Creating Theatre for Young Audiences: The making of Raven Meets the Monkey King
I spent my 2012 – 2013 sabbatical year as the Artistic Associate with Vancouver’s Axis Theatre Company, a company that has spent the past 37 years creating and touring children’s theatre in Canada and abroad. Originally titled Axis Mime Theatre, over the years this company changed its focus and mandate to include a broad range of physical theatre expression, which allowed them greater freedom to devise and create shows for young people. Axis Theatre has created dozens of original works, many of them inspired by existing children’s stories familiar to children of Western or European descent, such as Peter and the Wolf, Robinson Crusoe, Driftwood (The Adventures of Pinocchio), The Emperors New Threads, King Arthur’s Kitchen, and their newest offering, Hamelin, a musical adaptation of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, to name a few. Others plays produced by Axis are focused on specific issues that schools explored, such as The Big Sneeze, which examines themes of self-acceptance and self esteem, and the play Bodyworks, which creatively explains how the digestive tract works. Throughout their history, Axis Theatre’s offerings covered a broad range of topics and ideas in their signature physical theatre style, which is an appealing mix of Commedia d’ell Arte, mask, puppetry, acrobatics, and mime. These plays are, in part, a response to information provided by the school system to the theatre company.
Children’s theatre companies receive this information in a variety of ways. At the school conferences and showcases that happen on a provincial, national, and international level, artists who tour in the school system present their work to drama coordinators and school officials who purchase the shows for a specific school or district. The organization called Art Starts in British Columbia does this for the B.C. school system, and in Saskatchewan it is handled by the Organization of Saskatchewan Arts Councils. Generally, every province will hold a conference and showcase for their region, and if a theatre wishes to tour North America they attend the event sponsored by IPAY, the International Performing Arts for Youth showcase and conference. All of these organizations provide opportunities for artistic directors and general managers of children’s theatres to network with school officials and each other, as well as glimpse what the competition is offering. Companies like Axis Theatre Company also receive evaluation forms from each school they visit, with a request on the form to recommend ideas for shows in the future they would like to see performed in their schools. They also seek out letters and responses from the children themselves in the form of a “talkback” at the end of every show. Information collected in the talkback sessions is relayed back to the theatre. All of this is, from the theatre’s point of view, good business sense, and continuous dialogue with the schools and drama coordinators is a vital and important exchange of information. The conferences also provide opportunities for school officials to critique an artist or theatre company’s current offering. These conferences and evaluation forms can directly affect a company’s access to schools to present their shows.
Conversations about how decisions by the school system inform theatrical offerings for children are plentiful. In the above scenario, it is consistently adults who create and design theatre experiences for children, and the focus is often centred on how theatre can enhance the curriculum and/or teach children important social skills. As Mathew Reason suggests in his book The Young Audience: Exploring and enhancing children’s experiences of theatre, the focus of adults creating theatre for children has pointed us toward asking why children should watch theatre, and what kind of theatre they should watch. The idea of experiencing and appreciating a play based on its aesthetic or artistic merit becomes secondary to the importance of using the theatre experience as a teaching tool. The focus is on teaching and learning, rather than creating theatre that provides an enriching cultural experience. This can restrict the kind of theatre young people are exposed to.
In my opinion, in the case of Axis Theatre Company the requests from school officials to offer more diversity helped create a shift in the company away from what they traditionally offered for school touring. In 2012 Axis Theatre developed and produced The Field by Clem Martini, which dealt with themes of racism and difference. In this play, a young blind girl, Lane, befriends a South Asian boy named Rav, and discovers what it means to be an outsider. The show was very well received in the school system, but the tour was cut short due to a teacher’s strike in British Columbia that year. Around this time, The British Columbia Arts Council was presenting its 2012-2013 Strategic Plan, with two of its four stated goals being to strengthen community engagement, and to support the unique role of Aboriginal artists and their communities. In this example, the organizations, or “adults” who set boundaries on projects they would fund or projects they would purchase – the B.C. Arts Council and the B.C. schools system – became agents of change. It was at this time Louise Moon’s proposal for the play Raven Meets the Monkey King landed on artistic director Wayne Specht’s desk.
