Essuie tes larmes et tiens-toi debout!
April 3, 2007 |
Essuie tes larmes et tiens-toi debout! Play about Rwandan genocide comes to Canadian War Museum
Ottawa, Ontario, April 3, 2007 — As part of the nationally mandated Day of Remembrance, the Canadian War Museum (CWM) is marking the thirteenth anniversary of the Rwandan Genocide with a moving theatrical production, Essuie tes larmes et tiens-toi debout! (Dry Your Tears and Stand) by acclaimed Rwandan playwright Jean-Marie Vianney Rurangwa. The play will run from April 6 to 8, in French, in the Museum’s Barney Danson Theatre.Essuie tes larmes et tiens-toi debout! is a powerful tribute to the victims and survivors of the Rwandan Genocide. The play evokes the atrocities of 1994, confronts the xenophobic mindset that allowed them to happen, and sensitizes the audience to their traumatic after-effects.
The play, performed by Rurangwa and his Izuba Theatre Troupe, will be preceded each evening by traditional Rwandan music, a brief overview of Rwandan history by historian Roger Blanchette and a performance by the Mighty Popo.
In addition, on Saturday, April 7, beginning at 3 p.m., the Canadian War Museum will host a free conference featuring lectures by Rwandan speakers and experts, and the Canadian launch of a new book by Rurangwa entitled Au sortir de l’enfer.
“Theatre can help people better understand difficult concepts and address painful topics such as the unspeakable violence and chaos of war,” says Joe Geurts, Director and CEO of the Canadian War Museum. “This play, written and performed by Rwandans themselves, perpetuates the memory of the atrocities that occurred 13 years ago, lends them a new urgency, and opens our eyes to the long-lasting ramifications of this event.”
The Rwandan genocide began on April 6, 1994, when extremist Hutu militia groups began slaughtering ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus. By the time the systematic killing stopped 100 days later, approximately eight hundred thousand Rwandans were dead.
Essuie tes larmes et tiens-toi debout! is presented in collaboration with Humura, the Canadian association of Rwanda tutsi genocide survivors.
A question and answer session with the playwright will follow each evening’s performance (in French).
WHAT: Essuie tes larmes et tiens-toi debout! (in French)
WHERE: Barney Danson Theatre, Canadian War Museum
WHEN:
Friday, April 6 at 7:30 p.m. (doors open at 7 p.m.)
Saturday, April 7 at 8 p.m. (doors open at 7:30 p.m.)
Sunday, April 8 at 5:30 p.m. (doors open at 5 p.m.)
COST: Adults $20, students and seniors $12, youth $7 (discounts applicable for members)
WHAT: Rwanda Conference and Book Launch (in French)
WHERE: Barney Danson Theatre, Canadian War Museum
WHEN:
Saturday April 7 at 3 p.m. (lectures by historian Roger Blanchette, Canadian Member of Parliament David Kilgour and Rwandan Senator Elie Mpayimana)
Saturday, April 7 at 6 p.m. (Jean-Marie Vianney Rurangwa book launch)
COST: Free
To reserve tickets for one of the performances, please contact the War Museum at 819 776-8600 or purchase your tickets at the Museum Box Office.
The Canadian War Museum
The Canadian War Museum is Canada’s national museum of military history. It attempts to help all Canadians better understand their country’s military history in its personal, national and international dimensions. The Museum emphasizes the human experien