Peterborough Last Week

We also got a small hit in the Peterborough This Week...last week.

Thanks to Paul Rellinger of PTW and Werner Bergen of the Examiner for highlighting their locally bred talent.

Boy Scout's and Shadows and Live Music, oh my!

On top of our set designed for making shadow puppets, 'How to Build An Empire: A Boy Scout's Guide', also includes a live musical score performed by local punk hop band 'Hush Money'.

Check them out.

Making our way in the world today...

Check us out in the Peterborough Examiner - June 21, 2008.

better late...?

my friend peter has been after me to write a review of ‘my name is rachel corrie’ playing at the tarragon theatre until june 22. we both saw a preview of it on the same night and he has an interesting review posted on his blog.

besides making excuses about busy I am with other things, I have also been avoiding committing to an online avowal of my feelings on the show for…other reasons. one of the major things holding me back is that im not sure how I felt about it. it’s great that it is (finally) being shown in toronto and that in an environment relatively free of discussion regarding the ongoing occupation of Palestine by Israel, that folks can begin to empathize through a character like rachel corrie. as for the show itself, I thought the writers did a nice job of using rachel’s own words to create a character that was somewhat loveable but ultimately fittingly naïve for the political situation which she thrust herself into.

what is most shocking about rachel’s death is the somewhat anticlimactic-ness of it all. she’s alive, feeling depressed, sad and confused about her role in rafah and in the world, and then suddenly she’s dead…run over by an Israel Defense Force (IDF) bulldozer whose driver claims not to have seen her. of course, this sort of thing is relatively anti-climactic. in an environment where lives are lost to violence on a day to day basis, the loss of this one life in an act of heroism doesn’t quite garner the same amount of attention that some of us have been raised to believe should be bequeathed to a martyr.

the death of rachel corrie was incredibly tragic and the show demonstrates that Palestinian solidarity struggles, even when fronted by middle class white American kids, register as a minor blip against a military force that has over 160, 000 active military personnel backed by a budget of over $18 million dollars. however, what troubles me about the show (is it the show or the way i think the audience interprets it?) is the relative disconnect from the ongoing policy, not just of occupation, but of apartheid, that is being employed by Israel. this has little to do with a young girls hopes and dreams about saving the world. though she is obviously sympathetic to the Palestinians, Rachel’s exhaustion and desperation she faces in Palestine feeds into a discourse that continues to see the violence as part of the ongoing (read, ‘never ending’) arab-israeli ‘conflict’. this line of thinking establishes both parties as equal in the ‘conflict’ and erases the material realities of the economic and political backing of the IDF. it further ignores Israel’s heightened attacks on Palestinians and their livelihoods through the erection of the ‘security’ wall (deemed in violation of international law by the International Court of Justice in 2004), Israeli only roads, and the institutionalization of check points that block Palestinians from getting to work, to their families, to their schools and general freedom of mobility. these practices and others like them are well documented in court documents, public debates, and political transcripts from Canada, the United States and Israel.

overall the show itself is entertaining, slow at the beginning, but picking up with some very nice work done by actor bethany jillard. but I think what is really tragic about ‘my name is rachel corrie’ is the fundamentally desperate grasp to empathize in some way to the ‘arab-israeli conflict’. that audiences in canada and the united states must have some way ‘in’ to possibly comprehend the seemingly vast complexities of the situation and that the tragic death of this young girl should suit the bill. what else could her death and the subsequent mounting of this show be about? In my opinion, the writing is on the wall…I’m not sure how long we will have to wait to be shamed by our hindsight, maybe twenty years, maybe one hundred but in time, much like the case of South Africa, future generations will look back at the current practices of Israel and be able to say with confidence, ‘apartheid’.

I said earlier that rachel’s death in the show seems anticlimactic …and I think it is.
And maybe that’s the point.

Props to Theatre Panik for mounting My Name Is Rachel Corrie.

Check it out

How to Build An Empire: A Boy Scout's Guide

Media shots for the upcoming show.
We open on Thursday, July 3rd and run for two weeks.




photos by david hugill

What: How to Build An Empire: A Boy Scout's Guide
Where: Theatre Passe Muraille – Back Space, 16 Ryerson Ave. (East of Bathurst, North of Queen)
Cost: $10
Show times:

Thursday, July 3 @ 6pm
Saturday, July 5 @ 1:30pm
Sunday, July 6 @ 8:00pm
Monday, July 7 @ 7:30pm
Wednesday, July 9 @ 8:15pm
Thursday, July 10 @ 1:00pm
Friday, July 11 @ 8:45pm
Saturday, July 12 @ 4:30pm

For more information call the Fringe of Toronto Theatre Festival Hotline at 416.966.1062.

| notimeformetaphors.blogspot.com | Toronto Fringe Festival 2008 | fringetoronto.com |

This is the end

If I had more time this week, I would write something brilliant about this exhibit that hints at Shels' success as a result of his partner's stronger stomach, and him (grim) reaping the benefits of these folks' deaths. Alas, it is worth posting just for the link.

NDP reconsiders Durban...finally

May 29, 2008

On behalf of Mr. Layton, please find attached a copy of the letter sent by MP Wayne Marston, NDP Advocate on Human Rights and Multiculturalism, to the Honourable Jason Kenney, Secretary of State for Multiculturalism, urging the Government of Canada to reconsider its decision to not attend the 2009 Durban Review.
NDP Foreign Affairs critic Paul Dewar sent a similar letter to Foreign Affairs Minister David Emerson.

Sincerely,

Office of Jack Layton
Leader, New Democratic Party of Canada

_______

This about-face comes 5 months after a public commitment to support the Conservative's plans to ditch Durban, made by NDP Foreign Affairs Critic Paul Dewar and Human Rights Critic Wayne Marston. This comes thanks to the hundreds of folks with some semblances of hope in an actual opposition party, who voiced their concerns over the NDP's outrageous move. Also, thanks to the NDP for finally getting some backbone.

_______

"January 24, 2008

NDP supports non-participation in flawed UN conference

“Time for Canada to show international leadership on racism” – Dewar

OTTAWA – The NDP is deeply committed to fighting racism and intolerance in Canada and around the world, said NDP Foreign Affairs Critic Paul Dewar (Ottawa Centre) and NDP International Human Rights Critic Wayne Marston (Hamilton-East Stoney Creek).

“We are deeply concerned that the integrity of the UN Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance has been compromised as a result of poor structure and a lack of real anti-racism leadership on the planning committee,” said Dewar.

According to the New Democrat MPs, the first UN anti-racism conference, held in Durban in 2001, became little more than a forum for spreading hatred and was a missed opportunity to work multilaterally to fight racism, discrimination and intolerance.

“New Democrats believe that the issue of anti-racism must be led by international voices that are respected throughout the world community,” said Marston. “This conference was clearly failing to achieve that.”

The NDP MPs also called on the Harper Conservatives to show real leadership on the issue. “Canada should not only cancel its participation in Durban II, but it should also take a role in proposing an alternative,” said Dewar. “Canada should take the initiative and host an international forum on the issues of racism, discrimination, xenophobia, and intolerance. Our country can serve as a platform for a world-wide discussion committed to uprooting racism.”

“The cancellation of our participation doesn’t mean that the Harper government can continue to sit on its hands and ignore the serious problems of racism that still exist in Canada,” said Marston. “Mr. Kenney should, without delay, assure the Government of Canada’s continued funding for the Anti-Racism Council of Canada.”

promo materials by morgan passi