Smallfoot
October 2018
Smallfoot
Smallfoot. Karey Kirkpatrick, Jason Reisig, directors. Channing Tatum, actor. Warner Bros, 2018.
With its charming characters and family friendly comedy, Smallfoot proves that a timely message does not always have to be delivered by a serious drama or art-house indie film. Inside of the cute yeti packaging is a message about perspective, truth, and how we view “the other” in our lives. In essence it has a message that everyone in our culture needs to hear.
“Smallfoot” tells the story of Migo (Channing Tatum), a yeti who is happy to live his life by “the stones” - the laws that all yeti follow. Until a misadventure brings him face to face with a “smallfoot,” a human. He usually wouldn’t go against a stone, but the stones say smallfoot are not real, and he knows that he saw one. Choosing to be exiled from the community instead of lying to the other Yeti, he decides to bring a smallfoot back to his village to prove that what he saw was real. When he succeeds, he begins to discover the darker reason for the laws written in stone, and has to choose between the safety of ignorance or the responsibility of knowing the truth.
Though it would be easy to write Smallfoot off as a cute children’s movie, with catchy pop music and light hearted comedy, it teaches lessons that need to be heard, not only by children but by their parents as well. When a movie can be both light hearted entertainment and present challenging themes, it deserves to be taken seriously, whether or not the smallfoot exists.
Disaster Artist
July 2018
Disaster Artist
Franco, James, director. The Disaster Artist. Elevation Pictures, 2017.
The Disaster Artist tells the story of the worst movie ever made and the man behind it. It highlights the dangers of refusing help or guidance when you are creating a project, as Tommy Wiseau - the Writer, Director, Producer and Lead Actor of The Room - discovered when he realized that what he had created was not a riveting and Oscar worthy drama, but a terrible flop that became a comedic cult classic. The movie does not only go into Tommy’s life, but follows the journey of his best friend Greg Sestero who helped him on the movie and later wrote the book “The Disaster Artist” which was adapted for this film. Greg’s challenges as a struggling actor and the loyal friend of a seemingly mentally disabled man are really the audience’s access into this absurd story and show what friendship can be, and perhaps when it should be let go. “Disaster Artist” is a fun but cautionary tale for artists who may be apt to take themselves too seriously.
The Post
January 2018
The Post
Spielberg, Steven, Hannah, Liz, and Josh Singer. The Post. Twentieth Century Fox, 2017.
When a government conspiracy is uncovered by the New York Times, the Editor of the Washington Post does everything he can to find leaked government documents so he can expose the truth as well, but when the New York times faces criminal charges the owner of the Washington Post must decide what is more important: being able to keep her paper alive or allowing the American people to know the truth about their government.
Adding a whole other layer to the struggle is the fact that the owner of the Washing Post in the 70’s was a woman. Kay Graham was beautifully represented by Meryl Streep, the issue of a woman being the publisher of a major newspaper in the 1970’s was not the main thrust of the movie, but very clearly coloured the film from beginning to end. I came into the movie expecting Streep to be the hard and ruthless business woman she was in “the Devil Wears Prada” - the type of woman who you expect to have a power position, but instead she was a gentle and elegant woman, who seemed more concerned for the future of her family than her company. Her character in the film was a beautiful representation of a woman who is comfortable with her femininity and getting more and more comfortable with her position in power. It was beautiful to see her become increasingly bold and confident in her ability to lead and believe in her own convictions.
I found this film as dynamic and engaging as it was timely. In an era where media is increasingly being sold to the highest bidder and created to tell people what they want to hear, this film was a powerful reminder of what the role of media has been, and what it can be for a democratic society. “The Post” is a powerful reminder for me of the importance of art to highlight issues in our culture and to show people that there is a better way.
Theatre Alberta
May 2019
Theatre Alberta
“Theatre Alberta.” Theatre Alberta, https://www.theatrealberta.com
The Theatre Alberta website is filled to the brim with practical resources for any theatre artist in Alberta, offering everything from student resources to jobs for long standing theatre professionals. It is a website dedicated to bringing theatres across Alberta together, and if you’re willing to pay attention as you browse this site, you will probably find out about a new company, a new play or a new idea.
