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The Actors take a Bow |
One of the most important lessons I learned from my journey to Louverture Cleary is that everything happens for a reason and that the Holy Spirit is always at work. It seemed like karma when Ms. Melanson revealed that our big project at the school was to direct a play to establish a performing arts program.
I remember standing by the soda fountain and the free breadbasket, waiting for my food order in the Panera by Bishop Ireton High School, our trip seemed like a lifetime away, summer had just started! Ms Melanson told me in a conspiratory tone about the idea to start something drama related. During our discussion, I scribbled notes in a notebook. Abstract ideas that came into my head- “One act play…10-12 people including chorus??…Entertaining/ fun…Write script => integrate language…singing/ dancing/ music.” I did not have a direction or a thought process. I had no idea where to begin. My only guidelines were to celebrate both the uniqueness and the unity of the United States and Haiti.
I came home, a little overwhelmed and told my librarian mother who gave me a typical answer, “Well, I think you need to go to the library.” In the end, it was she who went to the library and came home with great success. What does every single culture have in common? Storytelling! Mom found a book entitled A Ring of Tricksters that traced the origin of storytelling and oral tradition, particularly that of trickster characters from Africa. Trickster tales migrated to America and the Caribbean along with the slave trade. Each culture tweaked the stories a little, coming up with new situations and characters that reflected their values and beliefs. Excellent! I had a beginning. During our discussions as a group, one of the most important ideas was solidarity and community as Americans, so the theme of the play was bringing everything together. The stories linked us as a people.
I read some Haitian folktales and discovered the importance of music, dance, and rhythm. Ms. Melanson told me to expect a Southern Baptist Revival Church for an audience, laughing, cheering, booing, singing, clapping, everything. From there I contacted my little brother’s Haitian drum teacher, Jon Laine. Jon Laine is a true Caribbean person in that he is always, always, always late. And he’s usually late by about an hour, at least. So after a lot of setting up appointments that were cancelled at the last minute, we finally sat down together in mid-July to discuss integrating music in the play. I walked away with a CD of Haitian music and not much else. I needed to write a script before we could think about music.
The play itself and the entire Mission Trip then escaped to the recesses and shadowy back corners of my mind. On my excessive ‘To Do’ lists, Haitian One Act was always near the bottom. College, summer reading assignments, work, the Bishop Ireton drama club all took precedence over the Thanksgiving Mission Trip. School started and the explosion that is senior year shoved the poor little trip to Louverture Cleary even farther into the wings. Looking through my assignment book, I found Haitian Play written over and over again. It seemed that every time I sat down at the computer to produce a script, nothing came. My Muse was taking a very long holiday and the weeks were dangerously numbered before our group would be in Haiti.
Eventually, after Ms. Melanson expressed concern, I sat down and pounded it out. My resources where three books of folktales, one from Africa, one from America, and another lovely little book that the librarian mother discovered called The Magic Orange Tree And Other Haitian Folktales. From Africa, I picked a story about a turtle named Ijapa. From America, I chose a Brer Rabbit story. From Haiti I picked Bouki Dances the Kokioko. I don’t know if it was the word “dances” in the title, but the moment I read it, I knew it was perfect.
Ms. Melanson read it and gave the play her stamp of approval. It was sent via e-mail to the school in Louverture Cleary where I was told it would be cast and the students would start learning their lines.
It was early October at this point. I contacted Jon Laine again and we began forming plans for another music composition meeting. I talked to Mrs. Henry, the acting teacher at Bishop Ireton about possibly workshopping the play in our acting class. I began to focus on what I needed to do as a director. Would there be costumes? What about props? How would I structure my lesson plans and the rehearsal process? I only had four days of rehearsal- how was I going to accomplish this?
By the time I finished writing, the cast had grown to around twenty-five. It was an ensemble piece and I emphasized a minimalist set and props as much as possible. Mrs. Henry gave me three classes to work on the play with other students. We read through it together, worked a little on physicalization of the characters, and then brainstormed good theatre games and warm-ups to play with the cast.
Andrea Borrelli, a junior at Bishop Ireton and a member of the Alliance for Haiti club, was put in charge of costumes. We sat down together and discussed different ideas and I left her to her own devices. The costumes turned out to be beautiful- simple and easy to pack. They were also very effective. Jon Laine and I met again and he created three simple percussion rhythms to reflect the three main tricksters, where they were from, and their character traits.
It was now the week before we were to get on the plane for Haiti. I was nervous and scared. What if the entire thing was a disaster? What if all the students hated me? What if Ms. Melanson considered it the biggest failure in all her years with the Haitian Project?
Full of hopes and fears, we boarded the plane to Port Au Prince early Sunday morning. In the airport and on the plane I created a lesson plan for each day we would be there. Play practice would take place in the afternoon for two hours and fifteen minutes. On Thursday we would get three hours. It was the shortest rehearsal process I had ever dealt with.
