Cyclorama is a new play mounted in collaboration with the Centaur Theatre and the Centre du Théâtre d'Aujourd'hui, which dives into the dual linguistic history of Montreal theatre and the stories that define it. Professor Erin Hurley's current research into the history of English-language theatre in Montreal made her the perfect historical consultant for a documentary theatre project exploring the history and relationship between French and English-speaking theatres in Quebec.
Since 2019, Hurley's SSHRC-funded project, "English-Language Theatre in Quebec", documents the history of drama and theatre in English from 1930 to 2015 using archival research, oral histories and literary analysis as key methods.
We spoke to Professor Hurley about her role in the play's cast, her work as a historical consultant for the play, and the importance of theatre today.
As a historian, researcher, and professor of Quebecois theatre and cultural performance, what was it like working on a theatrical project that addresses the dual history and linguistic character of Montreal and its theatre scene?
It has been such a joyful learning experience for me – about theatrical creation and creative process, about theatre technologies, about acting. And it is gratifying to have some of my research on the history of English-language theatre in Montreal shared with the public in this fashion. Increasingly my research on this topic is being disseminated through research-creation and public-facing activities, such as the staged readings of English-language plays I produced last spring in Moyse Hall. Cyclorama is an incredible opportunity to dig into the persistence and the dissolution of the “two solitudes” in Montreal as a city and in the Montreal theatre community.
Tell us about the work you did for the Cyclorama production. What challenges or surprises did you encounter along the way as a participant and as a historian on this production?
On Cyclorama, with my colleague, Alexandre Cadieux, I am an “historical consultant” and an actor. As historical consultant, I provided the amazing creator of the show, Laurence Dauphinais, with information about the history of English-language theatre in Montreal in order to inform her writing of the play. I also gathered some primary source materials, some of which are used in the show – for instance, documentaries on the Anglophone community of Montreal, testimonials of Yiddish theatre-goers, photographs of the Musée Eden, and the like. Alexandre offered the research protocol which structures the piece.
The play is presented in “cyclorama form”, a cyclorama being a circular panorama presenting a historical scene, allowing all angles to be observed simultaneously. Why is it significant to immerse theatregoers into the play? What do audiences and performers learn from breaking that fourth wall, and immersing themselves into this liminal space?
Immersion encourages spectators to feel a part of the story, to engage them personally and affectively. It’s a bit like the pedagogical practice of experiential learning, in which the learners learn more fully and more deeply by working things out for themselves – in experimentation, in engagement – than they would by being lecturer at or told information.
What can French and English speaking theatregoers expect to discover about their shared history through Cyclorama? What conversations or discoveries are you hoping to see as an aftermath of this production?
Without giving away the plot or the punch of Cyclorama, I’d say that theatre-goers can look forward to fascinating anecdotes about both English- and French-language Montreal theatre – about the people and the places that made the scene what it is today. They can also expect to have “all the feelings” as my teenagers say . As to discoveries, the simple fact of putting these two theatre histories together is a discovery of a sort, since their stories are generally narrated and recorded separately; interestingly, both are taken up in nation-building narratives (of Canada and of Quebec, respectively), indicating the importance of theatre and cultural expression more broadly to identity and belonging. Another conversation to which I hope the show contributes is one about the way histories of places, institutions, and communities are remembered and conserved. For instance, Cyclorama makes clear there are many other theatre histories – beyond those defined by the English and French languages -- that we cannot put onstage in a single production.
The play not only brings together two languages, two cultural identities and two theatre companies, but also two actors trained in different theatrical traditions. What perspective does Antoine Yared (cast member) and his experience in Shakespearean theatre add to Cyclorama, and in what ways does it compliment Laurence Dauphinais (Director) and her own experience training as a French-speaking actress, screenwriter, and director?
Well, this question is the core of the show, really! Cyclorama explores the personal, professional, and political stakes and contexts of participating in “a tradition” – and of what that means for a sense of belonging and community and perspective.
The literary theme of Montreal and Quebec’s linguistic divide, the term “two solitudes” as popularized by Hugh MacLennan’s 1945 novel of the same name, is an ever-present fixture when we discuss Montreal and Quebec’s literary legacy and history. Will Cyclorama mark the beginning of amalgamating these parallel histories into a single, common history? Why or why not?
Cyclorama explores and exploits that sense of a linguistic divide; the show positions that divide as “drama” – a felt reality and a construction at the same time.
Why do you think the form of “documentary comedy” was chosen to represent these parallel histories? What role does documentary theatre play in shaping our relationship to our city and our shared history? How does it challenge audiences and performers to ponder the historical, artistic, and human aspects of our existence?
Documentary theatre in general aims to bridge the fictional of the theatre and the reality of the social by using “real” information and stories. The ‘documentary’ part of Cyclorama says, “These events actually happened; such people and places existed and worked in this way; this divided theatre community is real.” The ‘comedy’ part says: “It doesn’t have to be this way. And sometimes, things are just funny.”
In this play, Laurence Dauphinais wishes to address the fragmentation we’ve witnessed in Quebec society, where recently, the adoption of Bill 96 “proves that there is a massive rift between the punitive politics imposed by the government, seemingly fed by the fear of losing, and the desire for inclusion of [her] generation and those that follow it”. Why is theatre, specifically, and the arts, in general, important conduits for exploring discussions such as these? Is the theatre an appropriate place for us to explore these discourses? Why or why not?
There is a long history of theatre addressing and informing contemporary social issues: think of Molière’s satires of 17th-century French society, for instance, or collective feminist theatre’s searing and often very funny portraits of so-called “women’s roles”. The dominant mode of theatre (indeed, of cultural representation broadly) – realism – is based on the idea that the stage reflects the world around it; sometimes that reflection is more obscure, sometimes more direct, but theatre necessarily takes from what’s around it. So, yes, it is an appropriate, even important, place to explore issues around identity and belonging and how discourses around the same are constructed and circulated. I think that the theatre as a form adds two elements to these discussions. First is the personal dimension -- as recounted in the story or plot (characters) and as enacted, live and in-person in front of you (actors) in performance; this dimension can engage us as whole humans (that is, mind, body, and emotion). And second, theatre asks us to always consider the ‘other side’ of the story, in the way that Laurence needs Antoine to fill out the 360-degree view of the Montreal theatre-scene; she can’t do it by herself through one character. According to the Ancient Greeks, drama separates itself from epic precisely when the single bard requires a second actor – an antagonist to the protagonist. Theatre is always (at least) two, and contains multitudes.
Cyclorama is a theatrical experience in three acts and three places – the Centaur Theatre, a bus, and the Centre du Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui. This play dives into the history of Montreal theatre to surface the stories we tell that make us who we are. The play runs from October 11, 2022 to November 5, 2022. Tickets can be bought here.