ANA

ONE LIFE IS NOT ENOUGH

"Born before history, before even the gods, in the house of stars, our topliner tonight is a strange and wondrous being.

More bizarre than the bearded woman. More exotic than the Siamese Sisters. More impressive than the fattest woman on earth. She is a delight and a terror. She is an abomination, a deity, a freak; the star of our carnival show.

She is not bound by the same laws that govern the lives of we mere mortals, no... When this creature is caught in the mouth of inescapable decision, instead of choosing either side of kismet’s coin, she deceives fate by splitting into a new self, multiplying at every crossroad, escaping her own terror, to survive, to be free. Imagine, if you will, having such power. ‘What if I never married?’ ‘What if I never had children?’ ‘What if I had chosen another career.... another country? ‘

But the selves she leaves behind still exist and go on living, to this day, speaking foreign languages, belonging to different nationalities… And with every rebirth she inherits the joys and sorrows of that life, which in turn provoke further duplications. Now, completely overcome and bewildered by her many incarnations, she must face her selves to reconcile her countless existences.

This evening, ladies and gentlemen, mesdames et messieurs, in this very temple, guided by your faithful Maître de Piste, she will perform for you the weird and wonderful story of her many lives, with no shame and in the most intimate of details.

Reborn before your very eyes, behold! I give you…ANA."



THE PRODUCTION

ANA is of that rare breed of theatre projects whose scope of artistic and social relevance transcend the frontiers of their country of origin. In this case, some of Quebec's and Scotland's foremost theatre practitioners have teamed up to examine one of the 21st centurys rising medical concerns: one in every five people suffers from depression, and women experience depression at twice the rate of men. Compelled to shed light on this growing phenomenon, this collaboration aims to create a truly unique and courageous theatre piece of international appeal.

Workshops in each contributing country have infused this project with a blend of cultural perspectives. Collaboration in text development, artistic direction and character incarnation lend to the production's universal voice and concern.

Inspired by ancient Sumerian goddess Innana's descent into the Underworld, the play is the journey of a young European woman named Ana. From the birth of her baby to her escape to Scotland and then to Quebec, Ana's quest for meaning is an exploration of treatments which sees her returning to her homeland after a whirlwind of explosive situations where she attempts to remedy her ailment. The production, which is poised to tour throughout the UK as well as in Canada, will be directed by Montreal based Serge Denoncourt.

"My vision for this project rests first and foremost on its multicultural character. Directing actors, from two countries, who will deliver a collaborative trilingual text from two authors is indeed a challenge, but also the very motivation for this unique project which will seek to narrate the destiny of women facing psychological problems through the artistic vision of two different cultures; two cultures which each have their own respective sense of history and of women's role in their societies, which are at times contradictory, but always rich and complementary." Serge Denoncourt