Young Actors

There is a lot of hidden talent in Akwesasne but hardly anywhere for that to be put on display and develop. That is changing and the Native North American Travelling College is giving a place for that talent to shine.

With a grant under the Ontario Trillium Project the Travelling College is preparing a series of projects to develop a local talent base. Everything from teaching the kids to act to stage lights and makeup is being planned out.

An amphitheater is under construction behind the Travelling College complete with dressing rooms and the works.

NNATC Director Sarah Rourke said the outdoor venue will be ready for the spring and more workshops on the technical part of theatre will be held. The building is partly ready now for the performers.

"It started out as a concrete slab, we enclosed it, we put in dressing rooms, storage areas, workshop space; it's closed off in front so we can hold different workshops in there so it will actually be a theatre building," said Rourke.

She added that this is most likely the vision that Travelling College founders Mike Mitchell and the late Ernie Benedict had – to bring performing acts here so people can sit out on the lawn and watch those performers.

"I wanted to bring that vision to life," she added.

The Trillium Foundation had a big hand in providing the tools to bring that vision to life, but it was up to local dedicated people to provide the manpower for it.

"In early January, February we are going to have more hands-on workshops, puppet making, costume design, backdrops, props, lighting, sound, scene work, makeup, the space will be ready to host those workshops and bring experts in and teach," said Rourke.

One of those resources is the Mohawk School in Hogansburg. They are holding twice weekly acting classes to help them prepare. Their instructor said they are starting from the ground up.

Instructor Brett Desrosiers said a lot of work goes with it and the Mohawk School workshops will be in stages.

"People assume that when you are doing acting classes you should be just right there holding a script, with acting classes you want to build their confidence first, going out there talking, storytelling, doing physical warm-ups and working on vocals because people forget how much our voice does matter when we are on stage," she said.

She also said she saw actors and actresses who lost their voice on stage which can lead to disastrous results.

Desrosiers trained at Algonquin College and the University of Ottawa which was suitable for her as she did not want to travel too far from home. Her acting classes also took her to Gananoque and Kingston. For a time she taught children in Ottawa and she also likes to teach them at the Mohawk School in Hogansburg where learning to act and fun and games go together.

"We have been doing a lot of improvised games, which will mean thinking on the spot and that helps build the confidence for when they are actually taking a script and saying it in front of people."

Some of these kids are looking at it as fun games while others know what they are gearing up for.

"One of the kids today new to the class, he was ten years old said 'Oh, this is so we could pay attention, this is so we can control our impulses,' he automatically knew what the purpose was, others think it's a fun game they might not get it yet," said Desrosiers.

Once the students get their confidence up, learn how to position themselves on stage and communicate with the audience comfortably, then comes the material. Desrosiers said they hope to keep it in the community.

"We are still in development whether or not to use a local playwright or perhaps create it ourselves, or if we are going to write it ourselves," she said.

"Sometimes kids are in front of the camera and start waving to the camera, but when you are in front of the camera you have to act naturally so we wanted to do a class where you act in front of the camera. Also learning about the camera, because theatre is such an opposite medium from film acting. In theatre you have to have a big loud voice, you have to be heard," said Desrosiers.

When the Mohawk School classes are wrapped up and students have their confidence to stand in front of an audience they will be having a production at Salmon River Central possibly in December. There are also resources from the community such as Dreamcatchers Studio in Tsi Snaihne who are helping out at the Mohawk School training.

Nikaiataa Skidders is a local playwright and she will be lending her talent as well, and the St. Regis Recreation Dance group has been contacted to use the stage when they want to put on a performance.

The Travelling College's Audio/Video department is documenting the whole project from start to end.

"We are doing a lot of partnerships with people from Cornwall, people from Akwesasne, making sure we are all working together, there are amazing people in our community that have great resources," said Rourke. She added that there is a lot of hidden talent in our community and they are going to focus on that.

"We want anybody and everybody who wants to utilize the space, it's a community space, we want people to use it and call it home."

Getting famous and winning awards seems to be a long way off and probably not on the minds of the youngsters attending the Mohawk School sessions. All some are taking out of it now is fun and friendship.

"They are making friends a lot of them didn't know each other before and then they become good friends by being there," said Rourke.