As the founder and artistic director of Axis Theatre Company, Wayne Specht has successfully spearheaded the creation of over 55 new plays for children. While Raven Meets the Monkey King is similarly aligned with Clem Martini’s play The Fields produced by the company a year earlier, Raven Meets the Monkey King specifically focussed on the experiences of Aboriginal people and their local history, and how their history intersected with many Asian immigrants who came to Canada to make a new life. Thus the play is more political than the plays of the company’s past. These external boundaries and pressures placed on the company regarding funding and access to schools provided an opportunity to examine the audiences they serve, and the result is a play that speaks directly to the experiences of many British Columbia children and their families.
Raven Meets the Monkey King is about a young girl, J.J., who discovers a mysterious box at a garage sale and takes it home. Inside the box is preserved a First Nations Raven mask, wrapped in an old Chinese Opera poster. J.J. is thrilled, as she wants to be a rich and famous antiques collector, and she learns that she could make a lot of money selling these two items. Little does she know that guarding the mask and poster are two spirits, that of Raven and the Monkey King. These two spirits guide J.J. on a journey to return the mask and poster to their rightful owners. Throughout her journey there are historical references to the B.C. salmon canneries, which were heavily staffed with Chinese immigrants and First Nations peoples. Additionally, the play covers Canada’s banning of the potlatch and potlatch regalia, the hard work and cultural challenges of early Chinese immigrants, and incorporates the legend of how Raven Stole the Sun and the story of the Monkey King. Themes of cultural integration, transformation, and cultural appropriation are some of the ideas presented in the play, along with respecting cultural artifacts, and returning what doesn’t belong to you. What was the most powerful effect for many children watching Raven Meets the Monkey King was seeing themselves reflected in the Asian and First Nation actors on stage.
In a pivotal scene from Raven Meets the Monkey King, we move back in time to meet a Chinese boy who has come to Canada for a better life. He works in a salmon factory, and on his time off goes to see a travelling opera troupe from China present their production of The Monkey King. He is thrilled to have a poster and a packing box given to him from the touring company, and wants to be “just like the Monkey King” when he grows up. This small scene encapsulates the importance of building identity and connecting to one’s cultural heritage. In his new country, Charlie identifies and connects to the Monkey King in a vital way, which helps him through the challenges and difficulties of being in a strange land. Similarly, the many Asian children who have experienced the show strongly identify with the actor playing this part, which is apparent in the talk back session as well as the many cards, letters, and pictures that are mailed to the theatre company. This is also true for the First Nations actress playing Samantha, who is hiding her family’s Raven mask from an “Indian Agent”. In a powerful scene at the end of the play, the mask and poster are returned to Samantha and Charlie, the original owners. Samantha is finally able to perform the Raven dance with the mask on stage, as the Potlatch is no longer banned, and First Nations children experiencing the play see their history and culture honestly reflected and ultimately positively embraced.
In this instance, the adults acting as official gate-keepers to funding and the rule makers providing access to schools were agents for change. It’s difficult to know if the play would have been produced without these external pressures and demands, but it is clear the implementation of these rules strongly encouraged its production. For Axis Theatre Company, Raven Meets the Monkey King has been successful and well-received in British Columbia as well as in the province of Saskatchewan, where it toured to many First Nations reserves and northern communities. It has just finished its second year of touring, with another slated for the fall of 2014.