What frustrates me about this site is that they have little critical analysis of Alberta Theatre. They focus on the connection and inclusion of “all things Alberta Theatre” without taking the time to highlight the “excellent” or the “exciting.” While this is great for people who are starting out, it can be frustrating as it lacks a direction, what is Alberta, as a province, striving for in its theatre? What gives us a unique identity? What is our ideal? I certainly don’t think that Theatre Alberta is failing it’s mandate of connection and equipping, but it would be nice if their mandate were something more - a conversation of identity.
Art and the Kingdom
May 2019
Art and the Kingdom
“Art and the Kingdom.” Art and the Kingdom, http://artandthekingdom.org/
Art and the Kingdom is one of the resources created by The Two Tasks Institute, as a way of integrating faith and culture. At the moment it seems to be a commentary on current offerings in popular media, movie and television reviews that look for the Truth of Christ in pop culture. Based on their mandate, it seems like they also hope to inspire and equip artists of faith in the future, but I struggled to find anything that was really practically offering that type of way forward.
Their “videos” section offers small educational films about the importance of art in Christianity which reveal their heart for equipping and inspiring artists, even if the offering is light at the moment. But I am hopeful for the future of Art and the Kingdom. Based on the films that they are willing to engage, I sense that they have a healthy point of view about art, and are not just trying to jam artists into the propaganda machine that the church is so notorious for creating. They are not afraid to speak about biblical truth in the R-rated horror flick It, and have an unflinching view towards art and beauty as redemptive, holding an essential place in God’s Kingdom. I am curious when their thoughts and theories will move to something more actionable, but it is encouraging to feel that I am not alone in my beliefs or desires for art that can have an impact for God’s kingdom without being one-dimensional or contrived.
Two Tasks Institute
May 2019
Two Tasks Institute
“Two Tasks Institute.” The Two Tasks Institute, https://twotasksinstitute.org/.
The common perception of Christianity in North America is one of intolerance, republican conservatism and a sort of militant insistence on being right. The way that the church goes about apologetics and evangelism was making the issue worse in the opinion of Paul Gould, founder of the Two Tasks Institute. Instead of despairing and becoming overly critical of the North American Church, Gould decided that he should identify a better way forward and set about paving the way for a new type of outreach. The “two tasks” that he sees as essential are to show that Christianity is reasonable, and that Christianity is desirable. His strategy for doing this is “re-enchanting” the world through the creation of brilliant, beautiful and welcoming spaces, artifacts, and communities. His work with Two Tasks Institute is an attempt to change the current mindsets and strategies of the Christian culture, so that the perception of Christianity can be changed. At this point it is clear that he sees art, beauty and imagination as absolutely central to that paradigm shift, along with an understanding of philosophy and the cultural relevance of Christianity he calls “cultural apologetics.”
While the Two Tasks Institute has beautiful dreams, it is at the very beginning stages of development. The website is beautiful and offers a few resources for people, but it is clearly the beginning of what this small team is hoping to accomplish. I find it a very exciting idea, and if the Two Tasks Institute is able to accomplish even a small amount of what they are setting out to, the world will be a more beautiful, and more enchanting place.
The Rabbit Room
April 2019
The Rabbit Room
“The Rabbit Room.” The Rabbit Room, rabbitroom.com/.
When singer/songwriter Andrew Peterson took a pilgrimage to Oxford in England it would change his life. Native to the relatively young city of Nashville, Tennessee, he was deeply impacted by the history surrounding him and began seeing that culture requires community in order to flourish. A visit to the back room of “The Eagle and Child” pub inspired the name of his now flourishing online community: “The Rabbit Room.” Those familiar with “The Eagle and Child” will know that it was the meeting place of the famous literary group the Inklings, the room in which they met every week was known as “The Rabbit Room.”
Peterson’s lessons from Oxford led him to start a website for Christian artists to come together. After several years and a great deal of success, this site has grown into a publishing company, a yearly conference, and a monthly meeting of musicians, all while maintaining their online format. The site is filled to the brim with fascinating blogs and articles. It houses poetry, a podcast network and a store that supports the artists in Rabbit Room community. I can’t think of a place that is more deeply nestled in the intersection of faith and art than “The Rabbit Room. Faith based artists constantly working on the restorative act of creation in a flourishing community.
