SummerWorks, the largest juried theatre Festival in Canada, begins its run from August 9th to 19th. This year it will feature over 40 plays, a return of the Performance Bar, a Live Art Series, practical workshops and a new twist on the Music Series. As well, the National Series features a new play by award-winning playwright, actor and director Daniel MacIvor.
The theatre line up this year is looking very interesting. This list is but a snippet of the various plays and events at this year’s festival. Read on and pick your favourites.
Ajax (Por Nobody) - Playwright/Creator(s): Alice Tuan / Zachary Russell
The play centers on four people who get together for a booze and drug-‐fuelled evening of sex, but the sexual spree unexpectedly rages out control. Part comedy, part biting social commentary, Ajax (por nobody) is an explicit look at sex and violence in modern culture. The title, Ajax, refers to both the Greek tragedy and the household cleaner.
Extinction Song - Playwright/Creator(s): Ron Jenkins
An award winning one man play about a childs retreat from reality into an imaginary world, where he conspires with wolves to save himself from his alcoholic father.
Terre Haute - Playwright/Creator(s): Edmund White / Alistair Newton
A series of death row interviews based on the real-life correspondence of author Gore Vidal and Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.
Derailed – The Amy Project (Artists Mentoring Youth) – Playwright/Creator(s):The 2012 AMY Ensemble, directed by Megan Watson
It’s the morning rush. Everyone is in transit. Pay close attention so as not to lose your way. Try not to disappear into the crowd. We cannot be responsible for anything you leave behind. Hold on tight.
Medicine Boy - Playwright/Creator(s): Waawaate Fobister / Tara Beagan
“This fire will bring out the GOOD. This fire will bring out the BAD. This fire will bring out the… what? Ugly? You thought ugly right? Cause you think ugly? Ugly! I wish I could say Native stories never used to have ugly. But I would be lying.”
Les Demimondes - Playwright/Creator(s): Alexandra Tigchelaar & Catherine Nimmo (The Scandelles)
With a keen and comic eye and though a multidisciplinary lens of dance, film, song, movement and monologue, Les Demimondes observes how fine arts, music, film and the media have persistently profited off the half-world mystique of sex workers while sex workers themselves remain criminals.
Dutchman - Playwright/Creator(s): Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones)
Written in the 1960s, the play tells the story of a young black man, Clay, and a white seductress, Lula, who meet in a public transport vehicle on a hot summer day. It is a political yet poetic allegory documenting the racial struggle between North American black and white communities in 1964.
Huff - Playwright/Creator(s): Cliff Cardinal
This is a new one-man show by Cliff Cardinal about the wondrous lives of Wind and his brothers. Wrought with dark humor, and vivid imagery the play weaves a violent, spellbinding tale. Modern pace mixed with First Nation’s mythic meets biting stand-up routine. Video games and trickster collide and Huff conjures a theatrical storm.
Photo: Ryan Parker
Terminus – Playwright/Creator(s): Mark O’Rowe / Mitchell Cushman
A mother with a heavy conscience, a disembodied soul looking for love and a dangerous loner with a passion for Bette Middler converge in this lyrical Irish spoken-word ballad.
This year’s Music Series will feature four artistic collaborations that pair established music artists with artists working in other performance-based disciplines. Here are my picks but the whole series looks very promising.
Buck 65 – Wednesday,August 15th
Experimental artist, MC and turntablist Buck 65 collides artistic worlds with dancemaker Ame Henderson to present an avant-garde performance, starring Buck 65 and his music.
The Magic – Friday, August 10th
The Magic will partner with theatre and film artist, Jordan Tannahill to present the CD release of their debut album Ragged Gold, joined by Maylee Todd and Dan Werb. The Magic and Tannahill will create a space-disco-pop party inspired by variety dance shows from the 70s and 80s.
There are plenty of other shows in the various series. For full listings on venues, show times and tickets visit summerworks.ca.