"A Poem for Rabia At Tarragon Theatre

THREE WAYS INDO CARIBBEAN POEMS

"The Tarragon’s Extra Space seats only about 100 patrons. And while they have a much larger theater in their midtown building (near Casa Loma), the size is of extreme importance to anyone contemplating seeing a new play that actually takes place in Guyana (well for part of the show).

Don't think you can get away with waiting until the last minute to buy a ticket for this one!

The play, "A Poem for Rabia," has its world premiere on October 25th and is already packing the theater during this week's preview performances. The piece, written by Nikki Shaffeeullah in her playwriting debut, runs in the Extra Space from now until November 12.

"The play is an epic journey across time, oceans, and tectonic shifts in political history for three Indo-Caribbean women. 'A Poem for Rabia' weaves the stories of three queer women from the same bloodline: Zahra, a disillusioned activist in 2053, navigating a Canada that has just abolished prisons; Betty, in 1953 British Guyana, caught between her new secretarial job at the Governor's office and the growing national independence movement; and Rabia, an Indian domestic worker in 1853, abducted by colonial 'recruiters' and sent sailing from Calcutta to the Caribbean on an indentured labor ship," explains Artistic Director Mike Payette.

The actors in this play includes Caribbean Camera’s favourite Toronto stage actress Virgilia Griffith. Also starring Michelle Mohammed, Adele Noronha, Jay Northcott and Nikki Shaffeeullah (“Zahra”).

There haven’t been many Canadian stage plays where actors are speaking with a Guyanese accent. While many of the cast have a familiarity with the Caribbean community, this time around a dialect coach, Andrew Prashad was brought in.

On social media he wrote “part of the play takes place Guyana, so your boy was called in to help teach how we does talk an suh.”

No tickets available till next week!!!! (book now)