Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia
Colours in the Storm
Musical drama in two acts by Jim Betts first developed and performed for the Muskoka Festival (in co-production with Arbour Theatre), in 1990. Directed by Michael Ayoub, musical direction and vocal arrangements by Stephen Woodjetts, orchestration and arrangements by Ed Henderson, set and lighting by Rod Hillier, costumes by David Juby, choreography by Caroline Smith. It featured Jonathan Whittaker, Ralph Small, Suzanne Bennett, Shane McPherson, Elise Dewsberry, Woodjetts, Mike Allen and Shelley Coopersmith. Stage managed by Madelyne Keane. Revived with changes in 1991. Subsequently workshopped with Urjo Kareda as dramaturge, directed by Martha Henry for the Tapestry company and toured in Ontario in 1994. Subsequently toured again, in 1995, in a one-act format. Subsequently reworked and presented by Theatre Orangeville, 1997 and then revised again for the Theatre Aquarius production in 1998. This production was directed by the author with musical direction by Charles Cozens, set and costumes by Jonathan Porter, lighting by Louise Guinand , sound by Mike Stewart and choreography by Max Reimer. It featured Whittaker, Bennett, Small, Lee MacDougall , McPherson, Naomi Emmerson, Sheila Brand, Brian Rhodes, Charles Cozens and Allen. Stage managed by Stephen Newman.
Mr. Betts transforms the vision of the Group of Seven artist, Tom Thomson, into theatre with music, in this his most popular and presented work. The central setting is the place that most inspired the artist: Algonquin Park in Ontario, a place he adored and which, in 1917, was also the backdrop for his mysterious death. It is also the story of the doomed love affair between local Winnie Trainor, and the artist.
Ghosts, visions, flashbacks, wild people, the forms in the landscape all come together to create a chimeric picture Thomson would have been proud to have painted. In a Rashomonesque structure, witnesses tell us their stories of Thomson's time among them; he seduces them, he provokes them. There are the people of the area (including a married woman Thomson mentors in painting, raising suspicion), as well as fellow-artist Lawren Harris. Was Thomson a visionary or lunatic or both? The message is clear: an artist does not pass through and leave untouched the people he meets; he often gives them the vision to see themselves differently.
The play provides a huge challenge in staging and design, but many of the problems of set and lighting can be solved simply by familiarity with the artist's works. The songs mostly evoke the look of the place Thomson loved - its dangerous beauty. As in two similar Canadian works, Herman Voaden 's Hill-Land and Gwen Pharis Ringwood 's Still Stands the House , the setting is a character.
Readings: Le Voyage magnifique d'Emily Carr/The Magnificent Voyage of Emily Carr by Jovette Marchessault , for another appearance, in Canadian theatre, by artist Lawren Harris and another theatrical take on the artistic obsession.
Last updated 2009-03-17
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