SHAPING A NEW DESTINY Theatre is a conversation. As artists we are moved by a relentless desire to keep the conversation going. We wish to connect; to reach; to examine; to reveal; to poke; to provoke; to feel… I have recently learned from poet David Whyte that the word ‘conversation’ comes from Latin: “converse/to turn about/inside out”. It’s a gorgeous concept; a conversation is turning things inside out. The whole point of what we do in the theatre is to inhabit someone else’s perspective; to learn about somebody else’s experience; to turn ourselves inside out, and in turn, we turn YOU inside out. What a stunningly hopeful thing theatre is, when one really thinks about it… Our trade is an incredibly challenging and economically precarious one, but so vital – particularly considering how the world has transformed itself in the last two decades. We have expanded into a “global village” and lost the immediacy of community, and we are now dealing with the consequences of that expansion as our conversation breaks down. We seem to be stuck; hoping and waiting, like characters in a Beckett drama. How do we heal from that? It is time to turn ourselves inside out again. It’s time to dare to share our desires and vulnerabilities without fear – it’s time we wrote a new story for us; a new story for humanity that values collective intimacy and community above all; a new destiny! MACBETH and WAITING FOR GODOT were written so long ago. And yet here we are, turning them inside out, yet again; trying to once again make sense of what they were saying when they were first written, and finding new meanings and connections for them now – and in that way, we are reshaping those plays (and ourselves) for the future. I’ll see you at the park for a great conversation!
I hope you’re ready for a proper great time. At SIR we believe that Joy is vital to navigating a persistently volatile world, a “distracted globe” – as Bill once wrote. This season promises a restorative time in nature, as your ears are tickled by beautiful, transformative language; and your senses are reawakened to serenity and wonder! Our choices for the upcoming season embrace the theme of transformation. These plays celebrate our ability to adapt, to embrace magic and storytelling, and to ultimately change, as individuals and communities. My fellow (but much more famous) South American, the revolutionary Che Guevara once said: “let the world change you, and then you can change the world”. I love this quote because it implies a surrender – a leap of faith. In other words: magic. It is an invitation for us to be open and to stay curious about the possibilities and surprises of life. For the first time since 1995, A Midsummer Night’s Dream will return to the Ruins and deliver that much-needed jolt of magic you’ve been craving. Playing in repertory alongside Dream, we will once again celebrate a new Canadian play: Iago Speaks , by Saskatoon’s incredible Daniel Macdonald. This cheeky and highly intelligent sequel to Othello isn’t afraid to ask the big existential questions that haunt us – and it does so with a spectacular sense of humour and charm. Join us at the Ruins this summer to have your expectations both shattered and met! Be surprised, puzzled, delighted and ultimately… Be transformed.
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