It is an end

finished.

Done.

If you missed it, well, you missed it.

You might be able to see 'Vérité ou Trahison'(I'm improvising a title here) in french, in a couple years.

BUT, the topic is still alive, war is in a continuum raging everywhere on this planet and 'we' are all responsable for our actions or 'inactions' in feeding it -it came out of our discussions. If 'we' keep paying through our taxes for people to get shot in Afghanistan, if 'we' sustain a false sense of duty through patriotism (security), religion or gender, if 'we' do not look into ourselves and admit our guilt, if 'we' are afraid of our inevitable death and therefore support the killing of others, if 'we' think our neighbour is the one who has to start moving and doing unclear actions with unamed goals to stop this, if 'we' do not, individually, realize what 'destruction of life' means and if the thought of our own disappearance doesn't cross our minds, 'we' are together walking, blindly, towards what we haven't accepted to see.

AND 'we' are not talking about some distant locations nor empty 'peace' words for buying ourselves a better consciousness.

AND, hope, candour, your choices and actions, theatre, might seem like a weak shield made out of untouchables dreams.

BUT what else, in the end, is there to do?

There's the possibility of giving up and knowing that a part of ourselves has died somewhere along the path -which is much more terrible than death itself.

Sparkle.

Then there's the other way, which is incomparably more difficult -to a point where you think it might be some sort of joke played on you. It is, I believe, 'our', 'my', only duty -not to our country, God, Buddah, Allah, Raël, not to simply our families, but to life with a big L. And to love with a bigger L. The one that doesn't need words, nor promises. This one stands by itself as an entity. And if you laugh with an uncomfortable, shaking L, by reading this - you might wanna question your integrity.

Using the thin line between preaching and communication, I will conclude.

Thanks for reading, thanks for coming, thanks for talking about it, thanks for your questions and thanks for your actions too.

Stéphanie Lambert

A review in the Concordian

The concordian

I'm nobody's baby and the Royal 'We'

Lots of people coming to the show yesterday, a full house -and talking after, in the lobby. Many from Concordia, thanks to Raymond Marius Boucher and Eric Mongerson and Julie Racine - it is much appreciated. 'We' seemed to be relaxed, after the show, which is wonderful.

Linda, our General Manager is so great - she works hard but also knows when to stop (which I don't) and she's a good 'socializer'-making people feel comfortable, and she's fair, professional, pedagogical, slightly sarcastic, logical, messy (in a way that always creates new anecdotes), empathetic, a strong person who giggles a lot. I'm always learning from this lady who just informed me about Sheila Copp's 'I'm nobody's baby', and how this was an inspiring line for her. I am even starting to pick up Linda's Royal 'We' -which takes away the responsability from -or makes responsable for- whoever is there, whenever it is said. Good or bad, 'we' are analyzing the effects right now.

Only 5 shows left!!!

Tonight
school matinee on friday
friday night show
saturday 2PM show with a panel right after and then
saturday night

More Reviews........................

The Link, Concordia
The Gazette


Saturday after the 2PM show is the last panel discussion; art in relation to war.

You can come to the show and the panel or just for the panel, or just for the show -so many options. It will start around 3h45-4PM (the panel) and last an hour.


Steph

Rover arts- The Art Of Changing The World THEATRE - Truth and Treason, Monument National

