In the fall of 1918, as soldiers return to Canada from distant battlefields, a world devastated by four years of war is suddenly hit by a mysterious and deadly plague – the “Spanish flu”. The illness strikes anybody, even people in the prime of life. The rapid progression toward mortality brings home the terror, the panic, and the sense of helplessness of World War I; more people die of this epidemic than are killed in battle throughout the war.
UNITY (1918) offers a moving and revealing examination of what happens when a deadly virus arrives in a town in the middle of Saskatchewan that was thought to be safe – too distant, too remote – from an epidemic devastating populations elsewhere. Canadians tend to assume such tragedies happen elsewhere, to other people. With UNITY (1918) playwright Kevin Kerr takes us back to this moment in Canadian history, and poetically places the unthinkable threat of a deadly virus in our midst. In a town where every day, familiar things become deadly, Kerr turns his focus on those with the most to lose, the youth, and how they find the strength to face illness, isolation, and death.
Directed by Professor Andy Houston, this production was theatre for people that are trying to overcome the ‘me, myself and I’ culture that comes with social media and smart phones. When the stakes are high, and a performance may offer a sense that we are ultimately ‘all in this together’, theatre isn't a communication device, it's a site of communion. Andy was joined by Toronto designer Arun Srinivasan (lighting) and student designers Maddy Samms (Set) and Mark Haasnoot (Costumes).
They turned the Theatre of the Arts into a shared destination, and that place is Unity.
Check out the Dramaturgy Hub for the show.
Trailer
Full cast
Sissy and Michael
Doris and Rose
Beatrice
Stan carting the body of his wife
Hart and Beatrice
Mary
Doris and Rose
Beatrice
Ghost Tableau: The Reality of War According to Hart
Michael is Set on Fire
Sissy and Glen
Beatrice taking care of a sick Sissy and Mary
Beatrice cares for Hart
Sunna and Sissy
Sunna is preserving Ardell's body
Mary is Delivering Richard's Eulogy
Stan with his baby
Sunna and Stan
Hart is Building a Coffin
Written by Kevin Kerr
Directed by Andy Houston
Performances: November 18 - 21st, 2015
Matinees: November 18 & 20, 2015
Venue: Theatre of the Arts, Modern Languages Building
Cast
Beatrice - Mollie Garrett
Sissy - Abbi Longmire
Sunna - Sam Mercury
Hart - Sam Beuerle
Michael - Erik Van Dijk
Mary - Jackie Mahoney
Rose - Emma Mann
Doris - Nivan ElSeweify
Stan - Cameron Smith
Ardell / Voice / Woman / Chaperone - Brooke Barnes
Thorson / Glen / Man 1 - Isaac Ellmen
Spooner / Man 2 / Chaperone - Zac Gungl
Creative Team
Director – Andy Houston
Set Designer – Madeline Samms
Costume Designer – Mara Haasnoot
Props Designer/ Fight Choreographer – Shaw Forgeron
Lighting Designer – Arun Srinivasan
Sound Designer – Colin Labadie
Vocal Composition – Meghan Bunce
Dramaturgy Team – Mollie Garrett, Cameron Jolliffe, Meghan Landers, Stefan Radic, Carla Rodrigo
Supervising Dramaturg – Toby Malone
Production Team
Production Manager – Janelle Rainville
Technical Director – Gill Lesperance
Production Faculty – Paul Cegys
Head of Wardrobe (Dept) – Sharon E.Secord
Stage Manager – Clare Flood
Assistant Stage Managers – Alyssa Almeida, Cody Burns
Head of Carpentry / Paint / Props – Alexandra Porter
Lead of Lighting – Chelsea Vanoverbeke
Head of Wardrobe – Sandy Thi
Head of Makeup/Hair – Meghan Landers
Head of Publicity – Zachary Haime
Crew - Jennifer Addesso, Brooke Barnes, Annaijah Dacres, Darius Hahn, Tausha Hanna, Rebecca Reid, Erik Van Dijk, Christine Varga
Special Thanks
Angus Audio
Lance Harrison
Mollie Bostock
Donna Hociung
Brian’s Foto Source
William Innes
Jane Britton
Paul and Graeme Landers
Taras Cymbalisty
James McCrae
Tess Morgan
Kristi Dukovic
Wendy Philpott
Doug Dye (Safety Office)
Samantha Polzin
Charlie Fitton
Brian Rainville
Bruce Garrett
Fr. Myroslav Shmygelsky
Mark Haasnoot
Karolina Szymczyk
Warren Haasnoot
Theatre Aquarius