Was it all truly “for the greater good”?
Civilized, a 60-minute one-act play by Keir Cutler playing at the 2024 NextStage Festival, asks this unsettling question about the grim realities of Canada’s Indian Residential Schools. The play is inspired by historical reports, including Dr. Peter Bryce’s 1907 findings on the schools’ often-fatal conditions. Métis actor John D. Huston stars in the role of William Blank, a fictional bureaucrat who arises from his grave and, in a chilling and charismatic embodiment of early 20th-century Canadian attitudes, makes the case for atrocities in the name of progress.
Directed by Paul Hopkins and featuring design by 2Spirit artist Jay Havens, Civilized combines meticulous research with a circus-like atmosphere. Through poetry, song, and dark humour, it asks them to question what it means to be “civilized”, to confront the lingering impact of Canada’s colonial past, and to consider whether the ends ever justify the means. Well-known for what he describes as his skilful “cultural misappropriation” of historical figures, Huston brings wit, menace, and a disquieting sincerity to the role of the aptly-named Blank.
In discussing his approach to the role, Huston begins with the idea that villains are the heroes in their own stories: “I always remember that these characters believe they are acting ‘for the greater good’. Even Richard III believes he deserves to be king”. For this role, he drew directly on a memorable personal experience – a conversation with a former friend who asserted that “the Indians need to forgive and move on” because “ultimately everything was done for their own good.” This, Huston notes, is Blank’s rationale: “Blank’s sincere belief that what he’s doing is ‘God’s work’ allows him to excuse any ‘perceived harm’ as ‘not really important’ or ‘just a minor inconvenience’.”
And Huston’s goal with his role is to lure the audience – even briefly – into complicity with Blank’s views, in order to illustrate our capacity for justifying horrific actions. “It’s easy to think, ‘That was a long time ago, let’s move on’,” Huston explains, before likening it to contemporary scapegoating. When immigrants to Springfield, Ohio are demonized as dog and “cat eaters,” it shows how easily the dominant culture can dehumanize people and cultures that are “not like us” or “in the way”. When we label them “uncivilized” or “savage,” it becomes much easier to justify mistreatment. Reflecting on modern parallels, he observes, “It’s a healthy reminder that, as the song in Avenue Q says, “Everyone’s a little bit racist’. That should make us uncomfortable. And it’s this very discomfort that makes interesting art.”
As an actor of Métis heritage, Huston is navigating challenging terrain by portraying a character like Blank with a sense of empathy, while grappling with the horrific history the character represents. “As an actor I have to sympathise with the characters I play: it’s essential if I’m to find their humanity and play them convincingly,” Huston notes. Yet at the same time, he does not shy away from confronting the dark aspects of the role. And when Blank eventually comes to a realization of the atrocities he has committed, the complex moment fuses sympathy with repulsion and relief: “I do feel for him at that moment, as his whole world view comes crashing down around him, even as I find WHAT he represents reprehensible.”
The play’s unique blend of historical research and circus-like elements creates a provocative atmosphere that challenges the audience to engage deeply with its difficult themes. Huston describes the experience of performing Civilized as an interplay between light and dark, where the collective challenge is finding the “play” in what is, at its core, a deeply serious subject. “When you tell someone, ‘this is a play about Residential Schools,’ their expectation might be, ‘this will be a serious play that will make me feel guilty’,” he notes. “That is NOT our intention.” The play incorporates moments where he appears as himself: a Métis actor who connects directly with the audience through “shared horror and sense of disbelief at what was done in our names, as modern Canadians, who reap the benefits of decisions made in the past”.
In fact, he smiles, “We play this like a late-night tv host who asks, ‘Can you BELIEVE people thought this was ok?’. Shocked laughter is a good way to get people thinking about what’s been done in their name,” and the play’s mockery of the racist assumptions underpinning colonialism allow for a critical re-examination of the past. And designer and co-director Havens, who is of Haudenosaunee and Scottish Canadian ancestry and is a citizen of the Kanien’keha:ka (Mohawk) from Six Nations of the Grand River, has created a colourful, playful environment for the play. “Jay is interested in fusing traditional Native artistic practices with Western theatrical traditions,” Huston notes. “It is a beautiful irony that in our production, the very cultures people like William Blank tried to obliterate now define his world.”
In the end, Huston hopes that Civilized will leave audiences entertained and provoked to question what it means to be “civilized”. “If people come out of the theatre thinking ‘I feel awful’, then I’ve failed,” he asserts. But if they are moved to take even modest action to acknowledge the past while moving forward, then he has succeeded. He views Civilized as a stepping stone in Canada’s ongoing process of Truth and Reconciliation, and observes that “there are many ways we as individuals and as a country can recognize what happened, that we can avoid similar cruelties in the future, and examine what reparations might look like.”
“Our show programme lists some resources and ideas,” Huston notes, and audience members should decide for themselves, “What can I do?”
Civilized runs for 6 performances October 16-27, as part of the 2024 Next Stage Theatre Festival, presented by the Toronto Fringe. Reserve tickets on fringetoronto.com. Up to 20% of box office proceeds will be donated to Kawenni:io/Gaweni:yo School.
© Arpita Ghosal, Sesaya Arts Magazine, 2024
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