3rd time's short on charm in popular Mom's the Word stage series

Common wisdom says sequels are rarely quite as good as the original.

There are exceptions to that, of course — but you'd be hard-pressed to find a third instalment in a series that breaks the rule.

The latest in the incredibly popular Mom's the Word stage series, unfortunately for theatre fans, is not an exception.

The series has become something of an industry unto itself — the first Mom's the Word, created by a collective of Vancouver actor-moms who took to the stage to share their stories of new motherhood, premiered way back in 1995. It's since been performed around the world (including here in Winnipeg at Prairie Theatre Exchange in 1997, and again with a new cast back in 2016).

That original was a funny and honest look at the tribulations of being a new mother. The sequel, Mom's the Word: Unhinged (produced at PTE in 2006) caught up with the moms with older kids.

Now, the moms (writer/performers Jill Daum, Alison Kelly, Barbara Pollard and Deborah Williams, joined by performer Erla Faye Forsyth, who fills in here for co-creator Robin Nichol) are back at PTE with Mom's the Word: Nest ½ Empty, a Vancouver's Arts Club Theatre production.

This third edition finds the moms dealing with the trials of middle age — kids who have left the home (and sometimes come back), divorce, death, aging parents and bodies that just don't function the way they used to.

They relate their stories in a series of snappy vignettes — mostly monologues, with a few sketch-comedy style scenes, and a couple of amusing dance numbers — that keep the 135-minute (with intermission) show moving briskly.

The collective have described their shows as "theatre of recognition," and where Nest ½ Empty finds laughs — and it does, in spots — is in the familiar.

Anyone who's been through a bad break-up will relate to Pollard's slightly murderous animosity toward her ex. Any parent who's ever wanted to "just check up" on their kids will connect with Kelly's somewhat overzealous attempts to track down her grown children.

The performers are all easy-going, likable and relatable — this feels much like listening to a friend (or maybe your own mom) recount their own stories.

The problem with Nest ½ Empty, though, is that its laughs are too few and far between, and sometimes just a bit too familiar. The targets often feel obvious and many of the punchlines land like tepid sitcom jokes.

To be fair, not everything here is intended to play for laughs — there are serious moments too. The most affecting are Daum's account of struggling with the early onset Alzheimer's her husband, Spirit of the West singer John Mann, lives with. Those moments are raw and powerful.

Where it does aim for laughs, though, Nest ½ Empty only came up half-full for me.

Your experience may very well vary, though — a lot of the Friday night audience I saw the show with, perhaps finding more to relate to than a non-mom like me, seemed to enjoy it more. 

For me, though, this third time lacked a certain charm.

Mom's the Word: Nest ½ Empty runs at Prairie Theatre Exchange until March 17.