Ellipsis Tree Collective’s Black Canadian Theatre series is dedicated to showcasing the work of African-Canadian playwrights providing insight into black Canadian history. But this is theatre not a lecture and so the most important consideration is the strength of characters and story.
“The themes are pretty universal: the power of forgiveness the relationship between living and dying” says director Marilyn Potts of the series’ third and final production The Adventures of a Black Girl in Search of God by Djanet Sears.
Set in 1995 the story follows Rainey (Janelle Cooper) a doctor who is grieving for the death of her daughter and struggling with a dissolving marriage. Meanwhile her dying septuagenarian father Abendigo (Wekamot Oneka) is on a mission to rid their town of offensive black lawn jockey ornaments. Renaming their town — Negro Creek — is also at issue for the whole community.
While fictional Negro Creek is based on Holland Centre Ontario where black soldiers who fought in the Battle of 1812 were granted land near Owen Sound. Rainey and her family are descendants of those black settlers.
The depth of history — and spirituality — inherent in the play is augmented by a three-person chorus (Mercy Lamola Makambe Simamba and Sarah Higgins) which operates outside the main plot. “They kind of control the play: they oversee the play they control the spiritual world of it” explains Potts. The chorus represents the three generations of black history that underpin the story of Negro Creek: the African roots the War of 1812 and the settlement of Negro Creek in 1905. The trio adds a musical dimension to the show performing music by Allison Lynch and choreography by Michèle Moss.
Although the chorus doesn’t interact directly with the play’s protagonists it has everything to do with the story. “One of the things that we learn as we get older and I definitely am older is that we do stand on the shoulders of our ancestors” says Potts. “And basically that’s what these people are doing they’re standing up for their ancestors.”
Adventures of a Black Girl serves as the capstone to the three-play Black Canadian Theatre Series which previously introduced Calgary audiences to inventor Elijah McCoy in The Real McCoy and local rancher John Ware in John Ware Reimagined.
“We wanted our series to span many generations of Black life so the connection to the War of 1812 in Adventures told through a contemporary lens was an excellent fit” says Cheryl Foggo Ellipsis Tree Collective’s artistic producer in an email. When the series wraps up the company will be busy planning its next season and will continue to provide opportunities for young talent. In particular its Adventures Mentorship Program provides a paid opportunity for a local visible minority youth to gain hands-on experience with a professional theatre production.
So far the audience for the series has been diverse rather than niche and that should continue with Adventures of Black Girl. “This play is such a beautiful example of how a story about a very specific community can be so universal. I’m pretty sure that among the many take-aways for people who see the show will be conversations about mortality and the importance of truly living all our days” writes Foggo.
Potts echoes the sentiment: “I hope that [audiences] have a better understanding of the enduring strength of the human spirit and its ability to grow change and overcome adversity.
The Adventures of a Black Girl in Search of God is dedicated to theatre artist and mentor Kathleen Foreman who attended a reading of the play shortly before her death in 2013.
THE ADVENTURES OF A BLACK GIRL IN SEARCH OF GOD runs February 26 to 28 at the Arrata Opera Centre.