Performance Research For/By/With Young People 
Hi Kathryn,
I got chills reading parts of this paper. It is so exciting and brave, in my opinion, when TYA artists tackle complicated issues, especially issues of racialized people and Canadian history, which so often seems to suggest that our “multicultural” policies mean that there have never been problems. I think your comment about Matthew Reason’s book is interesting because he is concerned about the problems of content driven TYA, but you demonstrate that political pressure can actually make space for significant artistic work. There’s a children’s literature expert I really like, Lissa Paul, who writes about 18th century children’s literature, and she talks about “rebranding the didactic as brilliant”. While all “didactic” experiences are not necessarily wonderful, she argues that when adults respect children enough to offer engaging and creative ways to learn, it should not be immediately discounted. Do you think that this play is a more contemporary example of her suggestion? I’m really curious about style. Was the piece performed in some kind of hybrid, intracultural way? Does the piece directly address issues like racism? How did the playwrights deal with language (was English the only language on stage?). Since you were there for a full year, do you mind sharing any “creation challenges” in developing a work like that? Was there ever a concern that the content was too difficult or not appropriate for the audience?
Looking forward to hearing more!
Heather
Thank you Heather. I’ll respond to your question around Lissa Paul and her views first. I don’t know her work (but I will look it up before the conference!) but I think yes, this project could be looked at as a contemporary example of her suggestion. I struggled a lot with this piece, and I think that it’s interesting that the funding agency as well as the school board were specifically asking for projects that reflected the makeup of their students. This company does not usually take on what they call “issue-based” plays, as Green Thumb Theatre, also in Vancouver, tends to cover that area, which is why this play was unusual choice. Stylistically the play pretty much follows the structure of the traditional “well made play”. The play was performed in English only, with the most challenging aspect in my point of view being that it was incredibly complex in it’s language and ideas, particularly for the K-4 age group. There were concerns that the ideas and language would be over the heads of many kids, but we found that not to be the case at all. This is partly because Axis Theatre is a highly visual and physical theatre company, so the work onstage often visually and physically underscores the language, so if the words were too chewy students usually understood what was going on through stage pictures. The Raven dance and the dance moves of the Monkey King were incorporated into the piece and the characters physicalization.
One of the biggest challenges was making sure the play and it’s study guide contained language that would not offend the hundreds of different First Nations bands it would be presented to. We worked closely with a First Nations Education Consultant who would tell us about possible issues that might come up. For example, the story of how Raven Stole the Sun could be problematic in it’s telling as some First Nations bands might be offended that it was being told on stage, or appropriated in some way. It was important for Nyla Carpentier, the First Nations actress hired to play the role, to get permission from her elders to share the story, so that story is pretty much word-for-word the story she was told as a child. If that part were to be recast, the company would likely have to go through the process of getting permission for the next artist to tell the story. This would not be important for all First Nations bands, but important enough that our consultant suggested we go ahead and get permission. This was also the case with Nyla performing the Raven dance at the end of the play. We didn’t have the same problem with the story of the Monkey King, as it’s been in public domain for many years.
The play does not address racism head on, rather it promotes acceptance and tolerance in an indirect way through the three characters working together. The themes of the play had more to do with cultural appropriation and how to value, respect, and return cultural artifacts to their rightful owners. It is also a history lesson of sorts for children who grew up on the coast, and have families who worked in the canneries. (You’d be surprised how many there are – from the playwright to the AD Wayne Specht to many, many children’s grandparents, aunts and uncles!) For me, the most moving part of the play was watching it in a school, as Vancouver has such a high makeup of Asian and First Nations students, and they were so incredibly aware that their own stories were being told, and most important, they could see themselves reflected in the performers onstage.
Thanks for your reply. The cultural negotiations regarding working with First Nations material ring really true to me because of a project I’m working on right now relating to Inuit stories (we can talk about that in person!). So — just one more thing to clarify — the Raven Dance was performed at the end of the play — did The Monkey King echo Peking Opera movement styles? Or did they opt for a more general physical performance style?
The Monkey King also echoed Peking Opera Style movement of the Monkey King, correct! Can’t wait to hear about your project,
K
Amazing. SO that leads me to questions about music. Was there a soundscape or score? I just talked with Leslee Silverman who saw the show in two incarnations and said that it changed a lot, but that she thought the historical frame about responsibility, care, and ownership was the most important, rather than cultural intersections. Her friend Linda told me she thought Wayne Specht might be retiring — which I guess means that your experience was a double coup!