Relevant Magazine and Media Group
July 2018
Relevant Magazine and Media Group
“RELEVANT Magazine.” RELEVANT Magazine, relevantmagazine.com/.
Relevant is a magazine, website and podcast network that are dedicated to reporting on the intersection between faith and culture. Twice a week they release an in-house podcast, featuring guest appearances by influential Christian leaders, pop culture celebrities and entertaining conversations between the hosts about current events. Every two months they release a magazine and they constantly update their website with thought provoking articles. All of the content they release examines what it looks like to be a North American Christian in 2018. I appreciate their intentionality to represent multiple “streams” of the Christian faith and the way they engage even non-Christian artists about issues of faith and spirituality. In a world of increasing polarity I appreciate Relevant’s dedication to representing all sides of Christianity, and their ability to find common ground with non-believers who are artists and influencers. I feel as if my faith and perspective have been challenged by the work that Relevant media does, but have never seen them as hostile.
Canadian Theatre Review
May 2019
Canadian Theatre Review
Batchelor Bryan, Rackow Hannah, Valenzuela Denise Rogers, edited. "Radical Hospitalities." Canadian Theatre Review. January 2019. University of Toronto Press.
To what issues does the artist have a voice? Is it the right of the artist to speak with definitive certainty of issues they themselves have not studied? Is it the role of artists to offer a human perspective on historical, economic or political events? If that is the case, is it not therefore the responsibility of the artist to insist on allowing for differing points of view? Points of view that may have been born out of different experiences or different levels of understanding?
These questions were evoked in me from my reading of the Winter 2019 edition of Canadian Theatre Review, not so much from the articles themselves, but from an attitude - a way of writing and even of selecting articles that seemed almost wholly one sided, and in many ways judgemental of anyone who didn’t share their point of view. As an example, in one of the first articles, a member of the faculty of a University is dismissed for making a racial slur, and the writer of the article immediately goes on to call this gentleman a “white supremacist” for the rest of their article. What the gentleman said was inappropriate, but labeling him a white supremacist takes away any ability for a nuanced conversation and clearly takes away his right to speak. The magazine then goes on to deconstruct the practice of Indigenous Land Acknowledgements, writing it off as little more than settlers trying to get rid of their guilt with platitudes that don’t mean anything. Going as far to say that the attempts of reconciliation by the Canadian government are equally benign, as they prove that the Canadian government sees itself as in a position of authority over Indigenous people groups. What the writers fail to address is the complexity of the reconciliation process, the reality that no one really knows what reconciliation should look like, or what a fully reconciled Canada should be. There is accusation and anger at every attempt at reconciliation, with no thought that the government, or the people issuing land acknowledgements might be honestly trying to reconcile, and just not sure how to best go about it.
This conversation on hospitality smacks of accusation and a call for reform without giving the accused the ability to come to their own conclusions and reform on their own. I recently heard a criticism of this way of thinking: “you’re either already ‘woke’ or you never will be.”
The only article that I felt gave a voice to both sides of the liberal/conservative spectrum was by Johnathan D. Bower, the writer of oblivion. He explored the pain and confusion he felt as a man who is both gay and a Christian. Oblivion was his artistic exploration of his struggles, and it managed to strike a chord with the queer community as well as the faith community - creating conversations between these two conflicting tribes in a way that brought life and understanding. In my opinion, this article was the clearest example of radical hospitality. In the experiences that Bower had with oblivion he was expanding “the table” of hospitality to fit both of his tribes in one place. The other articles seemed to be written with the supposition that for a new group to be accepted at “the table” the old group must first be kicked out.
This sense of outrage and accusation left me with the questions I stated at the beginning of this annotation, and with a keen feeling that anger and accusation does not bring about justice or freedom. It is the honesty of oblivion - clearly an act of vulnerability for Bower, it is the ability to feel and empathize with two warring tribes, it is the invitation to take a step forward instead of being accused because of what you thought before. In short, it is humility that will bring about the radical hospitality that this magazine is seeking to understand and explore.
