Theatre review: Black & Rural melds surreal African folklore with powerful personal anecdotes
Shayna Jones captivates in her grappling with belonging as Black person in the countryside
Shayna Jones, Black & Rural. Photo by S. Race
Pacific Theatre presents Black & Rural, a Pi Theatre guest production, to April 15
“LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN”: Shayna Jones sings in her melodious voice as she enters the stage for Black and Rural. She weaves African folklore into autobiographical stories about growing up Black in a world dominated by white people and eventually finding peace in the Canadian countryside. Jones lights up the stage with her charismatic presence, putting the audience in her shoes and telling stories that need to be told and heard.
Throughout the piece, Jones showcases the strength of African folklore in its simplistic surrealism that escapes the rational western mind. In Jones’s whimsical tales, a back-bent old woman magically heals a deaf and blind child, dark-skinned sensuous snakes are hunted for, and wise hermits help people out of their agonies. This lore gives rest to reasoning and penetrates the consciousness through emotional routes.
Jones recounts her experiences of growing up in Vancouver with limited exposure to other Black folks. Having been raised in a house with an absurd number of televisions, including one in the washroom, she was fascinated by the world that YTV, Fox, MTV and Nickelodeon showed. She recalls never seeing Black people living in rural settings; they were typically seen in history programs escaping violence.
While Jones loves her slow, village life, her townsfolk’s delusionary reaction to the Black Lives Matter movement shakes her out of the dream world she built for herself. As she remembers her town marching with the belief that Black people are safe in Canada, she sees herself as nothing but a mascot for their protest.
Through a brilliantly composed script and Pi Theatre artistic director Richard Wolfe’s meticulous direction, Jones takes the audience on a journey toward finding solace in her rural life. Grappling with the question of belonging as a Black person, in the world and in one’s own skin, she eventually learns to confront her fear of judgement and settles into a life in the woods—where she feels the most alive.
The multidisciplinary artist concludes with the anecdote of finding the only other Black person living within a 100-kilometre radius of her. When she reads out his first email to her, it feels like connecting to a long-lost family member. With an audio clip of his voice playing in the background, she speaks about how this old man, who is suffering from dementia, chooses to live in the countryside, all alone, because it makes for a better place to forget the world. She opens up a universe of memories that looks like a never-ending lake of tears, yet it all resides within one person.
Jones’s undeniable talent shines throughout the entire show as she takes on every character gracefully. Movement director Amber Barton does great work in making every figure come alive. We see a storyteller transition into a wan, aged woman just as seamlessly as she becomes a cheerful child sitting cross-legged in front of the TV. Set designer Cecilia Vadala builds a world of woods with a minimal setup of rocks and ropes. The rhythmic music by Rufus Cappadocia raises and drops the tempo to build momentum in Jones’s narrative, making her personal stories sound like a part of an ancient saga. Brad Trenaman’s clever lighting helps use the intimate setting optimally through quick-shifting lines of focus.
Pi Theatre has brought to the stage an exceptionally important piece of art that asks its audience to just listen and perceive. Jones’s journey toward coming to terms with her secluded lifestyle and reconciliation with her body is one to be experienced and felt. Conveying what land has to offer and what we owe to ourselves, Black & Rural puts forward timeless tales and fresh perspectives.
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