Reminder - CFP The Ecstasy of Rita Joe Anthology

[Wes Pearce]

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 abstracts and 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: pg 10	    			
   2Grant, 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****
TimelineInterested 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 (4,000 – 6,000 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, Professor
Associate Dean (Undergraduate)  
Faculty of Fine Arts 
University of Regina
S4S 0A2
306 585 5571
 
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