Arts and Entertainment

Global warming play 'Sila' has good acting, but a snarl of plot ideas

A Native Canadian hunter conversing with a data-spouting environmental researcher in Chantal Bilodeau's play "Sila" says, "Numbers aren't enough. We need stories."

"Sila" has at least eight stories zigzagging through two acts, and I'm not sure how to prioritize them. There's the mother-daughter conflict, the science-commerce conflict, the tentative love story, the birth of a child epiphany, the loss of a child tragedy (two actually), the rescue in a storm, suicide, alcoholism, international politics, Inuit mythology, spousal friction, polar bears and climate change. The last may be the kinda constant thread, but the mother-daughter thing is more interesting, maybe because it feels much more human than numbers.

This play will defy easy synopsizing, but here goes: A scientist in Nunavut wants to study an ice sheet but the guide won't take him there; a local rights activist pursues public appearances but ignores her daughter, who the scientist may be sweet on after his divorce comes through; a government officer looking toward retirement struggles to rescue a research team caught in a storm while his replacement coaches the birth of his child via telephone; and a mother polar bear teaches her cub how to hunt, except she can't find any food.

Director Stephan Golux has a wonderful cast for Cyrano's Alaska premiere of Bilodeau's inaugural play in a proposed eight-play cycle about life in the Arctic. Veterans Diane Benson, Jay Burns and Marty Bauman do fine work in the key roles of the indigenous social crusader, climate scientist and Coast Guard commander.

Polly Andrews is very impressive as a single-mom teacher struggling to raise her son in a remote village. East High junior Camryn LeClair makes a poignant bear cub and an intense sea goddess named Nuliajuk — Sedna in Alaska lore.

David Prince, who plays the above-mentioned hunter, is also excellent in his stage debut, with strong character projection and clearly delivered lines. And Chester Mainot brings more to the small role of a Coast Guard subordinate than one would expect from just looking at the lines.

Dan Carlgren's set evokes ice shoals, northern lights and tundra stone figures. The sea is created by floor-length waving cloth flapped by silent performers. A real eye-grabber is the full-head, cage-like masks by Margret Hugi-Lewis to depict a polar bear and her cub. (Andrews was the mother bear as well as the daughter person.)

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Bilodeau's dialogue and situations worked well enough, but there was no time in the two-hour show to resolve everything or even tie it together. At one point, Burns' character is fighting for his life in the water, but we're not sure how he got there.

Segments of spoken word performance (think poetry, or rap) and speeches delivered to governing or paragovernmental groups, took time that might have been better spent telling the stories.

Short stretches of Inuktitut, French and Tagalog are used, with English translations projected on side screens. The French, at least, was a stretch for some of the speakers. Apparently "Sila" is pronounced "SEE-lah" in Canada.

The opening night audience seemed appreciative of the play, but I came away thinking that it could use a lot more shaping. The multiple plot lines were as thick and unruly as Sedna's hair. The script could benefit from picking one or two of these stories and fleshing them out.

But theater fans will enjoy seeing some solid new actors on their game. I especially hope to catch Andrews, Prince and LeClair in their next appearances.

"Sila" will be presented at 7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday through July 10 at Cyrano's, 413 D St. Tickets are available at centertix.net.

Women's chorus tops in regional competition

The Alaska Sound Celebration women's a cappella chorus won the Sweet Adelines International Region 13 Championship in Spokane, Washington, on May 21. It was the fifth consecutive regional win for the 80-voice ensemble, best known locally for their annual production of the Fur Rondy melodramas.

The Anchorage-based group competed against 16 other choruses from the Pacific Northwest for the right to go to the world championships in Las Vegas in October 2017.

Director Peggy Benton invites singing women to try out for the chorus. They meet at 6:30 p.m. every Tuesday at Wayland Baptist University off Muldoon Road. For more information call 907-566-3987 or go online to alaskasoundcelebration.org.

Talk and falafels

The Alaska Jewish Museum will host three speakers at the Summer Programming Event and Falafel Night, 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 6, at 1117 E. 35th Ave. Speakers will include Avraham Berkowitz reporting on the "One to One" global forum that took place in New York on June 20; Shahar Azani of the New York non-profit StandWithUs, recalling the epic evacuation of Yemeni Jews — including his family — shortly after World War II in planes operated by Alaska Airlines; and Anchorage attorney Nora Barlow, who will share her own family's Holocaust story and present a preview of the museum's upcoming exhibit about a proposed, but never executed, plan to relocate Jewish refugees in Alaska before World War II. To attend, RSVP by calling 907-279-1200 or email museum@alaskajewishcampus.org.

CLIA Awards announced

The Alaska Center for the Book has announced the recipients of this year's Contribution to Literacy in Alaska awards. They are Regan Brooks, founder of Story Works Alaska; Kathryn Ohle, librarian and advocate of children's literature in Native languages; and Don Rearden, author of "The Raven's Gift" and a founder of the writers' group 49 Ravens. The three will be recognized at a presentation at UAA on July 12.

 

Mike Dunham

Mike Dunham was a longtime ADN reporter, mainly writing about culture, arts and Alaska history. He worked in radio for 20 years before switching to print. He retired from the ADN in 2017.

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