PREVIEW
Cleave
By Tiny Bear Jaws
March 28 to April 7
Backstage Theatre
ATB Financial Arts Bldg.
10330 – 84 Ave.
Tickets: $22. Visit www.tickets.fringetheatre.ca
Every adolescent struggles privately, and in some cases not so privately, with their sexuality.
In Tiny Bear Jaws' world premiere of Cleave, 17-year-old Aaron born intersex, finds coming to terms with sexuality infinitely more complex. The English Oxford dictionary defines intersex as “a person that has both male and female sex organs or other sexual characteristics.”
In this drama taking place March 28 to April 7 at the Backstage Theatre, Edmonton born playwright Elena Belyea opens a window to gender, sexuality and the perceptions that shape people’s lives.
Needing a fresh start, Aaron (Jordan Fowlie), moves to a new school with high hopes. There he comes in contact with a family of four where each individual has its own secrets.
At the school he meets Pina (Emma Houghton), a popular, confident 15-year-old eager to make her mark as head cheerleader. Her 17-year-old brother, Mark (Luc Tellier), instead is one of the plebs and gets the crap beat out of him daily.
Their parents Paul (Dave Horak) and Carol (Elena Porter), on the surface at least, are the picture of success. And finally there is Rachel (Natasha Napoleao), a well-meaning gender therapist.
Belyea was first inspired to write Cleave while in graduate studies at the National Theatre School. It was a collaborative process close to the playwright’s heart – one she describes as her “swan song."
Belyea, who identifies as queer, was inspired to write about the theme of self-identification after reading an online news article about a man in China suing his wife.
“She had plastic surgery and didn’t tell him, and they got ugly babies. The story was actually a hoax staged by a plastic surgeon. But it was still useful to me as a seed for this play,” said Belyea.
From this starting point, the playwright created Aaron, a female transitioning to a male. Instinctively guarded about his life, he takes a big risk moving forward both in transitioning and the way people relate to him.
“He gets tangled up with people he wasn’t planning on. There’s a queer love story, a romantic entanglement and things get muddy,” said Belyea, who is tight-lipped about revealing too much plot information.
For Belyea, the play is quite a visceral experience.
“It’s kind of a cage match and boomerangs you in and out. It’s a roller coaster ride to the end. And the audience knows what’s happening and gets to experience all the feelings and information, and see things come to a head.”
Belyea believes it is particularly important for adolescents to connect with relatable characters and narratives.
“As a teen, seeing queer characters dealing with queer issues was huge for me. I went to see productions with queer characters multiple times. I feel like seeing myself on stage was a big deal. Generally I would feel the absence. These are stories that matter even if the experiences are different.”
Due to explicit sexual content, Belyea recommends audience attendance at 14 plus.
