Clay and Paper Theatre

The Sylliad - My Big Fat Greek War Story

Hooray, the war is over. So…who’s next?

Clay and Paper Theatre hates to bring it up. We really don’t want to. We don’t want to upset you, but jeez - we can’t help it. Some Canadians would rather go back to the way things were before - before the bombing and the protests and the man-hunt.

We’d rather rub your nose in it.

Long-time activist and artistic director David Anderson , acclaimed poet Michael Boughn (for Clay and Paper Theatre, co-writer Lost City of Wagadu; Coach House Press, DISLOCATIONS IN CRYSTAL, 2003) and theatre artist Mark Keetch (for Clay and Paper, Ballad of Garrison Creek, lilIth unfair , Associate Artist Night of Dread, Day of Delight ; Artistic Director ZagadkA Zoological Society ) , composer and musician Andrew Timar (for Clay and Paper, LILITH UNFAIR, NIGHT OF DREAD; EVERGREEN CLUB; TIMOR SHANKARAN DUO), and choreographer Yvonne Ng (2003 recipient of the Chalmers Arts Fellowship; Corpus Dusk Dances, Serpentine Garden: another love story ) have banded together with actors, musicians and puppets of all sizes to bring you the 2003 summer Clay and Paper Theatre production featuring veteran Clay and Paper performers John Hombek (for Clay and Paper Lilith Unfair , THE BALLAD OF GARRISON CREEK) in the role of Homer and John Slavik (for Clay and Paper, GOLD, the play ) to play the role of Hector .

Is it a story about war? Yes. Is it a story about violence, betrayal, more violence, greed, jealousy, world conquest, eating, more eating, tragic pride, laughter, and everything in between? Yes. Does it parallel the epic brouhaha of Homer’s tragically farcical story of war with the painful brutalities and wild absurdities of our current circumstance? Well…that’s for you to decide; we wouldn’t want to draw any unpleasant conclusions.

Building and rehearsing in full public view in Dufferin Grove Park, Clay and Paper Theatre uses its own brand of narrative theatre and larger-than-life puppetry as a means of animating public space - igniting community festivity and celebration for the widest possible cross-section of the population. In Anderson’s words: “I believe theatre can speak to everyone. The role of theatre is to give the community an image of itself, so I think of our task as being a kind of ‘thinking in public’, and thinking in public works most effectively when the whole public, the hoi polloi, is really there. The Sylliad is our attempt to mock the banal stupidity of war. It’s a wake-up call to remind us with guffaws and tears that violence is really dumb.”

The company was recently awarded the 2003 recipient of the Community Arts Ontario’s Best Practices Award for their achievements in community collaboration.

The Sylliad - My Big Fat Greek War Story was presented with the financial assistance of the Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, Human Resources Development Canada, Laidlaw Foundation, Trillium Foundation, George Cedric Metcalf Charitable Foundation, Toronto Parks and Recreation, Street-Level web design, Staples/Business Depot (375 University Ave.), Long and McQuade and Dufferin Mall.