A critic... I wonder what people mean, when they say 'change the world'. Have we agreed on a common well-understood-just-the-same-for-everyone-definition? What does 'change the world' mean? Am I the world? Are you the world? If it's not you nor me, then who is it? Have I changed throughout this process? Oh yes. Have the actors changed throughout this process? I was told so. Has the playwright change throught the process of putting on this play? Yes, I would think so. Has the director changed throught this process? Yes, I would also think so. Has my little sister changed because she saw this play and never goes to theater; she told me: 'I wish more people could see this, I wish you could be in all Universities, I wish my teachers brought me to see this kind of theatre. I am so mad that so many people are indifferent and won't even try to go. They don't know what they are missing'. Has the Iranian panelist who saw the play on the Opening Night and was talking on this past Sunday panel changed through seeing it? She said at her panel, something similar to 'I am sorry that I could not stay after the show, it was just too much for me. I am very proud and moved that you were not afraid to portay fundamentalism as boldly as you did, because really, they're not just the 'good guys' over there. I could relate to this oppression so much'. Have the panelists from Échec à la Guerre, who had a floor to speak, changed? Well, they might have, since they could talk. Do you change when you write on a particular topic? Isn't the fact of writing against blankness a change in itself? Please, help me understand. We all can take critic -unless if our intentions were just so good and we get a flying stone after a pile of flowers- but we all like to understand eachother and the judgement we put upon ourselves as well. If I'm wrong about claiming this statement for the whole world, I claim it at least for myself. With all my heart,

Steph

If you wish to read:

article

4 stars from a atuvu.ca user!

'Thought-Provoking
Very strong piece of theatre. An indictment of American involvement in Iraq. The personal and the political blend together to create strong story-telling. Well-directed and acted. See it!

Julie M.
Dim. 13 septembre 2009'

I don't know that person. This was posted on the atuvu.ca website!!!
You can get cheaper ticket through them. Next time you can book through atuvu is on wednesday, 16th for the 8:30 PM show!

ON CTV!

We were sold out tonight and we had a great panel discussion after the show!!
There was a lot of people who where there and participated (although, yes, I have to admit, the event was not planned to be in the Cafe of The Monument with music out loud and people talking.)

Don't miss the one on Sunday afternoon about women in relation to war, it is a promising one as well - in a quiet space.

And we appeared on CTV for a few seconds: http://watch.ctv.ca/news/clip212357#clip212357

Amar Khoday's blog 'Jurisculture Exploring Law, Culture and Media'

Truth and Treason

As with many artistic mediums that we explore on this blawg, theatre has been no stranger to themes of law, politics and resistance. One Montreal-based theatre company in particular, Teesri Duniya Theatre (Third World Theatre in Hindustani) has tackled many such themes over the course of its close to 30 year history. Its latest production, Truth and Treason, written by Teesri's artistic director and playwright Rahul Varma is no exception. Set in Iraq in the aftermath of the US-led invasion of the country, the play examines a variety of issues that stem from the invasion and occupation - many of which implicate the law (particularly the laws of armed conflict, treatment of civilians as well as corruption) into the matrix. Rather than spoiling the play by inadvertently revealing too much information, I provide a brief synopsis of the play here, furnished on the Theatre's website: (...)


Amidst the political statement(s) against the war, about the lies that led to the war in Iraq and the tragedies that have ensued as a consequence are some interesting legal issues that emerge from the play. In connection with the theme of resistance and the law that I have written about on this blawg, one of the legal themes that arises is the conflict that develops between Captain Alston and Commander Frank over the mistreatment and killings of Iraqi civilians by US soldiers - murders that are covered up in order to avoid bringing the military presence into disrepute or to impose liability on those who perpetrated the acts. Alston's efforts to uncover and reveal the extent of the killings and their cover up leads to his disobedience of Frank's orders to remain silent about what is transpiring. Like many resisters, Alston is confronted with the stark choice of being perceived as a patriot or a traitor for his critique of the military's treatment in Iraq.

Confronting unlawful actions advocated by and sustained by military superiors is very real and challenging, whether it is an American soldier in Iraq (or in an earlier period in Vietnam) or other military personnel in various conflicts. As many studies point out, there is a tendency towards obedience, even when such obedience leads to the commission of crimes or their facilitation. Many such individuals face a court-martial, prison and limited career prospects after their incarceration for their disobedience. Some flee and seek asylum in other states only to be denied. Truth and Treason provides a sense of the intense internal struggle one undergoes in challenging their own state and superior officers, particularly when doing otherwise might not only mean a contravention of law, but a violation of one's own moral code.

source

Panel discussion + vernissage tonight

Friday, September 11, 2009 (following the 8:30pm show)

Self-defense or an Invasion?
Is the invasion of Iraq a legitimate response to the horrific events of 9/11, 2001 or was it a continuum of an undeclared war through successive US administrations? Was it a “war on terror” or “war of aggression”? What role has Canada played? Our panelists discuss issues behind the issues.

