Friday, January, 31st, 2014 News
On Monday, February 10, Underground Railway Theater will present a reading of a new play about climate change in the Arctic and its impact on the whole world. SILA by Chantal Bilodeau will be at 7:00 p.m. (until about 9:30) in ASEAN Auditorium in the Cabot Intercultural Center. There is no admission charge or tickets. The reading will feature a professional cast of actors, but will not be staged with movement, costumes, and settings. The world premiere production will be April 24-May 25 at Central Square Theater.
On Baffin Island in the Canadian territory of Nunavut, eight characters – including a climatologist, an Inuit activist, and two polar bears – find their values challenged as they grapple with a rapidly changing environment and world. The play explores the effects of Arctic climate change on Inuits, specifically the direct impact on an elder hunter, a distressed teenager, and a middle-aged activist seeking environmental justice. Winner of the Inaugural Woodward International Playwriting Prize, SILA (meaning “breath”) blends Inuit myth with contemporary Arctic policy, three languages (English, French, and Inukitut), and spoken word poetry to illuminate competing interests shaping the future of the local Inuit population and of our planet. SILA also was awarded first place at the Earth Matters on Stage Festival in 2012 (out of 175 play submissions).
Sponsors are Tufts Institute for the Environment, the Environmental Studies Program, the Peace and Justice Studies Program, Department of Drama and Dance, Department of Urban and Environmental Policy, Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service, and the Toupin-Bolwell Fund for the Arts.