AN ANTHOLOGY THAT CENTRES QUEERNESS

The brightly-coloured cover sleeve of this collection reads: “In this rapid moment of expansion in queer theatre, when everything is exposed, interrogated, and investigated, [This is Beyond] is a time capsule of where we are now and a map for where we might go next.” It is my intention to explore this collection of monologues, essays and opinion pieces as a resource for drama instructors in high schools.

I will start off by suggesting this collection as an essential order for whomever manages your school library or resource centre. An anthology that centres queerness within Canada is a rarity, and will serve as a strong alternative to hundreds of compendia of theatre that do not acknowledge the existence of queer artists, playwrights, directors, designers and performers. I might also suggest you check the public library records where you are, and suggest its addition, if it is not there. As a patron of the Toronto Public Library, I was disappointed by the low number of copies they had in circulation. 

It is this rapid moment that we are teaching within that needs lightning rods like This is Beyond to offer up compass points to queer students, soon-to-be queer artists, and curious minds, in the face of significant erasure within the Canadian archive. The last publication by Playwrights Canada Press that centered queerness came out in 2007. That gap in time does not account for the seismic shift that has occurred on Canadian and international stages since then, which makes the value of this resource increase. So, if anything, push for these updated coordinates to be added for those who are seeking guidance. Being lost can be a scary experience, especially with some of the narratives on social media that actively popularize homophobia, transphobia and the suppression of queer authors and activists.

What lingers within this distillation of voices is a strong gathering of queer voices, rich in their intersectionality and perspective under the queer umbrella. Their existence in This is Beyond stands as a commemoration of the political acts of the past and as a testament to decades of truth-telling by courageous artists who rarely get their due. If you are an instructor who is supporting students seeking these truths, this resource will be of value, and if you are an instructor who is not being sought out, I would say this collective is even more valuable, because your queer students are looking for grounding – most likely alone – and these pieces could be a source of hope for them. The book might also help encourage respect and understanding among their straight classmates.

This is Beyond is divided into eight chapters, each including a series of monologues / performances aligned under a common theme, and each chapter concludes with a relevant essay as a provocation. The array of pieces does an impressive job of looking back at queer trailblazers, while centering dynamic voices that are now emerging. If your students are seeking  performance pieces and audition inspirations that speak to diversity and queerness, this will serve as a powerful assembly.

Bilal Baig, one of the editors of the collection – and performer, playwright, and award-winning creator and performer in the CBC TV / Gem drama series Sort Of – states in their closing section of the collection, “I want to become my future self and ask her a million questions.” Baig – who had their first hit on the stage at the Theatre Passe Muraille in Acha Bacha, which was a joint production with Buddies in Bad Times and portrayed their struggle, as a non-binary Pakistani-Canadian, to reconcile their gender with their Muslim upbringing – continues to push this idea of futurity in the present. This collection reads like a celebration of questions and proof that questions can be embodied. If your drama classroom is a place where inquiry is centered, this text is a beautiful way to engage with some of the most challenging questions that can arise around gender and identity.

As young high-school students look to drama classes and theatre as a way to question the scope of their future selves, This is Beyond answers back with the likes of contributors Yolanda Bonnell, Waawaate Fobister, Anais West, Rob Kempson, Andrew Kushnir, Tanya Marquardt, Hanlon Uafas-Alainn, and kai fig taddei, just to name a few. These responses are not telling our students who to be, but showing them that queer existence is possible – and complex.

The ethereal nature of performance is both a blessing and a curse when it comes to the archive of queerness in Canada. As moving as a performance is in the moment, it is overshadowed by its invisibility when it is over. Not all our students have had the opportunity to witness The Gay Heritage Project on its national tour, or to watch Ronnie Burkett’s puppets stage Street of Blood, or to see Jordan Tannahill’s Concord Floral take over a group of Grade 12 actors (all these moments are highlighted within This is Beyond). There is a privilege and a magic that orbit around the aliveness of theatre, but this collection leaves a trail of breadcrumbs from which students can get a sense of what exists outside of their microcosm. Our students, both queer and straight, need to encounter queerness in as many ways as possible, and this collection is a tangible way to access powerful roots towards empathy and, for those who are seeking it, a mirror in which they can see great capacity and possibility for their future.

How can a drama teacher use this resource?

Well, this collection would become an essential resource within your tool kit and a valuable reference when students are specifically seeking out queer pieces. The monologues are exceptional and the scenes are provocative, while still being accessible for high-school-age students.

If your devising work is shifting towards exploring gender and queerness, This is Beyond would be beyond useful. Pieces can be pulled directly for performance, or used as inspiration.

If you are working with writers, be it within a creative writing course or a drama-focused one, this assembly of pieces is a powerful exemplar of centering identity without being limited by it.

A group of writers / playwrights / actors could create a similar time capsule.

Each artist inside the collection serves as a brilliant topic for a research project, in which students could use their included bios and explore their works as a formal dramaturgical project or a provocative Dramatis-Personae-style project.

Evan Tsitsias, a queer Canadian playwright, director and co-editor of this collection, says, “Recording our history matters. We are living in our future history and this anthology will capture a capsule in time of this present. By the time it’s in your hands, who knows what will have changed.” This is Beyond is a positive and exciting example of queer futurity, with an eye towards honouring the past for the sake of a better tomorrow. It will serve your community well.