Alt. Theatre
Alt. Theatre
Franks, Aaron, edited. "Travesty, Treachery, and Bree(a)ching." Alt Theatre. 16 April 2019. Teesri Duniya Theatre.
I come from a white, conservative background, I am straight, the most persecution I have experienced is being called a “dumb blonde” and the tendency for people to overlook me because I look young and I’m short. Even these minor assumptions made by the culture at large have had a massive impact on me as a person and on how I carry myself, so when I pick up a publication such as Alt Theatre it is with some fear and trepidation for what I might find there. I have a healthy concern that holding up this magazine might be holding a mirror up to my own presuppositions and stereotypes, a mirror that shows my ugly. This fear was the reason I knew I needed to give this publication a look through. In order to move forward as people we need to be willing to be uncomfortable, to see what the world looks like from some else’s point of view, and to see the value of that lens.
This magazine contained many things I had never considered and a few things I really do not agree with. The beginning of the magazine offered a new way of considering decolonization and conciliation with Canadian Indigenous people. The article talked about a person's responsibility to learn about the original stewards of the land in their area and seek to learn their ceremonies of entrance - waiting for permission to be accepted by the people. This article flowed neatly into a second article dealing with similar issues, this one talked about the importance of immigrant people to have a sense of where they come from and had the supposition that all immigrant people are essentially displaced and lack a sense of the land they inhabit. An intriguing idea, if not one I can agree with completely.
The next few articles offered insights that were more difficult for me. One was the writings of a Drag King about their performance at an LGBTQ2+ cabaret, which reenacted the autobiography of a woman from 1700’s England who was a famous crossdresser on stage and a notorious crossdresser in real life. Though I do not agree that the LGBTQ2+ lifestyle should be celebrated, I found this article humorous and entertaining. I could easily see how this historic woman has become a champion for Lesbians and female crossdressers.
The last article in the magazine was an interview with a woman who recently won a Shakespearean short-film competition and cited her Indian heritage - specifically the Indian polytheistic belief system - as a major reason for her success and ability to see the world differently. This article again challenged me with a worldview that I don’t agree with, but that is why I picked up this magazine. I wanted to encounter different points of view, I wanted to look at marginalized people groups with a compassionate eye, and not try to immediately place my own suppositions upon them. While the articles in this magazine did not convince me to change my mindset entirely, they offered me entrance into the minds of other people, which I hope will increase my ability to empathize, love, and champion these voices in my work and in the future.
Relevant Magazine
May 2019
Relevant Magazine
Strang, Cameron. "Almost There." Relevant Magazine. May/June 2019. Relevant Media Group.
Relevant Magazine is a publication that knows exactly what it is. It is nestled comfortably in the intersection of faith and culture - seeking to find Jesus in current cultural issues and seeking to educate a Christian audience on nuanced conversations, fighting for a style of Christianity that seeks humanity, love and understanding before it seeks power or comfort.
Their mandate could not be more clearly seen in their interview with Ben Higgins, a controversial figure in Christianity because his stardom was born from his role in The Bachelor. Now he is the CEO of a non-profit that sells coffee and sends all of it’s profit directly into social programs, he speaks of the confusion he feels at being accused of “not being a Christian” because of his time on The Bachelor: “Are we afraid that Jesus isn’t somewhere? That’s my question. Do we actually believe Jesus is present at all times within us and between us? If that’s the case, there’s no place on this earth we should be scared to enter into and fearful of learning from.”
Not only do they take the time to talk to Ben Higgins, they also have interviews with Tony Hale, and Teraji P Henson - two Hollywood actors who do not play “Christian roles” but nevertheless claim that their deep faith and an intimate walk with Jesus is the only reason that they are able to be in the positions they are in, whether that is playing neurotic man-children (Tony Hale in Arrested Development) or efficient assassins (Teraji P. Henson in Proud Mary). Even in articles with more recognizable faith leaders, such as Joel Houston from the band Hillsong United, Relevant Magazine is looking for the deeper conversation and invites Houston to speak honestly about his struggles in his faith and songwriting after such a long tenure as one of the most influential worship leaders of a generation.
