'You Oughta Know' that Jagged Little Pill: The Musical is playing in Ottawa
The music of Ottawa's Alanis Morissette is coming to life on stage in her hometown.
Jagged Little Pill: the Musical features music 'you oughta know' and it is now on stage at the National Arts Centre, presented by Broadway Across Canada.
"To be bringing it to Ottawa, her home town, I feel so proud and I feel so excited," says Heidi Blickenstaff, who plays Mary Jane Healy in the show.
The musical is inspired by the album of the same name, but it is not a biography of Morisette.
"That was kind of the one thing Alanis was adamant about when we were building the musical, was that she did not want it to be a bio-musical of her life," says Blickenstaff. "Instead, it is a completely fictionalized story about an American family that looks perfect on the outside but actually is in total crisis in many, many different ways."
Blickenstaff's character, Mary Jane Healy, is the mother in that family.
"I think so many people can relate to what's going on with the Healy family, just because of all of the issues. I think it's almost impossible not to see yourself or someone you love reflected on stage."
Topics like opioid addiction, racism, and sexual assault feature, and the show is meant for audiences 14 and older.
"It is kind of a deep dive every night," Blickenstaff says.
Morissette dropped by the show when it was in Washington D.C. Her parents, however, made an appearance at Tuesday night's opening performance in Ottawa.
"It was amazing meeting them! I hadn't met them yet and they are just the loveliest people," says Blickenstaff.
"It's my first time in Ottawa and God, it's just so beautiful here."
Jagged Little Pill: the Musical is in Ottawa until June 4.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.