Dear Adults | Virag Dombay and Harry Fritsch

Dear Adults is a verbatim piece performed by children that explores different dynamics they have with adults and provides a stage for their questions and concerns to be heard.

It’s the kind of show that I wished I would’ve had access to as a child, especially with growing up in a rural town and the difficulties that arose there. To be able to have those honest discussions with the adults in my life is something I yearned for when I was younger and still do to some extent.

Created by Virag Dombay and Harry Fritsch, who also play the parents in the performance, Dear Adults doesn’t follow a traditional narrative with specific characters and a linear storyline, but instead brings real questions, truth telling and themes to the stage with many of those real-life issues coming from the performers themselves, creating at times a documentary feel but in the body of a dramatic work with the incorporation of spoken word elements.

The children vary in age, but each cast member is given the chance to highlight their acting talent and it was telling that this was a project that they had input in as some of the speeches they delivered were done with a lot of passion and grabbed your attention.

Virag Dombay and Harry Fritsch’s portrayal of the parents was great, they were able to convey that physically they were there but emotionally there was a sense of detachment, and I liked how they were able to enhance the performances of the kids while also getting the point across that adults sometimes fail to understand the bigger problems that their children might be experiencing

Other parts such as the soundtrack fitted well and was a nice touch. It had a quirky vibe to some of the music and sounds which added great effect when it went from some of the lighter and more comedic parts and then catching you off guard when it would tackle the heavier subjects.

Dear Adults touches on many different issues and asks a wide range of different questions. Some were more light-hearted, others more serious. Some of the serious questions and concerns were the ones that stood out to me the most and felt very emotional.

From being bullied at school, the impact that divorce can have, and the struggles of being put into gender roles and having to fulfil society’s expectation of what a boy or girl is supposed to be, nothing was off limits and it was never afraid to address the deeper challenges of childhood and adolescence.

It’s an important show for adults and their children. It’s a show where you could take your child to and be entertained, but also be educated and most importantly a chance to create a discussion and engage with children around their fears, concerns, or complicated questions that they are looking to have answered. Even if you’re an uncle, aunt, older sibling, grandparent, or any adult, it’s something worthwhile to see.

I’m interested in the future of Dear Adults and where it’s going to go next. We can at times forget the complexities of children, and even those of a young age are capable of deep thought on the issues that unfold in what can be a strange and frightening world. Virag, Harry, the young cast and everyone involved in the production should be commended for creating a platform where the voices of our future can be heard in all honesty and a safe space.