The diversity of topics in this issue of Relevant Magazine challenges the popular opinion of “what it means to be a Christian in this day and age”. The magazine does not offer surface level platitudes, but goes a step further by always seeking deeper conversations - it is not a magazine interested in the latest health craze or in the most recent scandal - it is a magazine that is seeking to understand the soul behind a cultural headline. Sometimes that soul points to Jesus, sometimes it comes as a deeply personal article from someone who doesn’t profess the Christian faith. But what it always shows is that behind a cultural movement there are people who want to make the world a better place. That fact alone is enough to make Relevant Magazine stand out as a fearless publication, boldly offering hope in a culture that so often wants to sell fear, and trying to find out what unites us instead of raking in the profit to be found by widening the cultural divide.
Teraji P. Henson
May 2019
Teraji P. Henson article
Daswick, Tyler. “Teraji P Henson,” Relevant Magazine, Relevant Media Group, May-June 2019.
Acting lessons from a magazine on faith and culture? Maybe not that much of a stretch when you think about it critically, but I must admit I was surprised by the practical and spiritual advice offered in this succinct article and interview of the actor Teraji P. Henson. Packed into a single page, this article spoke about how Henson’s faith has radically shaped the way she acts, even in roles that “good Christians” shouldn’t be acting in, such as Cookie Lyons from the show Empire, or a role as an assassin in Proud Mary. What she has to say about these roles is that far from her faith hindering her ability to play these characters, it is an anchor for her to hold onto, and is in many ways the key to her success. “You can’t judge.” she says when talking about these roles, “You actually have to think like Jesus and love them, and if you love them the audience will have empathy. They’ll have a transformation and a cathartic moment because you love the character unconditionally.”
I really appreciate Henson’s point of view, she has managed to find a way of being a respected actress and outspoken Christian in the same breath. I found this article inspiring for anyone who wants to pursue excellence in faith and in an artistic pursuit.
Steph Curry is on a Mission
May 2019
Steph Curry is on a Mission
Carey, Jesse. “Steph Curry is on a Mission,” Relevant Magazine, Relevant Media Group, May-June 2019.
Steph Curry is a name that is much better known to my sports-loving husband than it is to me. He is an NBA superstar who was named MVP in 2016 and continues to have a thriving career as a professional basketball player. What role does he have to play in the scene of faith-based arts? He has chosen to step into the role of film producer and has created a company called Unanimous Media with the mandate of creating faith based films that bring families together. They have already had their first film come out; Breakthrough tells the story of a boy who falls through ice and is saved by a miracle. It was released in 2019 and the reviews were lukewarm at best. Other projects that Curry is working on are a documentary about the shooting of Emanuel AME church and a game show that focuses on extreme mini-golf.
Hearing of Curry’s plans to create faith based content evoked my cynical edge. What does a basketball player know about good art? Can he succeed where so many other creators have fallen? The response of his first movie confirmed my worst suspicious - Breakthrough did not break any barriers in faith-based storytelling. But I have to check myself, the cynicism that I felt came from a place of artistic elitism, a trap that is so easy to fall into - one based mostly on envy. The reality is that Steph Curry has the income and the influence to create a faith-based production company - the platform that he has to launch this project is one that most artists could not even dream of, from the safety of my couch it is very easy to criticize him and say that he does not have “the right” to create art, as if anyone ever needed my permission anyway. The simple fact is if he applies the same hard work, perfectionism and drive that (I’m told) he has when he is playing basketball to his production company, he will get better. He will learn what creates good art and good storytelling and he will provide Christian artists with the funding to make their dreams a reality. I hope that the Christian arts community welcomes Steph Curry as an unlikely ally (even if they have to google him first) and that we are able to learn from each other what it means to tell faith-based stories and bring families together.
Telling the Truth in the Dark
April 2019
Telling the Truth in the Dark
Jimison, Jonny. “Truth-telling in the Dark.” The Rabbit Room, The Rabbit Room, 28 Mar. 2019, rabbitroom.com/2019/03/truth-telling-in-the-dark/.
Jonny Jimison is a graphic novelist with a slapstick sense of humour and quirky characters. In this honest retrospective article he compares his work to The Shiloh Trilogy by Helena Sorensen. Sorensen’s novels speak truth in the darkness. Helena’s novels touch on something deep within the human soul, speaking into our longing and our desperate need for hope. Jimison was deeply affected by these novels, and continues to find life in art that speaks the truth about the darkness all around us. Which is why he felt that his voice didn’t matter.
