Few issues are seizing the Canadian consciousness today as much as Kinder Morgan’s pipeline expansion, an issue Burnaby residents are all too familiar with.
These themes take to the stage in a new production of Bears, a dark comedy about the Trans Mountain pipeline, happening at the Cultch and presented by Alberta Aboriginal Performing Arts and Punctuate! Theatre. It runs from May 8 to 12.
Floyd is the prime suspect in a workplace accident. He flees town and is pursued by the RCMP to the Rockies. By the time he reaches Burnaby, he’s changed: his gate is widening, his muscles bulging, and his sense of smell is heightening.
Bears is “unapologetically political,” according to a press release from the Cultch. The multidisciplinary play -- which combines dramatic storytelling, choreography, an eight-person chorus, projections and an electronic soundscape -- aims to stir up discussion about the effects of greed on the lands belonging to Canada’s Indigenous peoples. The play was written and directed by Matthew MacKenzie, and features a predominantly Indigenous cast, including Métis theatre artist Sheldon Elter.
The Cultch’s Historic Theatre is at 1895 Venebles Street in Vancouver.
Tickets start at $22 and can be purchased by calling The Cultch’s box office at 604-251-1363 or visiting tickets.thecultch.com.
Bears opens in preview on May 8, with opening night May 9 at 8 p.m. Regular 8 p.m. shows are on May 10, 11 and 12, with a 2 p.m. matinee on May 12.
The May 10 performance includes a special “talkback” performance with a lively post-show Q&A session with the artists.
