Popular theatre turns the phrase "can't see the forest for the trees" on its head by asking—if we are all trees, what kind of forest do we live in, do we want to live in, can we live in? In popular theatre different points of view are considered, collaboration through the process of creation is encouraged and dialogue in all forms is the basis for the resulting play.
In 1987 as a community engagement project in a University of Alberta theatre class, Concrete Theatre was formed, rooted in popular theatre, collaborating first with girls and women living and working on the streets. Long after the school year ended the project continued and Concrete opened up to other communities, looking at issues like dating violence, media awareness and sexuality. Finding success and fulfilment working largely with youth, by 1998 Concrete was a professional theatre for young audiences, working within a popular theatre framework. Last week launching it's 21st season Concrete is premiering Under Cover, a play exploring challenges faced by teenagers of Middle Eastern descent in Canada told primarily through the story of Ella. Under Cover is directed by a founding member of Concrete, current Artistic Director Mieko Ouchi, and written by Mark Haroun.
At first blush Haroun, a white, half Egyptian, late twenties gay guy from St Albert well known for his award winning writing on a CBC prairie drama, may seem like a strange fit to tell the story of Ella, a young Muslim woman navigating reactions from her high school peers after she decides to wear the hijab. For Ouchi, who has worked with him before, Haroun is a perfect fit, having a great ear for writing dialogue for young people she says, and because of his own experiences. "Mark took a trip to Egypt, when he came back I remember him talking about how the experience made him feel isolated in St Albert. That trip was an awaking," Ouchi recalls.
Of course as Haroun and Ouchi know, being a good writer, and experiencing "otherhood" is not enough. What is needed in Popular Theatre is an understanding that a play is a living thing, an opportunity to give life to complexity, and that creation cannot be done in isolation. As part of the writing process Haroun did research through blogs and social networking to gain insight into the lives of young Muslim women. Through Concretre, he also teamed up with Edmonton's Centre for Race and Culture (CRC), meeting many young women who engaged in dialogue with CRC and Haroun. I asked Haroun if he drew parallels between the young women he was hearing from and his experiences growing up, thinking it might be easy to draw on his own feelings of otherness in writing about someone else. "It's hard to compare or generalize ... maybe on a metaphorical level like the frustrations," he answered When I asked Ouchi a similar question she agreed with Haroun: "Even within Islam, each country, region have their own stories" pointing out that to generalize would be to misrepresent. Both resisted the temptation to universalize the play for all minorities. Instead in keeping with Popular Theatre and Concrete's ethos, both went back to the notion of complexity and a desire not to portray stereotypes on the stage. While both hope youth will find something they can relate to in Under Cover, the goal is not to put forward a parable, but rather that youth will have a greater understanding of the realities faced by Middle Eastern youths and will question whether tolerance is enough.
It is easy as a "minority" to assume an understanding of other communities' issues—to over identify and assume all our problems are the same. This is dangerous to do even within a community. Over simplification leads to problems down the road: the devil, as they say, is in the details. What the process of Under Cover highlights is that being a minority one's self is not carte blanche into the experience of others. It is through listening, supporting and getting out of the way—of the story or otherwise—that is the best we often can do for each other.
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