It took him becoming a member of “The Rabbit Room” community, a group of people who “(have) helped me see how that light tone is an asset, a blessing—a gift from the Creator!” To learn that God calls us through the dark truths, and to the light and humorous, it is our role to continue to follow that leading voice, and trust God to fill in the gaps.
Jimison learned that his humorous cartoons can hold truth just as deeply as the dark novels, and through that lesson he urges us all to tell the truth that God is calling us to tell without judgement of our own unique voices.
Christians should be Offended by Bad Art
April 2019
Christians Should be Offended by Bad Art
Smith, C Christopher. “Christians Should be Offended by Bad Art,” Relevant Magazine. Feb. 29, 2016,
It is easy to critique Christian culture when it comes to the creation of art. C Christopher Smith uses the example of early Christian music, when the artistry of the song was less important than the “Jesus per minute” that was packed in it. Thankfully, Smith does not only critique Christian art, but also offers his readers a way forward. His argument is not just that Christian art should be equal with secular art, but that as Christians we should see it as our mandate to pursue excellence in whatever we do, arguing that “we cannot separate our means from our ends.”
After offering this point of view, he goes into different categories to break down what it looks like to pursue excellence. He talks about sacrifice, collaboration and humility as ways that we can create more excellent work while we exhibit the characteristics of Jesus Christ.
What Smith had to say resonated with me as a Christian artist. And reminded me that we are not just “artists at work,” but are also “works of art” (Erwin Mcmanus). Can my life show Christ as much as my art does? I hope so.
Systemic Discrimination Creates Cultural Hegemony in the Arts
July 2018
Varma, Rahul. “Systemic Discrimination Creates Cultural Hegemony in the Arts,” Alt Theatre.
This article uses statistics and historical fact to challenge the diversity claims of theatre in Quebec. Rahul Varma speaks to the hypocrisy of many theatre companies that claim to be “diverse” because they have one person of a different race or gender orientation, and use that to get grant money. He mostly goes after the grant granters, Speaking directly of the CALQ (Conseil des arts et des lettres du Quebec) who were accused of discrimination against diverse groups and claimed they were not, even though the evidence suggests otherwise. Just because a theatre company claims to be diverse does not mean that they truly are. It is the responsibility of organizations like CALQ to do the due diligence required to make sure they are supporting the types of theatre they claim to promote. Mr. Varma then speaks to the clear distinction that is still made against diverse theatre, pointing out that “Art” is created in Europe and North America, while other parts of the world create “Folklore.” Unfortunately this is a cyclical discrimination- the art of minorities is discriminated against because it has not been represented or taken seriously in the past, but now these artists find themselves being discriminated against because their art is inferior…
I found the article compelling in its arguments and convicting to my own “artistic pallet.” But as the article implies, it is nothing short of a pure shame that the art of minorities is so poorly represented, as it creates a monotone, monolithic artistic style that does less and less to bring social change or help other people learn about the world around them. If we want to have our art and theatre become vibrant and challenging, we must embrace different points of view, and raise minority arts to the same level as “Euro-centric” artforms for the common good of all people. My biggest critique of this article is that it was clearly written for an educated audience, which I can’t help but feel makes it somewhat unapproachable, providing yet another challenge for those minority artist he is trying to advocate for.
Frozen
April 2019
Frozen
Lavery, Bryony. Frozen. 2004. Dramatists Play Service Inc.
The essence of modern theatre is to give a voice to people who are unheard or unlistened too. If that voice is the goal of a play, Frozen is nothing short of a triumph. It fearlessly gives voice to the most marginalized and hated of society - a serial killer and child molester. This takes-no-prisoners script looks a murderer and the mother of a victim square in the eye and reveals the very worst parts of the human condition. The mediator between these two extremes is a psychologist doing research on the serial killer, creating a case for why such villains may actually be victims in their own right.
Without justifying the heinous evil committed by the killer, the play does cause us to examine the roots of evil and leaves us with the question of how to respond. The mother in the play quite literally gets the revenge she wanted only when she forgives the killer.
