two years younger than the late-bloomer PJ, enjoys a relationship of control masked as care - Randall has seen terrible things and does not want this to happen to PJ.
When the reserved Casey arrives, it shakes up the foundation of the aforementioned relationship. Casey's independence and taste in heavy music intrigues PJ, who also admires Casey's neutral respect without belittling him. Worried for PJ's safety, Randall manipulates his way into getting Casey to leave, playing to his history of escaping. Although the headstrong Casey tries to ignore Randall, it cultivates into a very dangerous situation that leaves one in a medical crisis.
A story of found family, hope, friendship, and seeing the light amongst the abandonment, the story is comedic and playful without being heavyhanded with the themes.
An adaptation of Home for Boys for UK audiences was devised by Sarah Ewen under the title Calls from Castlemar.
Production/reading/workshop history: 2014, University of Toronto
Calls from Castlemar
History - the why?
Another writing exercise in Djanet Sears' playwriting class at University of Toronto. Robin thought back to his very first job. Like, a job job, not just twenty bucks for watching the Klassen kids for the evening. One with a paycheck and everything. Fifteen years old, his childhood friend Andrew had parents that ran a group home, even though he never really knew what that meant. At this job, he did one-to-one work with the inhabitants, who were thoughtful and amazing young men his age who were dealt the shittiest deck of cards. Playing guitars with one of the residents, the character Casey started to percolate.
But it wasn't Casey who appeared in that five minute presentation for final evaluation. Casey was refered to. But there were two characters named Alan and PJ. Allan was a conniving little snot who, after a disagreement with the youth worker Miguel, decides to call in a fake abuse complaint about Miguel. The meek PJ, with all his courage, manages to convince Alan that it's a terrible idea and will hurt everyone. Alan, defeated, plans a revenge on everyone except for PJ.
"Family is about sacrifice."
- Randall
Yoonivursity of Chranna, 2014
So after the little presentation, Robin chatted with teaching assistant and dramaturg extraordinaire Grace Smith to see if she could help punch things up and develop it into something full. Together, they roped in Steph Berntson, along with Jane Alexys reading for Casey, Catt Filippov for Randall, and Mx. Sly as PJ. After a couple of nights of edits, stumbles, and readthroughs, Robin felt ready to shop it out... to the University Theatre people of course. The ones with the resources, the keys to the theatre, the intercampus clout.
A selected monologue from Casey was presented at the Helen Gardiner Pheland Playhouse in January of 2025. It was a fun little jam with some talented writers showing their stuff. Mimi Warshaw did Casey's monologue and she nailed it.
"...we had a youth helper named Ronnie, and he really got me into a movie called Easy Rider. I wanted what Wyatt and Billy had… the open road. Adventure. The desert. Everything. I just wanted to fly. I don’t wanna run. I wanna fly."
- Casey
Glass Reflections performance, July 2015
And so, Robin pitched to the University's theatre community. One of them took the bait: UC Follies. Knocked off his feet by her directorial work on David Yee's Paper Series, he knew that Deborah Lim would be the best person to take the captain's seat. Even more surprisingly, Deb said yes. Cobbling together an amazing team, including Orly Zebak assisting Deb, Nancy Hu stage managing, Lucy McPhee assisting Nancy, set and costume design by Julia Howman, AV by Giuseppe Condello, and fight choreography by Shak Haq, her company Glass Reflections took UC Follies' blessing and created an outdoor show in the quad of the University College building. Dionysus smiled down, providing perfect weather for each night.
Filling the roles were Jane once again returning as Casey, with Grace Poltrack as Randall, and Caitie Graham as PJ. The few reviews we got were quite nice.
2015 poster. Model: Julia Howman
"The best part of writing letters is hoping they get read."
- PJ
The lovely corridor of the University College quad, where we did HFB in 2015.
L to R: Nancy Hu, Lucy McPhee, Deborah Lim, Caitie Graham
"If you flinch, you lose."
- Randall
"Movies are for sharing, aren't they?"
- PJ
"Just because he's my friend doesn't mean you're not."
- PJ
... and then Robin hit the road.
Inspired by one of his favourite books, Our Band Could Be Your Life, Robin took what little money he had as a student/short order cook and booked plane tickets for Saskatoon and Vancouver. He had something he really wanted to share with Home for Boys, so he booked the tickets first and sent out pitches for performance ideas: meet local artists, secure a venue, and promote, promote, promote! He even made a crudely drawn little comic book as Casey's back story.
Fortunately, based on the amazing friendships he developed over the years, these avenues connected to talented people within these communities. First stop, the Refinery Theatre in Saskatoon. Robin was born there, so it was a lovely coming home moment. The appropriate media outlets were contacted, and he cobbled his team quickly. The reading was well-received and the cast (Jackie Block as Randall, Paige Goodman as PJ, Lauren Younghusband as Casey, and Melanie Rogowski on Stage Directions.)