Hi Heather – you know Leslee! That’s great, I met her when I was working with Wayne in Vancouver, she’s wonderful. She is also right, the play is more about responsibility, care, and ownership. The cultural intersections are much more muted and are implied rather than cracked head-on. The music was composed by sound designer Mike Rinaldi, and he created a contemporary “mash-up” of Peking Opera sounds and instruments with suggestions of First Nation’s drumming for the final Monkey King / Raven Dance, it was very effective. As for Wayne retiring, yes, it was great to work with him for that year!
K
Hi Kathryn, thank you for this paper. I find the project fascinating and incredibly rich and complex. I was wondering, if/how the production tackles the difficult relationship between aboriginal peoples and Multicultural policy in Canada? As the first inhabitants of the land, the indigenous communities have claims on the state not shared by other cultural groups. First Nations peoples occupy a space outside of multiculturalism because inclusion would negate their specific needs and unique claims to the land and self-governance. Does the production draw attention at all to the specific concerns of indigenous people, with regards to the aforementioned? How does the performance perhaps tackle the more difficult elements of multiculturalism such as the persistance of systemic barriers to political, economic and social inclusion? In short, how does the production move beyond the recognizable multicultural tropes of tolerance and diversity to tackle the larger issues concerning racism, indigenous rights, and colonial legacies?
Also, I am interested in hearing about audience and critical reception? How was it received and what interesting comments and discussion have been sparked by the production? In what ways does the critical reception comment upon prevailing views regarding multiculturalism and First Nations issues?
And, I was wondering if there was any educational outreach that accompanied the production? Talk-backs or educational packages? And what was the response to the outreach?
So many questions, I apologize! But it is interesting and important work that sparks such a deluge!
Thank you Jacquey, for such thoughtful questions. I will attempt to answer as thoughtfully….
1. I was wondering, if/how the production tackles the difficult relationship between aboriginal peoples and Multicultural policy in Canada?
This is a great question. The play itself didn’t address contemporary issues, but each performance addressed some issues related to land ownership indirectly. The actress playing the Raven made sure to thank the specific bands for the honour of performing on their respective traditional land for every performance. This required a bit of research on Axis Theatre’s behalf, and we were also lucky to have an incredible actress who made sure she knew which school rested on which band’s traditional land. This meant formally thanking the Squamish Nation, Coast Salish, etc. for every show, whether we were in North Vancouver at a French Immersion school, or the downtown Eastside.
2.How does the performance perhaps tackle the more difficult elements of multiculturalism such as the persistance of systemic barriers to political, economic and social inclusion? In short, how does the production move beyond the recognizable multicultural tropes of tolerance and diversity to tackle the larger issues concerning racism, indigenous rights, and colonial legacies?
The play has a pivotal scene where the young characters Charlie and Sam, who both work in fish cannery, are running to hide their cultural artifacts from the Indian Agent who is chasing them to confiscate these items. They race to find Charlie’s old Peking Opera poster, wrap the Raven mask in it, and request help from the spirits of the Monkey King and Raven to keep them safe and return them to their rightful owners. These items are placed in an old opera touring trunk and tossed into the water to avoid it falling into the hands of the “evil Indian Agent”. In a present day scene at the top of the play the box is eventually found by J.J, who wants to sell the artifacts.
In this scene from the past, the banning of the potlatch is explained, and the character of Sam is under threat of being jailed. Additionally, when I was working on the show this is also where the Chinese Head Tax was introduced by the character of Charlie. Sam (short for Samantha) catches him practicing Monkey King kicks on the pier of the cannery, and they share ‘dance moves’. Sam teaches him Raven dance steps, and Charlie teaches Sam Monkey King moves, This leads to Sam showing Charlie where she’s hidden the Raven mask so it won’t be confiscated, as it’s been in her family for generations. This is what the Indian Agent, who is spying on them, catches them doing, and we learn about the banning of the potlatch and how dancing for First Nations people’s was illegal. Charlie is threatened to be sent “back from where he came from” and Sam is threatened with jail and confiscation of the mask, and the chase ensues. The scene really doesn’t shy away from stating the facts of the time, and the accompanying study guide has follow up information on these events in our history.