One concern of mine was how to integrate the talents of the other girls on the trip with the play. Katherine and Teresa were musicians, so I designated them to be in charge of the rhythms that Jon Laine created for each character. Kat was a cheerleader and a dancer, so she was in charge of creating characters with the ensemble members. Joelle, fluent in Kreyol, translated the narrator’s lines from English. The play was being performed twice, once for the school in English, and once for the Ti Ecole (small children in the literacy program), who do not speak English. The idea was that the actors would perform the play in English while Joelle spoke the lines in Kreyol.
When we arrived at the school on Sunday evening, amidst the hustle and bustle of organizing and unpacking, a meeting with the cast was designated to be held in Languages III at 8:30 pm. We made our way over there with scripts and costumes and were met by Miss Dunne and Miss Robinson who had organized the play thus far. They were responsible for casting the play and holding a few practices. The room was filled with students, talking, joking and laughing. They ranged in age from eleven to eighteen. After brief introductions, we decided to have a read through of the script. I expected everyone to stay seated, and read straight from copies of the script. Instead, the individual plays got up and walked through the play as well. Most of the lines were memorized and they had already worked on characters and facial expressions. I was blown away and excited! I guess it took actually being at the school to get over my fears and anxieties.
Play practices took place on the new basketball court, which was located in a walled courtyard beyond the soccer field. Monday’s rehearsal was by far the most productive of the four. We discussed the different areas of the stage and blocked the entire show. A few things became apparent to me quickly. Teens were teens. The Haitian cast exhibited the same behavior, fears, and issues as any cast I had been a part of in America. I realized that directing a play in Haiti at Louverture Cleary was no different than directing a play at Bishop Ireton High School. There was an undercurrent of enthusiasm that was addicting. Everyone seemed genuinely excited to be a part of a new program at their school.
By Tuesday, Teresa, Kat, Katherine, Joelle and I started to make friends with the Haitian students. We figured out the quirky personalities. We waved at each other when we passed on campus. I could hear students singing the Kokioko song and beating the drums. I felt myself becoming very personally attached to the students, something I had not expected. As far as worrying about not getting along or the students not liking me, I discovered these fears were completely ridiculous.
Friday arrived and everyone was filled with nervous energy. The dress rehearsal on Thursday had gone extremely well. Some lines still needed to be memorized, and props were still being pulled together at the last minute. Over four days the girls in our group had grown to love all of the students in the play. We had created a very special bond with them and now we were going to share that with the other students. I could barely focus on sewing grommets the morning of the play. The grommets were being sewn onto a large tarp that would cover the rooftop garden. How could anyone think about anything other than the performance? Then it struck me that the play was only a small piece of a big puzzle. It took the play and the rooftop garden and the classroom and the compost pile together to make Louverture Cleary School (LCS) the special community that it is.
The school’s motto, “What you have received as a gift, you must give as a gift,” is the best summary of my experience at LCS. Our group gave the students the gift of performing. The students, in turn, gave us the gift of perspective. The students proved to us that happiness does not come from material goods. True happiness is within you. The Haitians are the most noble and dignified people I have ever had the privilege of meeting because they truly appreciate life, despite all of its quirks and all of its injustice. I feel that I walked away from this experience so fulfilled and so rich that going to Louverture Cleary is like living in some sort of beautiful dream.
The performance itself was a huge success. Yes, it was rudimentary and yes, it was silly and fun. But those qualities made it special and unique. I would say that we accomplished our original intent: to celebrate the uniqueness and unity of the United States and Haiti. The play is just a small part of what Louverture Cleary School is, and it stands as a model for the bigger picture. We collaborated and worked towards a positive, common goal. A cast is like a community in that everyone must support and love one another. There are people who play huge parts, like the lead players, and there are people who have small ensemble roles, but it takes everyone working together to create the artistic endeavor that we accomplished.
The play also brought home an important concept for me: it was not about me. It may be true that I wrote it and I directed it, but my role was one tiny thread in a tapestry. In the big picture, what we accomplished in the week that we were there: putting on a play and introducing theatre to the students at Louverture Cleary is in one sense very important. In another, it only reinforces what The Haitian Project is all about. So, while directing a play can be an exercise in praising the individual’s role, in this case it taught me just the opposite. A shout out goes to Teresa, Katherine, Kat, and Joelle for all of their help and wonderful creativity. That lesson is probably one of the most important lessons I can learn in my young adult life.
The entire play process would have been impossible without the help and guidance of some important inspirations in my life, both in America and at the school. My mother, for keeping me on track with what was important. Jon Laine, for sharing his creativity and heritage. Ms. Melanson for believing in me and pushing me to excel. To the staff and volunteers at Louverture Cleary School, for being open to our visit and trusting us with independence in our project. And finally, to the students at LCS, for teaching me unforgettable life lessons and sharing their beautiful community with me.