What happens when adults stop talking at children—and start listening to them instead?
That’s the question at the heart of CHILD-ish, the latest inventive production coming to Tarragon Theatre this fall.
Created by celebrated international artist Sunny Drake and directed by Andrea Donaldson, CHILD-ish is a verbatim theatre experiment that flips the script on who gets to speak. Drawing from interviews with forty brutally honest kids, the play transforms their real words about love, life, and the world into a witty, heartfelt, and eye-opening performance delivered by adult actors.
On stage, Karl Ang, Janelle Cooper, Monique Mojica, Jordan Pettle, and Asher Rose bring these fresh perspectives to life—without parody or exaggeration—simply by “trying on children’s words as adults.” The result? Something both hilarious and deeply human.
“Making his Tarragon debut, Sunny Drake invites audiences to rediscover curiosity, wonder, and vulnerability,” says Artistic Director Mike Payette. “This work celebrates the lenses of the next generation.”
Spanning ages 6 to 77, the creative team behind CHILD-ish reflects an extraordinary intergenerational collaboration years in the making—from a 2018 verbatim project to a web series filmed on Toronto playgrounds, and now, its long-awaited Toronto stage premiere.
Playful yet profound, CHILD-ish promises to make audiences laugh, reflect, and maybe even rethink how we listen to one another.
🗓️ Runs October 21 – November 16, 2025 (Opening Night: October 29)
📍 Extraspace, Tarragon Theatre
🎟️ Tickets: $22 – $72
👉 purchase.tarragontheatre.com
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