3.Also, I am interested in hearing about audience and critical reception?
The first run of the play had very strong, positive feedback from the children and the schools, and the play has done extremely well as a touring show for the company. Critically, the first run of the play was quite wordy and intellectual, so there have been some cuts and additions since which really streamline the story. (For example, the scene at the garage sale, where J.J. finds the box with the mask and opera poster in it, was edited, along with a song) The Raven Mask won the First Nations artist, Mike Dangeli, a Jesse Richardson Theatre Award, however! The comments from students and teachers alike have been amazing, in fact, there is a letter posted on Axis Theatre’s website from a teacher about the show, and when it was performed on First Nations reserves in Saskatchewan the actors had several teachers in tears at the end of the play, they were so moved by the content. Generally speaking, it’s been received extremely well.
4.And, I was wondering if there was any educational outreach that accompanied the production? Talk-backs or educational packages? And what was the response to the outreach?
After every show the actors held a talk-back with the children, and sometimes these were very short, due to the school’s scheduling, and sometimes they were quite long and involved. A study guide is accompanied with every show for every school, and again, this is available on the company’s website for viewing. Axis Theatre has had very positive feedback about their study guide.
I don’t know if all this completely addresses all your excellent questions, Jacquey, but thank you for asking and I look forward to meeting you!
K
Hi Kathryn,
In another seminar I’m in, people are talking about Linda Tuhiwai Smith and “decolonizing methodologies”. I can’t say I know much about her work, but it does sound like it might be application here.
Thank you Heather, I will take a look!
Hi Kathryn,
Thank you so much for detailing this project, I heard through the Vancouver grapevine that this was “great theatre”, not the usual compliment for TYA. It is always good to know the infrastructure that supports (or inhibits) theatre for young audiences, what drives certain kinds of productions over others.
Like Jacquey I am interested in the audience and critical reception, especially as it may offer up more data on whether societal issues came up for the young audiences, like it did for the adults. The benefit for young people to “see” themselves onstage though can never be underestimated, could Jill Dolan’s Utopia in Performance be useful here maybe, in analysing audience reception?
Looking forward to meeting you
Sandra
Sandra I have so much reading to do! I am not familiar with Jill Dolan’s Utopia – i will, however, look it up and see if I can familiarlize myself with her ideas before Tuesday. I look forward to meeting you too!
Kathryn
Pardon my typos…..
K
Hi Katherine,
Thank you for this paper!
What a great storyline. There are a lot of complex layers in this play. I was initially thinking, how you can relay all these complex ideas to these young minds. It sounds like TYA does an excellent job! I took a look at the site and watched the short snippets of the play. The visuals are really great. I’d love to see it in person!
You spoke to the audience reception earlier, but I am curious about the younger children’s response to the play vs. the older students. What kinds of questions are they asking at the talk-back. You mentioned that the students write letters to the company. I’m curious about how they are responding to these ideas and what kinds of conversations they are initiating when they meet with the cast. Are there specific moments in this play that pique their interest?
This is such an interesting project, thanks for sharing!
greetings kathryn~ thanks for your paper! here are some questions your paper has inspired:
i am interested in knowing what brought you to work with axis theatre company on your sabbatical in the first place? what is the relationship of this play to your own practice? and what were your challenges in working on the project?
i, too, went to the site and took a quick peek at the study guide– the contextual information was provided with care and i found the effort to respond to local contexts also important (e.g., “do you know anything about the contribution of First Nations peoples or what the role of the Chinese immigrant workers were in your area”. were workshops also done as part of the pre or post show experience of the play and if yes, what was the focus of that work?
finally, you suggest that “In my opinion, in the case of Axis Theatre Company the requests from school officials to offer more diversity helped create a shift in the company away from what they traditionally offered for school touring”. in what ways is “raven meets the monkey king” characteristic of axis’ work; and to what extent has the shift you describe here been sustained in their subsequent work?
p.s. i would actually love to read the script!
kind regards– belarie