Reminder - CFP The Ecstacy of Rita Joe Anthology

Wed Nov 5 01:10:39 EST 2014

Just a reminder that the deadline for proposals for the Rita Joe 
Anthology is January 1, 2015 and the deadline for completed essays is 
February 1, 2016.  

Thanks for the  expressions of interest already 
received and I look forward to hearing from many more of you over the 
next few months!

As always please continue to distribute far and wide - 

ALL FOR PAPERS – 

A critical anthology commemorating the 50th Anniversary of George Ryga’s
The Ecstasy of Rita Joe 

In
 his 1998 keynote address to the Association of Canadian Theatre 
Research, Robert Wallace identified the beginning of identifiable 
Canadian theatre with the Vancouver Playhouse’s production of The
Ecstasy of Rita Joe.  Since then, many scholars and historians of
Canadian theatre have agreed that The Ecstasy of Rita Joe marks the
beginning of indigenous (though not aboriginal) Canadian Theatre. 

Opening
 on November 23,1967, this seminal work in the history of Canadian 
theatre lived on long after the original production closed.  In 1969,
the production toured to Ottawa (opening the main stage at the National
Arts Centre);  it
 was subsequently filmed and televised on CBC; the play has had 
productions at many of Canada’s regional theatres, as well as 
productions across the globe (including an acclaimed 1973 production in 
Washington DC) and in 1971 the Royal Winnipeg Ballet transformed Ryga’s 
story into a ballet   The effect that the original production of The
Ecstasy of Rita Joe had
 on many aspects of theatre and theatre production has been vast and 
numerous artists would cite the play as a major influence upon their 
career.  Perhaps most 
specifically, as noted theatre critic Jamie Portman has argued the 
success of the play profoundly shaped Canadian playwrights and 
playwrighting.1.  The play continues to be produced in theatres around
the world and, as the first play that most  students in  Canadian Drama
encounter it plays an iconic, if not, mythic role in Canadian theatre
history. 

Over
 the past 25 years or so, critical assessment around the play, though 
not necessarily the place in holds in the development of Canadian 
theatre, has shifted dramatically.  In his introduction to the 1976
reprint of the script, Peter Hay wrote, “[b]ut there was something
particularly new about The Ecstasy of Rita Joe and this has to do with
the way George Ryga regards the theatre.  It
 was the first time that a playwright had use the Vancouver Playhouse to
 confront its largely middle-class clientele with the reality of Skid 
Row blocks away.  Ryga pointed a finger accusing that audience…” (8). By
the late 20th century however, critics began challenging the historical
Rita Joe narrative, often implicating Ryga in perpetuating colonial
attitudes and appropriating the voice of its aboriginal characters.  
Agnes Grant was not alone when she argued, “Ryga’s
 play simplistically sentimentalised the aboriginal plight as the 
victimisation of passive children by irresponsible white parental 
authorities, and that this well-meaning but Eurocentric, patriarchal 
paradigm ultimately reflected the assimilationist policies of the 
Department of Indian Affairs at that time.“2  In
 2009, acclaimed First Nations playwright, director, actor, dramaturg 
and cultural commentator, Yvette Nolan directed a production of The
Ecstasy of Rita Joe.  The
 production was a co-production between Western Canada Theatre 
(Kamloops) and the National Arts Centre (Ottawa) and, unlike the 1967/69
 production featured aboriginal actor Lisa C Ravensbergen in the titular
 role.  Nolan’s production was a 
thoughtful re-imagining of the play but it achieved a new sense of 
urgency by connecting Rita Joe’s fictional story within the context of 
Stolen Sisters/Sisters in Spirit and Canada’s growing outrage and 
concern around the notorious ‘Highway of Tears’.

 1 Portman, Jamie. “Ecstasy of Rita Joe Still Manages to Shock and
Scourge.” Vancouver Province 12 April 1976: p2Grant, Agnes. "Canadian Native Literature: The Drama of George Ryga and
Tomson Highway." Australian - Canadian Studies  10.2 (1992): pg 40.

This edited anthology (to be published by University of Regina Press)
seeks
 an intra/cross/multi disciplinary collection of essays reflecting, 
commenting and challenging notions around the play’s legacy.  Simply
put, what does The Ecstasy of Rita Joe mean today?   This call is
 seeking expressions of interest for scholarly work (critical, 
theoretical and/or creative work) that explores a wide range of 
opinions, readings and responses to The Ecstasy of Rita Joe -  the text,
its production (s) and its cultural/social history within Canada and
abroad.  It
 is the intention that this collection will address an array of 
historical and contemporary issues connected to the play and its 
production.  While it will have a strong focus on theatre
history/studies submissions that inform  and respond to The Ecstasy of
Rita Joe from
 diverse areas such as cultural studies, media and communication 
studies, dance studies, queer studies, indigenous studies, sociology, 
and urban studies, to name but a few, are most welcome. 

POTENTIAL TOPICS FOR CONSIDERATION COULD INCLUDE:

* Reconsidering the place and role of The Ecstasy of Rita Joe within the
Canadian theatre cannon 

* The effect of The Ecstasy of Rita Joe on Canadian playwrights and
playwrighting 

* Aesthetic, dramaturgical and cultural issues around the nature of the
first production 

* The legacy of George Ryga as playwright and/or theatrical deviser 

* The Ecstasy of Rita Joe as colonizing text /production 

* Re-evaluating or re-framing George Ryga’s oeuvre 

* The potential readings of The Ecstasy of Rita Joe as a reclaimed
post-colonial text 

* Biographical
 sketches of key players involved in the creation/production of the play
 (for example George Ryga, Joy Coghill or August Schellenberg) 

* Changing critical responses The Ecstasy of Rita Joe (as text or in
production) 

* The Ecstasy of Rita Joe as gothic/queer text 

* Critical readings/responses the various adaptations of The Ecstasy of
Rita Joe 

* Challenges/rewards of teaching The Ecstasy of Rita Joe in the
classroom 

* Political, social or cultural readings and influences of The Ecstasy
of Rita Joe 

* The Ecstasy of Rita Joe as cultural ambassador 

* The critical reaction  of The Ecstasy of Rita Joe outside of Canada 

* The Ecstasy of Rita Joe and the Canadian centennial

****This is a preliminary list only and is not meant to limit ideas or
proposals****

Timeline

* Interested authors are asked to contribute a short (300 word) abstract
by January 1, 2015 and accepted authors will be notified by February 1,
2015                                              

*  Accepted and completed essays (5,000 – 7,000 words) will be due
February 1, 2016. 

The University of Regina Press follows the humanities style of
documentation according to The Chicago Manual of Style.

* Publication is scheduled for fall 2017 

For more information or to submit proposals (and all other
correspondence) please contact 

Wes D Pearce - wes.pearce at uregina.ca - 306 585 5571

Wes D. Pearce, Professor
Associate Dean (Undergraduate)  
Faculty of Fine Arts 
University of Regina
S4S 0A2
306 585 5571

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