Panelists: Raymond Legault (Collectif Échec à la guerre), Omar Dewachi (Iraqi-Canadian, Anthropologist and musician), Louis Roy (Vice president, Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN), Jooneed Khan (Journalist, Human Right activist)
Moderator: Robert Stewart


* Please note that Omar will come on the 19th instead of today.

* Also, Vernissage and reception tonight at 7PM at the cafe of the monument national.
The vernissage is free, the panel is free.

2 for 1 tonight

It was great to have an audience in yesterday.
I will not say much more cause I think you sould make up your own opinion!

Tonight is a 2 for 1 on tickets (on 15$/ students, on 18$/seniors, on 22$/adults , all +tx) and we still have seats for you.

la premiere ce soir, la premiere ce soir, la premiere ce soir, la premiere ce soir, la premiere ce soir, la premiere ce soir!!!

:)

A lot of warm e-mails going through our cold mechanically cogitating computers as everyone says, as usual, but still meaningfully:



This was visually communicated by Romain Fabre, our Set Designer.

Rahul also gave an Interview to Marc Montgomery from CBC Radio (RCI-The link) you can listen to to their conversation by clicking here . The interview starts at 37 min., and it's in part 2 of the Link, 2009-09-08.

And CTV, CBC, the Gazette and Marie-Andree Parent from CKUT (Cafe) came to the Q to Q / run yesterday - watch the cultural report on tv and in the news papers this week/weekend or even better and with a reality's filter over the top, come to the show!!

Steph

Opening this week!! Radio interview with Arianna, by Estelle Rosen

Floor's painted, lights are hung and so are the tarps, actors are in for 10 working- hours/day, medias kits are printed, Bridges of Hope exhibition's up in the Cafe of the monument, food for the reception; umm... Still need to be ordered...

If you click on that link, you'll be magically transported to the Upstage (CKUT) website where you can listen to Arianna Bardesono talking with Estelle Rosen. The interview was on Sept. 3rd and she's on at around 6:30.

Enjoy!

https://secure.ckut.ca//cgi-bin/ckut-grid.pl?action=showaudio&show=thursday,18:00


Steph

Realities revealed by Jason Gondziola from the Hour

Thanks to Jason too for writing an article on us!! This blog is starting to be a 'virtual press clippings collection';) But the more we've got, the more happy we are. Good job people!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Truth and Treason delves deep into the Iraq war and debates its cultural, political and personal legacy

Motion is the key to emotion. So says Arianna Bardesono, director of Truth and Treason, a new play produced by Teesri Duniya Theatre about the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq.

"Any play can be dealt with in such a way that it's not just an intellectual reproduction of the [written] work," says Bardesono. "If something is going on in the bodies of the actors on stage, we go through the same motions internally in a microscopic way. It's how the audience connects with the performers."

Born and raised in Italy, Bardesono came to Montreal unintentionally, via a puppeteering gig in the Maritimes four years ago. She sees her direction of Truth and Treason as a cultural crossroads, with European direction and movement applied to a very North American script, where character and plot typically play a stronger role.

The play, written by Rahul Varma, begins with the unintentional shooting of a young girl by American soldiers, an act that throws the story's characters into the international spotlight. The ensemble of performers consists of 11 mostly fictional characters, but audiences will likely recognize ex-vice president Dick Cheney as well as General Tommy Franks, Condoleezza Rice and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

The story is told through 30 short scenes, each taking place on a sparse stage where military tarps serve as a changing and evolving set that alternately conceals and reveals throughout the performance - a symbol of our own knowledge of what goes on in the occupied
country.

