Rahul Verna is Montreal resident and a playwright and longtime artistic director for a small independent theatre group. His many productions over the years have focused on contemporary political and social issues at home and abroad. His letter to the editors at the Gazette was published today in response to the controversy over a recent musical production for the Jazz Festival that was composed of songs from American slaves. His letter begins:
‘All artists have freedom to express truths and ideas, particularly uncomfortable truths and provocative ideas; artists have the freedom to learn about cultures and stories other than their own. They should not, however, have the freedom to discriminate, distort and exploit colonial histories.’
Robert Lepage responds to NYT review of his show Kanata:
http://epaper.montrealgazette.com/@Fred_McSherry/csb_YU6GkKTKPOwwcsGa1c8Wc3NEZCMs6JkWal2Q3vcbEOH0cIpggs2jSmk5oHOKM1x1
Laura Cappella’s review of Kanata in NYT
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/17/theater/robert-lepage-kanata-review.html
Lepage has made some tweaks to his production SLAV touring in Quebec but they fall short of critical expectations:
https://montrealgazette.com/entertainment/arts/dunlevy-slav-critic-silenced-and-debunking-the-irish-slavery-myth
Lepage decides to quietly close SLAV altogether…
https://montrealgazette.com/entertainment/local-arts/dunlevy-slav-saga-comes-to-fizzling-conclusion
Maybe next time, not so much hand-wringing and indignation over censorship. It would seem to me to be a worthy challenge to find the right black / Indigenous collaborators. As opposed to the quiet road to bankruptcy, there could be handsome payoffs for all. End up at the same place, but with a profit and heightened reputation this time.
Kinda goes to show that a lot of this stuff, tho wrapped in putative principles, is really just about habits, and the inertia towards changing them.