The giant themes of good and evil, life and death, mental illness and intelligence are all addressed in this challenging but redemptive script, making it a fearless and important work in our modern time.
Kim’s Convenience
April 2019
Kim’s Convenience
Choi, Ins. Kim’s Convenience. 2012. House of Anansi Press Inc.
It would be hard to overstate the cultural significance of Kim’s Convenience in Canada. What started as a play doing the Fringe Festival circuit has touched on something so essentially Canadian that it has become a popular television show and continues to delight audiences across the country. The story follows a first generation immigrant, Mr. Kim, as he struggles to figure out what will be next for the Convenience store that has kept his family afloat for years.
Mr. Kim is flawed, but remains lovable throughout the play, which speaks to the depth of characters that Choi developed. The characters are complicated, which creates a complicated family dynamic. And the future is not only uncertain, but it is also uncertain what future the audience should be hoping for. It is a messy story about a messy family with a deeply redemptive ending that shows the power of love and forgiveness, even in the messiest of circumstances.
Kim’s Convenience speaks deeply into what all people have in common, no matter where they come from or what they do. To Canadians with diverse cultural backgrounds, it speaks even louder as it successfully puts a finger on the pulse of what makes us a culture. Rejoicing in our diversity and highlighting our similarities with a healthy dose of laughter and heart.
Hamlet
April 2019
Hamlet
Shakespeare, William. "Hamlet." The Oxford Shakespeare. Ed. Stanley Wells, Ed. Gary Taylor. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. 683-718.
It would be hard to name a play with more influence on western culture than William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. It has been performed almost continuously since first being written over four hundred years ago, and reinterpreted almost as many times as it has been shown to audiences. Structurally, Hamlet is a revenge tragedy, a popular genre of play in the English Renaissance. But at its heart, Hamlet touches on things deeply ingrained in the human subconscious: the very nature of life and death, good and evil, and what role we have to play in fate or in justice.
Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, is charged by his father’s ghost to get revenge against his Uncle for killing his father and the usurping Hamlet’s throne. Though lots of death and violence do commence (what the Elizabethan audience was expecting) Hamlet is far from a conventional revenge tragedy. Hamlet does not glory in his quest for revenge, his anger against his unjust uncle is checked by a long investigation into the claims of the ghost. Hamlet is a revenging hero who will not act unless he is certain that what he is doing is just.
The play does not just go into the action of Hamlet’s revenge, but also the anguish of his mind. There are many beautifully crafted speeches of Hamlet contemplating the deeper questions of humanity as he tries to navigate his pain, anger and the lose-lose situation that his father’s ghost has put him in. These speeches and the honesty of Hamlet’s pain make this play more about every person who suffers than it is about a vengeful prince in Denmark, which speaks of the timeless quality of the piece.
Dead White Writer on the Floor
July 2018
Dead White Writer on the Floor
Hayden Taylor, Drew. Dead White Writer on the Floor. 2011. Talon Books.
Cultural conflict between Canada’s indigenous peoples and those of a european background is complicated, messy and painful, as Postcolonialism always will be by its very nature. This complicated issue is often ignored, and the way people justify that is by stereotyping Indigenous people and creating tolerable images of them that make them seem either all bad and violent, or not-so-hard-done-by. Dead White Writer rips this band-aid clean off by throwing all of the stereotypes into one room and killing the white man who was responsible for their stories, stuffing his corpse into a closet. The stereotypes begin to break down, revealing real people who just want an opportunity to make a life for themselves, but when they take the opportunity to write their own stories they end up far worse off and begin to realize that the White Writer may not be as dead as he first appeared.
Coming from the interesting perspective of being caucasian with an indigenous brother I found this play challenging and fascinating, I loved its approach to typical stereotypes and that it addressed an issue that few are willing to address, but being willing to admit that it is a very complex one. Without pointing fingers or flinging accusations, Dead White Writer seemed to give a voice to the desire that indigenous people have to write their own story. The White Writer did not help them in the past, and he is not helping them now. Giving an honest voice to a hurting group of people may not solve the problems present in a post-colonial society, but it is a right they deserve.