Bardesono says that the play offers an important critique of the aftermath of the Iraq invasion and reminds audiences that the "war on terror" did not end with the Bush regime.

"Things haven't really changed," says Bardesono. "In his speeches, Obama uses almost the same language as Bush when talking about terror."

Source: the Hour

Who's the terrorist? by Neil Boyce from the Mirror

Oh this is great, Neil Boyce wrote a long article after a discussion with Arianna and Rahul. It is clear and there's passion in there -Thank you so much Neil. It's so encouraging to be able to be heard and seen. Steph
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Teesri Duniya theatre digs into the
complex politics of the war on terror
in Truth and Treason

Photo Credit: Terry Hughes. BRINGING IT BACK TO FACTS: Abdelgharfour Elaaziz and
Christine Aubin Khalifah in Truth and Treason


by NEIL BOYCE

“I’m not talking about some kind of political change that will occur because of the play. The primary change comes when the audience member becomes an active participant in what he or she has seen.”?

Rahul Varma, playwright and artistic director of Teesri Duniya theatre, is premiering his newest work, Truth and Treason, at the Monument National this week. Along with director Arianna Bardesono, he’s talking about the play and casting, but inevitably, when you chat with people who are passionate about politics, it leads to wider issues.

Part of a three-year cycle of plays called “Staging Peace in Times of War,” the story starts with an incident at a checkpoint in Iraq, when a 10-year-old girl is shot by a U.S. soldier, while her father is detained for an alleged terrorist history.?

“The idea came while I was working on my previous play [Bhopal], which was about an environmental catastrophe,” says Varma. “The events of September 11 had already occurred and our play was about to open. There was a known criminal who had caused the deaths of 20,000 Indians in Bhopal and was living as a free man in the U.S. In the case of 9/11, there were suspected terrorists—nothing was proven at that time—but an entire country was attacked. Where is the balance of justice? So there is a link from one play to the other: a link between the industrial and military complex. And we had to pose a new question: who was the terrorist, and why was it happening in the first place? What about state terrorism—is war any different from the terrorism it claims to be fighting??

“And it’s about getting into a more subtle debate than simplistic slogans about the global war on terror.?

“It’s bringing up what they don’t,” says director Bardesono, referring to the arguments neo-cons proffer for the occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan. “Their strategy is to stay very much on the surface, with no anchor to what is actually happening. We’re trying to bring it back to facts.”?

The history of Teesri Duniya (“Third World” in Hindustani) is a fascinating arc. Beginning as a South Asian theatre company in Montreal in 1981, where they staged plays in Hindi about the experiences of new immigrants, they later shifted to English-language productions, emphasizing intercultural dialogue in plays like Job Stealer and Divided We Stand, before embracing the more overtly political work of Reading Hebron, Bhopal and Counter Offence (which, as L’Affaire Farhadi, made a splash in French-language theatre).

Varma is already busy getting the new work translated into French for next season and will tour the English version in India come 2011.

“One of the best elements of Rahul’s play is that it’s a snapshot,” says Bardesono.?“And in it, we have nine characters who speak their minds and are in a very complex net.?

“To look beyond, to understand a little bit more of what’s going on in the world, that’s the biggest issue—and that’s why we continue doing this.”

TRUTH AND TREASON, SEPT. 8–19 AT
MONUMENT NATIONAL (1182
ST-LAURENT). TICKETS: (514) 871-2224.
INFO AT TEESRIDUNIYATHEATRE.COM

Pat Donnelly: Teesri Duniya Theatre Takes on Iraq War in Truth and Treason

Pat Donnelly from the Gazette wrote a Preview about us! And here's a link to her blog www.montrealgazette.com/stageandpage for more info.

Teesri Duniya Theatre Takes on Iraq War in Truth and Treason

In Rahul Varma's latest play,Truth and Treason, a young woman is shot by an American soldier in Iraq and her Canadian mother is not allowed to go to her side because the girl's father, an Iraqi writer, is regarded as a terrorist.

