“Under the direction of Mindy Parfitt, and four brave and honest actors, this concept rises above the usual ‘artists talking about themselves’ and comes together beautifully.”

ABOUT

This Stays in the Room is a bold exploration of what it requires to face ourselves and others as we grapple with shame, forgiveness, vulnerability and hope. A collaborative project, the play recruits from the true life stories of its cast and creative team. Each scene pushes the public/private boundaries of what is socially acceptable to talk about and reveal to others. The stories ultimately invite us to act as witness to the disquiet of other people’ s internal dialogue and struggle, while inevitably demanding us to reflect on our own thoughts and potential uncertainty in the face of morally ambiguous behaviour.

Director Mindy Parfitt has created a context for these stories that has its own rhythm and arc. Supporting the storytelling is a humorous and ecstatic approach to the physicality, captured in simple and effective choreography by Amber Funk Barton. Videographer Cande Andrade provides the faces of absent storytellers from the original group of creators and fills the space with transformative patterns. Noah Drew’s sound design brings the voices of all of the co-creators into the space, and emphasizes the fact that with each unique story, we feel more recognized in our own struggles with how to forgive, despite our experiences of shame.

PREMIERE

This Stays in the Room had its world premiere in Vancouver BC, March 19-30 2014. The piece was performed at gallery gachet, an art gallery in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. The space had a capacity of 50 audience members and was played to mostly sold out houses. This Stays in the Room was originally a Horseshoes & Hand Grenades production and was created in partnership with Playwrights Theatre Centre, and in association with Radix Theatre.

This Stays in the Room is about framing the human experience. It was decided to place the play where people are used to listening and watching in silence. A place not attributed to any one philosophy or religion. A gallery became the obvious choice as it is rich in visual and theatrical imagery.

One of the objects of the productions was to make theatre more of an event, to give it a life before and after the performance. To find ways for it to cross-pollinate with other art forms. The gallery was open to the public between shows. The space was designed so that gallery viewers could interact with the previous evening’s presentation. They could witness what had been generated, what was left behind without knowing the intricacies of what led to the creation. As well, when the doors opened to the audience they were invited into an installation that consisted of 4 heads projected onto 4 floating eggs each with a small speaker beneath it, each telling their own story. Another part of this installation were the audience’s chairs. Gallery gachet is run as a collective and the involvement of their artists in the project was integral to the production. Andreas Kahre, the set designer, chose to use their talent to generate chairs on which the audience would sit. These were created through a workshop that Mindy Parfitt led and were inspired by the artists’ own experiences with shame and forgiveness. Four of these chairs will remain a part of upcoming productions.

The set consisted of two walls painted in chalk board paint, 12 freestanding lights, two plinths with shelves that held props, a clothes line and the above mentioned chairs.

Although it was originally performed with great success in this site specific location, it can transfer to a theatre venue.

Mindy Parfitt

director / co-creator

Mindy is a founding member and Co-Artistic Director of Horseshoes & Hand Grenades. Theatre credits for HHG include directing This Stays in the Room (Jessie for Critic’s Choice Award), Palace of the End (Jessie Award for Best Director), 4.48 Psychosis and You Are Here. In 2013 Mindy directed the World Premiere of Colleen Murphy’s Armstrong’s War for the Arts Club (Jessie nomination Best Direction). In 2012 Mindy completed her MFA in Directing at UBC. She has worked across Canada and has studied with internationally recognized acting and directing teachers including the La Mama Directors Intensive in Umbria, Italy. Mindy is currently working on a devised piece, RUN, which she is creating with dancer/choreographer Amber Funk Barton. She will also direct the World Premiere of The Hooker Monologues, a play which tells the real-life stories of Vancouver Sex Workers.

Heidi Taylor

dramaturg / co-creator

Heidi Taylor is a Vancouver-based dramaturg, director and performer. She has been Artistic and Executive Director at PTC since 2012, after serving as Dramaturg for 7 years. Heidi has dramaturged plays from across the country in the PTC Writers Colony, and works closely with the PTC Associates. Her practice includes sited, devised, and interdisciplinary work. With HHG, she has dramaturged Re:Union, Except in the Unlikely Event of War and This Stays in the Room. As a director, production dramaturg and producer, she has worked on over 20 productions in the last ten years. Heidi holds an MFA from Simon Fraser University, where she has taught intro acting since 2001. She was recently awarded one of four inaugural Bly Creative Capacity grants from the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas for an inclusion project (the ACKLab) with Jan Derbyshire.