To Thine Own Self be True

Susan Olson

Susan Olson (Director/Coordinator) / Collective Creation

To Thine Own Self be True is a collective creation that was co-ordinated by director Susan Olson. Each member of the collective performed selections from Shakespeare's sonnets and plays that had personal resonance for him or her. A press release describes Olson's artistic intentions for the production:

"Olson feels very strongly that 'speaking Shakespeare leads us to the sources of our own power because we find a language which expresses the depths of our experience.' Olson, who selected the scenes and soliloquies feels that 'the sonnet

When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes
I all alone beweep my outcast state, (Sonnet 29)

speaks to many things as Native people. Most of our lives are spent in disgrace and despair' Olson says, but this sonnet offers hope. Titania's speech from A Midsummer Night's Dream (2.1.85) acknowledges the presence of the spirit world. Olson explains that 'If things are out of sync in the spirit world we get chaos in the natural world––floods, tornadoes, hurricanes.' And Hamlet's soliloquy 'To be or not to be...' ( 3.1.67) takes on a new and surprising meaning when it comes from the heart of someone who has grown up Aboriginal in Canada." (Press Release)

The original program gives a detailed list of the selections the collective chose to perform. Shakespeare in the Red describe themselves as "a Winnipeg based, pan-Canadian aboriginal theatre company officially incorporated in July of 1996 created with the intention of presenting and touring predominantly Native productions of the plays of William Shakespeare to theatres, schools and community venues across Canada [and] offering a range of training opportunities for Native performers to strengthen acting and textual skills for the challenges of performing Shakespeare's plays" (Mission Statement, 2004).

This conscious use of Shakespeare to articulate uniquely Aboriginal issues and goals is an interesting place to take the words of a colonial icon. By adapting Shakespeare's work, Shakespeare in the Red is able to refigure the Bard's message in order reflect Canadian Aboriginal sentiments. This is a stark contrast to the work of more mainstream Shakespearean theatres in Canada whose work has generally functioned to reinforce Shakespeare's cultural and canonical position.

Instead of building on Shakespeare's artistic intention, Olson and her collective use Shakespeare as a vehicle for their own artistic goals. For a discussion of a similar ideology, see CASP's interview with Djanet Sears where she calls for adaptation as a re-visioning tool rather than a means to reinforce existing ideologies. Sears also notes the huge divide that exists between Shakespeare's perspective and many contemporary artists: "Shakespeare’s not a Black woman; he could not see things from my perspective."

Olson's work with Shakespeare in the Red addresses issues of aboriginality first, using Shakespeare creatively as a vehicle. Olson maintains, however, a consistent respect for the power and artistic merit of Shakespeare's work. In Shakespeare in the Red's original mission statement, they state that "Shakespeare's plays are a legacy that belong to us all; his stories and themes have universal pertinence and resonance. We believe through our teaching and our productions we will be able to introduce Shakespeare to a new and fresh audience."

Mat Buntin

"Bard Goes Native": Review by Kevin Prokosh
To Thine Own Self Be True: Original Program
Link to Database