This sure-to-be-controversial work, directed by Arianna Bardesono for Teesri Duniya Theatre, is scheduled to open September 9, 2009, for a 10-day run at the Studio Hydro-Québec Theatre of the Monument National, 1182 St. Laurent Blvd. ( Box Office: 514-871-2224).

The cast includes: Christine Aubin Khalifah, David Francis, Warona Setshwaelo, Ivan Smith, Karim Babin, Sarah Garton Stanley, Abdelghafour Elaaziz, Jean-Moïse Martin and Alex Ivanovici.

Teesri Duniya (the title means Third World) is one of the most unique theatre companies in Quebec's distinct society. Founded in 1981 as a South Asian company it soon began expanding its horizons, mixing social activism with art and practicing colorblind casting long before it became a trendy affectation and chatter topic elsewhere.

This production is paired with an essay writing contest for high school students called Writing Peace. It's a chance for kids to write (idealistically, of course) for cash: $500 for first prize, $300 for second and $200 for third.

Click here for a YouTube glimpse of Truth and Reason.

Pat Donnelly
Gazette Culture Critic

Les vallons de l'expression -V.O.A. (general)

Sorry I was away for a while - these babies (blogs) do ask a lot of time and attention;

And yes, I do kill plants, but it's never volitional.

Everything is moving along. I see the prod. notes passing by as days go on and, it's gonna be amazing people! Phone is pretty busy in here. We've got high schools groups coming to the show! Yeah! I'm so so happy! I wonder how many times these students will have seen a theatre play that political, that professional and that emotional.

We'll also be in the Hour and in the Mirror this week -great exposure- and really with how 'energy-vore' it is to get somebody to talk about your show, to be forbidden by many many schools/ CEGEP/ Universities to put posters or flyers in their establishments and to present a show in ENGLISH, with ANGLOPHONE publicity material, is quite a task. As a student at Concordia, I did hear people talking about the fragile 'anglophone theatre world' in Montreal compared to the colossal 'francophone one' and I used to think 'ya, ya... We've heard you, are you done complaining? Come on, be brave'.. Well, now that I am experiencing it, I still think the 'be brave' is valuable but I do understand more the complaint, and I empathize. For sure, it's a mountain to put on a play in french. But when you reach the top of the mountain, even higher than the Mont Royal, and you're a little exhausted and the sun shines on you, and you ask for a glass of water and you're so thirsty and you see some people who might want to see the so-moving show that you're working for because they might wanna grow, and you see a clear spot on the wall, and you ask kneeling but still filled with good will ' would you mind if I put a poster thereeeeee'

' sure, what is is about?'
'Oh, the war in Iraq, and so much profound human nature insights surrounding it'
'T H E A A A T R R R E.. hummm, interesting. (you think that you might be an extraterrestrial) well show me your poster, girl! (you're so positive about life in general)
' Ah, it's in english! No sorry, we can't put that on, our clients throw forks at us when we put anglophone music here'
' But mister, mister, I walked 2 miles up, and I'm a francophone too, and I'm thirsty, and I love anglophones too, and I would like people to be conscious, everybody, even you and that despaired beer-drinker over there, and, haaaaaa...'-Last breath

Do you get me? The mountain is the same, but with an extra special ingredient, right at the top, as a cherry -which makes it even sweeter when the only thing you need at that point is a - 'yes girl, here's a whole fountain just for you, and I do understand you desire about a world without language-frontiers. A 'lineless' world. I will go over traditions and the place's policy! No problem.'

Ok, this might be excessive, but, but, but, I cannot be imagining all of it. Part of it is true.

So I'm proud of our team for climbing the steep hill and I think that using this 'demanding baby' that is this blog is one of the ways that we found to talk to you. The exposure is small and I'm sort of rambling, but I am free to invite you, whoever you are, whatever you speak, however you look and dress, whoever you go out with (or do not go out with) and whatever you think and do. All that, at the top of the hill.

I'm fine. :)

Steph