An actor's life is fun, but it's not for everyone

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If you've ever thought about a career in acting, you better not have stars in your eyes, or big bucks either. For most actors, the play's the thing and everything else is rehearsal, and if this is not what satisfies you, there's not much else that will. You see, acting is a calling, and calling now is Trickster's Children Theatre, located in Courtenay on Vancouver Island.

The troupe is looking for committed Aboriginal individuals with the above qualifications ready to take on six to 10 weeks of rehearsal before a tour of performances in some of the island's provincial campgrounds this summer, and then, on to a fall tour of the schools of British Columbia.

Trickster's style falls under the general category of legends theatre, said Gail Lewis, Trickster's administrator, with many of the plays in the group's repertoire based on Aboriginal West Coast legends. But there's so much more to their efforts.

"The work that we do is very difficult to define, very cutting edge as far as theatre is concerned. . . . It's audience participatory, interactive theatre."

The work is developed through improvisation and is brought to an audience where the actor-facilitators, as Lewis refers to the members of the troupe, recruit members of the audience to play different characters or objects'a fire, a box of food, even house poles. The performance takes place in a large space, preferably outdoors, for an audience as large as 300 people. The actors play multiple roles and the sets, costumes and props are kept to a minimum.

Trickster's work is not necessarily entertainment, though the group tries to make it entertaining for participants. Most of Trickster's work is message-driven.

One of the plays Trickster's brought to B.C. schools last fall is called Tough Cookies, which addresses the issues of bullying, racism and harassment. Everyone has a role and becomes an actor in this play, either by becoming a member of the 'ins' or the 'outs' or the mediators. Then everyone switches roles so each participant has an opportunity to experience the feelings of being a part of each group.

"We come in and we stir things up," said artistic director Annie Smith. "Sometimes when our subject matter is difficult, it can be a bit threatening for people. The play that we did about bullying, that's tough. That's really tough work and it's a big issue in our schools right now."

She said it has been moving to hear kids talk about their experiences in the talking circles held after each performance. And of the teachers who are bullies, well, "they hate it, because it threatens everything they do."

Trickster's Children Theatre began in 1998 as Kulus Theatre, a project funded by Youth Services Canada and sponsored by the Wachiay Friendship Centre in Courtenay. Kulus is sister of the Thunderbird. She brings peace and reconciliation, the exact opposite of her brother who brings chaos, war and destruction, said Smith.

The original mandate of Kulus Theatre was to assist unemployed and underemployed young people to gain employment-related skills. It was a racially mixed group of 10 actors and the work allowed for sharing the Aboriginal culture with non-Aboriginal people.

After the six-month project was over, members of the original group wanted to carry on the work, and eventually incorporated as a non-profit in early 1999 under the name of Trickster's Children Theatre.

The group relies on funding from a variety of organizations that want to get important messages across to the province?s residents in a unique way. For example, ICBC funded Sorry Is Not Enough, an interactive play about drinking and driving. BC Arts and Heritage and Canadian Race Relations funded Tough Cookies.

The actors work as a collective to create the work. For the most part, the work is born out of improvisation, because it is quicker than writing scripts, and working with the audience participation model makes scripts less than useful.

"We know what we havedo and we know what has to happen in the scene and we know what our characters are, but when we bring the audience in it's a big unknown factor," said Smith. "We wouldn't be able to take advantage of all the cool stuff that happens."

Smith has been involved in community theatre since she was about six. She has a masters degree in popular theatre from the University of Alberta and taught at that university as well as at the University College of the Caribou.

She said most of the group's work is intense, but fun.

"The audience, they love it, because they're a part of it."

When Trickster's isn't in schools, the members of the group are performing outside at local festivals, campgrounds and holding workshops.

"You have the most relaxed, positive audience," Smith said of the campground performances. "Everybody's out there camping and having a great time. We have families, and so you get babes in arms to grandparents, tourists from other countries. It's really fun."

But it's not all fun and games.

"Being on the road is just exhausting," said Smith, "so you have to come into it with a real attitude of being willing to work with other people, of give and take, and tolerance and patience and fun. You have to take care of yourself. You have to eat well. You have to get enough sleep. You need to get enough exercise. . . We try to follow the teaching of the medicine wheel, in our work together and in how we work with our audiences. You know we believe we are really there to stimulate people, but to stimulate them in all parts of their being, and that what we do has a wholeness to it."

Lewis said the big payoff for the actors that will put in the time this year is an all expenses paid trip to the Singapore Children's Festival in 2002 where the company has been invited to perform.

There is an informal audition process, including an interview with Lewis and Smith, and a demonstration of the actor's talents, be it drumming, dancing, singing or reading a btfo a play.

If you're interested, no previous experience is required. Just a great attitude and a willingness to take risks and be vulnerable, said Smith.

"You can have all the talent in the world, but if you're not there for the other people in the troupe, it won't matter."

Interested? Call Gail at (250) 334-9498 or fax at (250) 334-9419. Email to GAIL_LEWIS @telus.net. Annie can be reached at (250) 337-8543. Email anismith@island.net.