Next stop was Vancouver. Robin had a contact at the Cafe Deux Soleils (RIP) through his old band - fun fact, he saw Shad hanging out there and said hello. Getting onto the Rumble Artists forum, he wrangled some talent from the city to help put this reading in motion.
As Randall, we had Aryn Mott. As PJ, Eleanor Felton. As Casey, Avery Burrow. Yvette Benson jumped in to do stage directions. The night was packed (as seen in the picture with Aryn), and Robin threw the dice looking for a place to crash. Fortunately, his friend Skye knew someone. This mini-play tour adventure would carry on a decade later as we're about to read.
Revised Reading Tour 2025
Fort Frances, Ontario
It was a long tough road getting back on his feet after a dormant decade, but his new role as a parent propelled him into action. He wanted his kid to witness artistic drive. Instead of complaining about being in a town of 8,000 that celebrates a triumvirate of hobbies he knows little nor cares about (hunting, fishing, hockey), he instead reached out to people. He started writing. He realized that being sore about being in a community with very little perceived 'scene' does absolutely nothing: he wasn't creating anything himself. Everyone has been really good to him. Still doesn't like the cold, though.
He started talking to the human beings he thought would despise him for being weird. He learned that everyone is weird. And wonderful. And he decided to put on a reading of an old play with some weird, wonderful people. He was also second-hand inspired by a musician he was dating at the time, too.
So boom. He created Laughing Cactus Productions, carrying on his dad's old record label in a new form.
His friend owned a tea room, so he gathered a talented group of performers to put on a show. And did they ever. Home for Boys was back.
"I'd rather talk about dreams."
- Randall
In this scene, Randall fights for dominance during PJ's birthday party. Casey's gift for PJ is an original song, but Randall does his best to derail it. After this exchange, it's clear that PJ is becoming more independent and not so much under Randall's 'forced wing'.
Winnipeg, Manitoba
RANDALL: I couldn’t protect him.
CASEY: He doesn’t need protecting.
It was time to test this baby out on the road. Fortunately, he had a couple friends in that One Great City to get something together. The venue was a basement of a house that doubled as a concert space, and the owner was enthusiastic about getting something different in there. Although it was a small but loving crowd, Robin continued to learn about pacing and feeling the audience (when it was funny, when the energy dipped).
Some young Turks at the University of Winnipeg's drama program took the tiny stage: Emma Stevens played Randall, Chael Donald played Casey, and Bronwyn Smyth read stage directions. Comedian Carole Cunningham made her acting debut as PJ. What a fun night it was.
From left to right, we see Catherine Gadd Bruyere reading stage directions; Katelyn Bruyere plays Randall; Joelle Bruyere plays PJ; and Brittany Hayes is the odd person out not being in the Bruyere family, playing Casey.
Stratford, Ontario
On a road trip with his kid, he decided to make a stop at a new cabaret lounge opened by a high school friend. He asked some old friends, including his own sister, to do a little reading. It was Laughing Cactus' first of many shows at the Bunker Lounge. Every time they read it, Robin listens, feels the audience, looks for moments that just don't feel right out loud, and the laughs. A play like this needs the laughs. It featured Emma Rudy as Randall, Peggy Coffey as PJ, Madeline Elliott Kennedy as Casey. Sarah Hagerty tackled the stage directions for this one.
L to R: Emma Rudy, Peggy Coffey, Madeline Elliott Kennedy
Randall caught PJ with a swimsuit mag. PJ only wanted to know more about female anatomy, but he was rebuffed by Randall, saying that he "wasn't ready".
Later, PJ musters up the nerve to ask Casey what 'it' looks like.
PJ: "I was thinking of inviting Gabriella from East Lemoine, but her and Randall will probably have sex."
CASEY. "Oh, I really don’t think so."
Montreal, Quebec
One more stop oughta do it. This trip was special, because he was reuniting with an old friend he hadn't seen in years due to his hermit-like isolation: Jane Alexys. If you've been paying attention, yes - that Jane who played Casey back at the University of Toronto. She too reprised her role this time, and was kind enough to let him use her beautiful studio space, shared with her partner who took amazing photos and videos that night. Tagging along was New Yorker Sophie Mae Reppert as Casey, and Toronto talent Sarah Rodricks. We were lucky to have Vanessa Schmoelz step in to do stage directions.
Casey is suspicious about PJ's birthday cake, knowing that PJ has very specific allergies. PJ assures Casey that he put in all the ingredients himself, and there's not a drop of milk at the group home.
L to R: Vanessa Schmoelz, Sarah Rodricks, Sophie Mae Reppert, Jane Alexys
"I don't piss and tell, Randall"
- PJ
L to R: Carole Cunningham, Bronwyn Smyth, Chael Donald, Emma Stevens
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