All aboard the train of life in the Colorado premiere of ‘The Railway Children’

Debut Theatre’s 16-person troupe of young people powerfully tells Edith Nesbit’s classic story in a no-nonsense adaptation that focuses on character

The Debut Theatre Company was co-founded in 1991 by Lee Osterhout-Kaplan and Gregg Osterhout and is Northern Colorado’s only troupe-structured, nonprofit, young people’s theatre school. The school offers classes for students from grades 3-12 and has a prestigious advanced audition-based group called the Debut Players. The Railway Children is the Debut Players’ 62^nd show, and this production is their second Colorado premiere of a new play.

The production follows three siblings, Bobbie (Kayla Metzger), Peter (Ash Gensel), and Phyllis (Kara Beall), who collectively tell the audience a story from their childhood about how their family was forced to move from London to “The Three Chimneys,” a rural town near the railway. They do this because their father (Xander Yates), who works for the government, has been imprisoned after being falsely accused of spying. The children, young Bobbie (Lily Halac), young Peter (Griffin Rickart), and young Phyllis (Eliana Carcasson), befriend an old gentleman (Miles Crosson) who regularly takes the train near their home. This older gentleman eventually helps prove their father’s innocence and the family is reunited. Before Father is freed, the family takes care of a Russian exile, Mr. Szczepansky (also played by Yates), who came to England looking for his family, and Jim (Carter Mills), who suffers a broken leg in a train tunnel.

Group photo of the troupe from bows | Photo: Toni Tresca

The play is based on the children’s book by English writer Edith Nesbit and is adapted for the stage by Mike Kenny. Nesbit wrote over 60 books for children and was a political activist and co-founder of the Fabian Society, a socialist organization later affiliated with the Labour Party. The Railway Children is thought to have been influenced by The Dreyfus Affair, in which Captain Alfred Dreyfus was falsely convicted of treason and served five years in prison for communicating French military secrets to the German Embassy in Paris before it was revealed the accusations were false.

The group’s motto, “theatre for young people, by young people,” is so much more than a motto; it’s the unique reason for this program to exist. The Players are one of only three troupe-based children’s performance organizations founded between California and Minnesota. Being a theatre troupe means that these young people are asked to take on all aspects of their production. The young artists take care of acting, research, set design, set construction, choosing sound cues, curating props, lighting design, picking music, designing costumes, publicity, and house management. As Lee Osterhout-Kaplan mentioned in her director’s speech, there are no adults backstage during performances, so everything you are seeing is not only performed but operated and designed by this same talented group of young people.

From top-to-bottom, this set is well-constructed and is strongly utilized to tell the play’s story. The play starts with a closed curtain and features trunks and flowers on either side of the stage. At the top of the show, the curtains open to reveal a three-area set with set dressing by set assistant Xander Yates and feature set dressing by Kayla Metzger. In total, 12 members of the troupe contributed to the set’s construction or painting process, and their hard work shows.

The back part of the set is an impressive brick wall with three see-through holes — a nod to train tunnels — that cover the length of the stage. There are raised wooden platforms on stage left and right, and behind each are two wooden fixtures that can be turned together to resemble a house, or all four put together to represent a train tunnel. The prop team, headed by Ash Gensel and aided by Eliana Carcasson and Clara Shurna, adds well-placed props throughout the piece, like a delicious birthday cake and a toy train.

Lighting assistant James Sudhlater does nice work with colors on the back scrim, and I like the effect that was used to create leaves in certain moments. Group scenes in the front of the stage were always well-lit. However, due to a combination of actors slightly missing their marks and not quite enough light, in smaller scenes, actors were occasionally in the dark.

The costumes, by Charlotte Mills and assisted by Allison Miller and Kara Beall, are rich and varied. From the high-fashion garments of London to rural working apparel, each outfit is smartly chosen, and costume changes for ensemble actors are effectively coordinated.

The Railway Children was a great choice for this troupe because it features two versions (younger and older) of three children that works well with this mixed-aged cast. The ensemble has good chemistry, and you get a sense that they enjoy telling this story together. Both sets of siblings are very believable as relatives, and I quite liked the sharp comedic performances by both actresses, Beall and Carcasson, who played Phyllis.

Cunningham’s work as the mother is emotionally layered, and she does a great job of attempting to hide her pain from her kids. Cheng’s portrayal of Mr. Perks, an older character that serves as a surrogate father figure for the siblings in the rural town, is superb. Cheng does a nice job with his aged physicality, and it was clear that under his gruff exterior was a heart of gold.

As the Players continue their run, I would encourage the performers to focus on their diction. The play takes place in England, which means the entire cast is doing accents. I was impressed with the overall clarity but had difficulty understanding some of the dialogue from individual performers throughout – particularly in quick comedic sections – and especially when the young siblings are arguing and around the train. This never significantly interferes with the performance, but I would urge the Players to continue to work to make every line clear and understandable so the audience can fully understand the story. 

This is a timely tale that shows children being forced to adapt to an uncertain and ever-changing world. Osterhout-Kaplan’s direction helps young people in Fort Collins collaboratively create deeply moving theatre. Debut Theatre’s Colorado Premiere of The Railway Children is an impressive display of the troupe model, and its story is perfect for families today as it reminds audiences that there’s always hope.