Quebec English-Language Premiere of SOCIAL STUDIES Opens Tonight at the Centaur Theatre

From tonight, November 1 to 30, 2014 Centaur Theatre presents the Quebec English-language premiere of Tricia Cooper's, Social Studies, featuring an intimate four-member cast directed by triple threat playwright, actor and director, Paul Van Dyck (Sahara Crossing, Haunted, Miss Sugarpuss Must Die!, Paradise Lost, Blood Wild and the META-winning Oroonoko).

Inspired by true events in her own family, Winnipeg actor, comedian and playwright, Tricia Cooper, deftly employs humour to examine the social dynamics of clashing cultures under one family's roof. A New Age single mom takes in Deng, a Sudanese 'lost boy', just as her eldest daughter unexpectedly returns home to lick her wounds from a failed marriage. Her teenage daughter, who is quickly developing a schoolgirl crush on the newest member of this unorthodox family, is chronicling the immigrant's story for a school project. As things spiral out of control, everyone learns that doing the right thing is not as easy or straightforward as it seems.

If it's a contest, like divorce and bankruptcy up against genocide, then genocide wins. - Social Studies by Tricia Cooper

"When a new work is first introduced and is as successful as Social Studies was with its debut last fall at Winnipeg's Prairie Theatre Exchange, vying to secure the play for its first foray onto the national stage is no mean feat. I'm so pleased that Centaur can herald this funny and provocative play on a journey that I'm sure, with its timely global issues, will take it far beyond Canadian borders. It's also very gratifying to support Tricia, a new Canadian voice, in her first full length work", said Centaur's Artistic and Executive Director, Roy Surette. He continued to say that the play's subject matter was of great interest to many schools. "... so much so", he confided, "that we added extra preview performances to accommodate the high demand. We anticipate lots of animated talkback discussions."

In addition to Paul Van Dyck's diverse accomplishments as a director, his personal experience in Sudan, where he contracted a fierce, life-threatening strain of malaria and was nursed back to health by locals, gives him a unique, highly sensitized understanding of the play's characters and core issues. "The people who saved my life had nothing yet didn't hesitate to help a complete stranger. I couldn't help wondering if the situation had been reversed, would we be so quick to do the same?" said Paul Van Dyck. He continued: "Trish [Cooper] has done a great job of presenting a complex social commentary in a very palatable way, letting audiences choose how deeply they want to delve. At first glance, it's a light-hearted poke at dysfunctional families but it also raises a lot of multi-faceted questions without choosing sides or attempting to answer them. People may be conflicted- they may have uncomfortable realizations about themselves or our 'developed society' when the lights come back up-but that's what theatre does best. Through a story unfolding on-stage, we can see ourselves objectively and examine our choices and their consequences."

Jane Wheeler as Val (The Graduate, Segal Centre; Innocence Lost, Romeo and Juliet, Twelfth Night and Dancing at Lughnasa, Centaur) perfectly embodies the warm and understanding mother determined to be an exemplary role model for her girls. Montreal's own Eleanor Noble, (Picasso at the Lapin Agile, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and August, An Afternoon in the Country, Centaur), is Jackie, the eldest, slightly high-strung daughter. Recent Concordia graduate, Emily Tognet, gives a nuanced, realistic performance as Sarah, the lovable younger sister whose laid back acceptance of her quirky family provides the polar opposite to her sister's skepticism. And the sweet but damaged Deng is played with heart-wrenching vulnerability and clarity by Jaa Smith-Johnson (Blind, Scapegoat Carnivale; Oroonoko, Persephone Productions).

Since her recent graduation from the National Theatre School, Evita Karasek has already designed for the Montreal Opera, Bishop's University and Theatre Lac Brome and now creates the set and costumes for Centaur. Jody Burkholder, who has worked across Canada garnering a slew of awards and nominations, provides the lighting for this, his tenth collaboration with Paul Van Dyck. Returning to Centaur to stage manage is the very capable Merissa Tordjman assisted by apprentice, Meredith Daly.

Public Talk-backs: Following the evening performance on Thursday, November 20th and the Sunday matinee on November 23rd, audience members will have the opportunity to voice comments and ask questions about the play with the actors.

FREE Centaur Sunday Chat-Up in collaboration with The Gazette: Sunday November 9th at 12:30pm, The Gazette, Editor-in-Chief, Lucinda Chodan talks with Social Studies playwright, Tricia Cooper.

For more information, click here.

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