For this 69-year-old musical theatre star, there's a life lesson in playing a 16-year-old onstage

A co-production by Mirvish Productions and the Segal Centre for Performing Arts ran in Montreal last month. Now the musical is playing Toronto’s CAA Theatre Thursday to Feb. 8.

Kimberly may be younger, spunkier and more inclined to criminal activity than Pitre’s previous leading roles, like Donna in “Mamma Mia!” and Fantine in “Les Misérables.” But Pitre is ready to embrace youthful optimism.

I interviewed her about “Kimberly Akimbo” and becoming 16 again.

What does the role of Kimberly Levaco mean to you?

It’s bizarre and wonderful. I didn’t think that at my age, I would ever get the chance to play a 16-year-old girl who’s very similar to who I am in real life.

How so?

I may be 69, but I do not for a moment feel that age. I have very proudly managed to keep the childish exuberance and optimism in me. My husband sees that more than anybody, but people who know me well and have worked with me know that too.

Physically I’m altering a bit of what I do, and vocally I’m just brightening my voice a touch. But it’s a gift to revisit that time and convince myself that I’m 16 again.

On the rarity of Kimberly’s condition, being 16 and aging four times faster than the normal rate, what sort of nuance does that bring to how you approach this role?

She lives with her parents who are not the most responsible people. She is the adult in that household, the one with her feet on the ground and a mature outlook at life.

But knowing that your life expectancy is 16 makes you take things for what they are and enjoy the moment. That’s what she’s all about. She wants to have an adventure before she dies and she manages to do that.

That’s why this show is so uplifting, because that’s her whole attitude: you don’t get a second time around here, so you may as well just enjoy the ride.

What sort of process did you go through to step into this role?

It’s funny. My process is “just do it.” It’s not like I have to sit there thinking about how I’m going to move. That’s what rehearsal is for. I read the script again and again, and I get an incredible feeling for this girl and who she is. Then it’s just about doing it. Finding out how I’m going to sit and how I’m going to stutter on some lines, that’s just rehearsal. I know this girl and I knew her when I read the play.

Does the role compare to any other characters you’ve played?

Oh my god, they’re all different of course. But there’s always a little part of you in whatever you’re playing. You have to find the emotional centre of something from what you know in life, even if you haven’t experienced that actual event.

How does it compare? It’s a big role and I don’t get much of a break. I’ve done pretty much nothing but leading roles in my career, so I had told myself I wouldn’t work this hard anymore. But for this show, man, it’s worth it. This is one of the few shows where when I take my bow, I feel like I have earned the applause.

If you were thinking of not working as hard, what is it about Kimberly that told you to devote yourself to this?

The quality of the show. To me, musicals have become less about the script and just about songs, songs and songs. Often I feel like, “Oh come on, give me some scenes!” I want to know these people so that I care about them. That’s what excites me about this show.

So is the script the star of the show more so than the music?

No. It’s the most wonderful marriage of the two. The lyrics are for an actor to perform, not just stand there singing notes. It’s a monologue, it’s a person talking, and that’s what singing is to me anyways: talking and communication.

The story itself feels multi-generational. Kimberly’s in a 70-year-old’s body, then there’s her parents and her high school friends. That aspect is reflected in the cast as well. What’s it been like working with these younger actors with less professional stage experience than you?

It’s one of the things I appreciate the most about what I do for a living. Not everybody has a chance to hang out with and work with people of different generations.

Now, of course, I’m usually the oldest one in the cast. My parents in this cast are 30 years younger than me, the kids at the high school are 40 to 45 years younger than me, and the boy (Thomas Winiker) who plays my love interest (Seth), are you ready? 51 years younger than me! He turned 18 the day before we opened in Montreal.

On your Montreal run, what was it like to debut Kimberly in a town you spent your childhood in?

I like the Segal Centre. I like the people very much, but I love being in Montreal. No matter what, it will always feel like home just because I can speak French everywhere I go and that’s a wonderful thing.

Did you learn anything from your Montreal audiences to evolve your portrayal in Toronto?

No. I will take Montreal’s reactions as theirs and will take Toronto’s reactions as theirs. I expect we will have a more mixed reaction here, maybe more boisterous, I don’t know. Every show is a new mixture of humans and there’s no telling how they may be.

I wouldn’t say my portrayal has evolved. We’ve had a two-week hiatus, now we jump back to it. But as you run the show, you’re fine-tuning constantly, but sometimes you don’t fine-tune and you need to be brought back. It’s a living, breathing thing.

Is there anything about Kimberly that makes the show particularly relevant to audiences now?

It’s been such a crazy, difficult, tumultuous time in the world. I think this show presents you with this really weird, heavy-duty problem, but never wallows in what this young girl is living.

I adore that. It’s a life lesson and that’s what we need. Don’t wallow, laugh when it’s time to laugh, and see the beauty in what is right now, because you might not be here tomorrow.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

“Kimberly Akimbo” is at the CAA Theatre, 651 Yonge St., until Feb. 8. See mirvish.com for information.