Written and Performed by Donna-Michelle St. Bernard

A Theatre Passe Muraille production, presented by Rumble Theatre

February 19 – 23, 2020
Wed. to Sat. evenings at 7:30pm
Sun. matinee at 2:00pm
PL1422 at 1422 William Street, Vancouver

Tickets: $20 (incl. taxes & fees) – Click here to buy now at Theatre Wire!

Rumble Theatre is pleased to present Theatre Passe Muraille’s production of Sound of the Beast by Donna-Michelle St. Bernard. The show runs February 19 to 23 at PL1422.

In Sound of the Beast, Toronto emcee Belladonna the Blest (Governor General’s Award Nominee & Dora Award-winning playwright St. Bernard) shares stories of coming up in Toronto’s hip-hop scene, the intersections between conscious rap and political activism, and the sacrifices we make for the things we believe in. Part concert/part theatre the show blends the personal and the political, with a bold and brutally honest take about policing in Black communities.

Of the piece, Rumble Artistic Director Jivesh Parasram said, “Sound of The Beast—a project criticizing the impact of seemingly benign practices in policing and speaking to the challenge of fatigue in resisting systemic oppression—has become increasingly timely as we see escalating confrontation between police and grassroots defense on unceded territory. It is a piece that wrestles with empathy and dehumanization, presenting a truthful reflection that can illuminate for those in the mainstream why it is so many of us caught in the gaze of the police seem so ‘angry’. And for the rest of us, it brings some moving and joyful validation.”

For more on our presentation of Sound of the Beast, click here.

Rumble is currently seeking proposals for our 2020 TREMORS Festival. Tremors will take place in Vancouver from October 20 – 31, 2020 (Exact dates TBD).

Submissions are due by February 1, 2020. EXTENDED DEADLINE of February 8, 2020.

The objective of the Tremors Festival is to provide artists with space and support to showcase works-in-development invested in decolonial artistic process. We believe that decolonization takes on different meanings and embodiments unique to the individual artist and the ways in which colonization has impacted their lived experience, and so does not adhere to any one definition. We do, however, offer the following framework that Rumble works under as an example:

• Breaking down the conventions the individual artist has come to recognize as norms, including a depth of analyzing one’s own positionality in the creation of a work.
• Conscious use of dramaturgical frameworks to represent the artistic question through performance style.
• Centering reciprocity as a value between key artists and collaborators, and performance and audience.

Selected projects will be featured during the festival (October 2020) and will receive technical, production, promotional, and artistic support. In addition to a presentation fee, festival artists also receive an unlimited artist pass, allowing them to see the work of their peers throughout the festival. Local (Vancouver based) projects will also have access to development space in late July-August 2020, as well as long-term project planning mentorship. (more…)

High Seas / Low Seas. Graphic: J. Parasram

Rumble Theatre is pleased to announce our current season, “High Seas / Low Seas”, which features a trio of exciting contemporary plays that explore the notion of solidarity: Take d Milk, Nah?, written and performed by Rumble’s own Artistic Director Jivesh Parasram; Good Morning, Viet Mom by Franco Nguyen; and the Canadian premiere of B by Guillermo Calderón.

“With this season’s programming we’re asking ourselves and audience members to consider what it means to stand together amidst ever-changing circumstances,” Parasram said. “How can we maintain solidarity when conditions aren’t so comfortable? Can we be a friend even when the distances between us seem infinite, or when our differences appear irreconcilable?” (more…)