Trinity Western University students have created an original theatre production based on personal interviews with refugees to Canada.
The show, called disPLACE: Refugee Stories in Their Own Words, tells the true stories of people who courageously shared their experiences with the artists 鈥� from Mennonite immigrants who fled Europe after the Second World War, to recently arrived Syrian refugees.
One family, fleeing guerrilla forces in Colombia, concealed themselves among the furniture in a moving truck. A refugee from Iraq arrived in Delta as a teenager, braving the social dynamics of high school with very little English and her head shaven from surgery. These and other personal experiences, captured word-for-word in the dialogue, take on even more poignancy with the original music woven through the production.
鈥淚 was stunned by the stories we heard,鈥� said 91原创鈥檚 Kate Nundal, a third-year theatre major who plays violin and viola in the show.
鈥淚鈥檝e seen stuff like this on TV, but knowing that someone right here in my community actually witnessed a moment like that 鈥� hearing it from her own lips 鈥� that鈥檚 something else altogether. Creating disPLACE has changed me more than any other theatre experience I鈥檝e had.鈥�
Director Angela Konrad, Chair of Theatre at TWU鈥檚 School of the Arts, Media + Culture, conceived disPLACE to be presented in the SAMC season as a launch piece for her newly formed company, Dark Glass Theatre. Humanitas Anabaptist-Mennonite Centre, which has ties to TWU, is the umbrella organization for Dark Glass Theatre and will continue to support the company鈥檚 future productions.
鈥淭he mandate of Dark Glass Theatre is to tell stories that enable us to see, face-to-face, people we might not otherwise meet,鈥� Konrad explained.
鈥淐ompelling, personal stories can have a profound impact 鈥� decreasing judgement, increasing compassion, and fostering empathy. I believe it鈥檚 essential for TWU students to work on projects like this.鈥�
Konrad and the rest of the creative team will host an informal, educational event for high school students on Nov. 30. The night includes dinner, admission, and a post-show talkback for $10. To register, email visit@twu.ca.
The production features five actors who transform themselves into multiple characters over the course of the show: Uliana Akulenko, Emmett Hanly, Keenan Marchand, Kate Nundal and Jane Oliphant.
The dates are Nov. 22 to Dec. 3, Tuesday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. with a Saturday matinee at 2 p.m. on Dec. 3. Each performance is followed by a talkback, moderated by a specialist in refugee issues.
Book tickets at or call 604-513-2188.
