It鈥檚 been almost three decades since her seminal album 鈥淛agged Little Pill鈥� and Alanis Morissette still finds the words she jotted down as a teenager deeply relatable.

Now 49 years old, the Ottawa native considers herself 鈥渇ortunate鈥� that she can perform 鈥淵ou Oughta Know,鈥� 鈥淚ronic鈥� and most of the album鈥檚 other songs with a conviction similar to that of her youth.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e basically value systems,鈥� she explained in a recent phone interview from her northern California home.

鈥淎nd fortunately these values, on my part, have been unwavering.鈥�

Morissette has spent ample time reflecting on 鈥淛agged Little Pill鈥� in recent years, discussing and dissecting how 鈥淗and in My Pocket,鈥� 鈥淩ight Through You鈥� and 鈥淵ou Learn鈥� became anthems for a generation of independent young women.

Anniversaries passed, an HBO documentary on the legacy of 鈥淛agged Little Pill鈥� was made and Morissette gave her blessing to a Broadway show built on her songs.

A touring production of 鈥淛agged Little Pill: The Musical鈥� plays Toronto鈥檚 Princess of Wales Theatre through Nov. 26, rounding out a run of Canadian stops earlier this year.

The musical weaves the Canadian singer-songwriter鈥檚 music and lyrics through the story of the Healys, a seemingly perfect American suburban family who are quietly suffocating in their own trauma.

Mary Jane, a mother of two, is secretly addicted to painkillers as she manages the fallout of a car crash, while the fire in her marriage has all but been snuffed out.

Her husband, Steve, is a workaholic whose pleasure relies on pornography.

Meanwhile, their adopted daughter Frankie is exploring her bisexuality and activist streak while figuring out her complicated identity as an adopted Black girl in a white family. Her brother Nick shoulders the weight of the 鈥減erfect鈥� son who鈥檚 just been admitted to Harvard but also harbours his own demons.

Their lives come crashing down when the rape of a local high schoolgirl forces the Healy family to contend with their value systems and the personal problems they鈥檝e ignored.

鈥淛agged Little Pill鈥� shaves the sharp edges of Morissette鈥檚 alternative-pop compositions for the musical stage, adjusts some of the lyrics to fit characters and uses each song as fuel for the narrative. Beyond the entirety of Morissette鈥檚 1995 album, other popular tracks in her catalogue have their moment, including 鈥淯ninvited,鈥� 鈥淭hank U鈥� and 鈥淪o Pure.鈥�

When Morissette was first approached by producers nearly a decade ago with the idea of making a stage musical out of her work, she said she was less concerned with tarnishing the album鈥檚 place in music history than some might assume.

鈥淚鈥檓 not that not worried about legacy,鈥� she assured. 鈥淚 feel like people put so much pressure on themselves for what they 鈥榣eave behind.鈥欌��

Morissette had some boundaries. She didn鈥檛 want the project to feel like a jukebox musical that dispensed her songs with little meaning.

She told producers that the show鈥檚 creators must share her artistic values, in particular, her support of self-expression, connection and activism.

鈥淯nless they could meld together and we all had the same mission, I wasn鈥檛 really interested,鈥� she said.

It took more than half a decade of mingling with Pulitzer Prize-winning writers and other potential creative partners to find her answer in 鈥淛uno鈥� screenwriter Diablo Cody and theatre and opera director Diane Paulus, known for modern spins on classic stage productions.

Morissette said Cody dove into the lyrics of her songs and dismantled some of the ideas to construct the characters in the musical.

鈥�(The idea) became something that I not only could get behind but could get behind quite passionately,鈥� the singer added.

For her part in its creation, she shared ideas with Cody and Paulus on how the plotline should take shape.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 have any direct experience with adoption, however, a lot of the other 鈥榖ig issues鈥� not only have I experienced myself, but I had some insight,鈥� Morissette added.

鈥淛agged Little Pill: The Musical鈥� made its debut in 2018 at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Mass. before opening in New York the following year.

The Broadway show closed in 2021 after multiple COVID-19 outbreaks within the company plagued the production, but the musical lives on through its touring cast. Theatre company Concord Theatrical announced this week it acquired worldwide stage rights to take the show overseas.

Morissette鈥檚 role at this point is largely as a figurehead who occasionally does press to promote the latest runs. But she finds the album 鈥淛agged Little Pill,鈥� remains a considerable emotional outlet.

Only 鈥淣ot the Doctor,鈥� one of the final songs on the record, gives Morissette 鈥渁 tiny, baby cringe鈥� when she sings it now. The lyrics are about refusing to compromise in a romantic relationship and were written from the vantage point of a young woman with little experience, she now acknowledges.

鈥淚t was a little flippant,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 realize the degree to which you actively support each other in the healing process if you鈥檙e in a really connected relationship.鈥�

All of the other songs still resonate emotionally.

鈥淚 can move it 鈥� physically dance it and relive it,鈥� she says.

鈥淚f I鈥檓 on stage, upset, angry, scared, lonely 鈥� all of those things 鈥� it鈥檚 almost like an invitation for people to feel those feelings together with me.鈥�

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