The Tashme Project: The Living Archives

MAI (Montréal, Arts Interculturels) in association with Festival Accès Asie presents a Tashme Production produced in association with Playwrights' Workshop Montréal 

MAI (Montréal, Arts Interculturels) en association avec le Festival Accès Asie présente une Production Tashme produit en association avec Playwrights 'Workshop Montréal

Performances at MAI (3680 rue Jeanne-Mance) until Sunday, May 17, 2015

Représentations au MAI ((3680 rue Jeanne-Mance) jusqu'au Dimanche 17 Mai 2015

Wednesday - Saturday at 8pm, Sunday matinee at 3pm

Du Mercredi au Samedi à 20h00, le Dimanche en matinée à 15h00

Post show Artist Talk on Fridays May 8 & 15 and Sunday May 10

Les Vendredis 8 et 15 Mai et Dimanche 10 Mai – discussions avec les artistes âpres le spectacle

Tickets:  25$ Regular; 20$ Students and Seniors; 15$ for groups of ten or more

Billets: 25 $ régulier; 20 $ étudiants et aînés; 15 $ pour les groupes de dix ou plus

Reservations / Réservations: (514) 982-3386 or ONLINE  / ou EN LIGNE

(+ service charge / + frais de service)

Created and performed by / Créé et interprété par: Julie Tamiko Manning and / et Matt Miwa
Directed by / Mise en scène: Mieko Ouchi

A deeply personal documentary-style theatrical piece that gives voice to the previously silent testimonies of the survivors of the many thousands of second-generation (Nisei) Japanese-Canadians, who after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, were rounded up, stripped of their property and  sent to internment camps. Prime Minister McKenzie King feared internal sabotage. Tashme, now called Sunshine Valley, was one of those camps. Creators Julie (Sansei – third generation) and Matt (Yonsei – fourth generation) interviewed 30 Nisei who were children at the time and are now senior citizens in their 70s and 80s. Over seventy hours of interview time distilled into a ninety minute performance with such fluidity and finesse that made one feel as if the ‘interviewees’ were making an appearance themselves on stage. The individual memories of their experiences with internment and disenfranchisement come alive and will go a long way towards healing the wounds and reconnect the younger generations of Japanese-Canadians with their roots. The doors of communication have been opened.

 Une pièce de théâtre de style documentaire profondément personnelle qui donne une voix aux témoignages préalablement silencieuses des survivants des milliers de deuxième génération (Nisei) Japonais-Canadiens, qui, après le bombardement Japonais de Pearl Harbour en 1941, ont été arrêtés, dépouillé de leurs biens et envoyés dans des camps d'internement. Le Premier Ministre McKenzie King craignait le sabotage interne. Tashme, maintenant appelé Sunshine Valley, était un de ces camps. Les créateurs Julie (Sansei - troisième génération) et Matt (Yonsei - quatrième génération) ont interrogé 30 Nisei qui étaient enfants à l'époque et sont maintenant des personnes âgées dans leurs années 70 et 80. Plus de 70 heures de temps d'entrevue distillée dans une performance de quatre-vingt dix minutes avec une telle fluidité et la finesse qui a fait une sensation comme si les «personnes interrogées» se faisaient une apparition sur scène. Les mémoires individuelles de leurs expériences avec l'internement et la privation des droits civiques sont vivants et ira loin vers la guérison des blessures et de reconnecter la jeune  génération de Canadiens d'origine Japonaise avec leurs racines. Les portes de la communication ont été ouvertes.

This review has also been posted on CULTUREPLUS (without the Japanese-Canadian History Timeline which follows. It was scanned to PDF 'as is' from program notes and then converted to Word using OCR.  

 







Ce critique a également été posté sur CULTUREPLUS  (sans le Chronorama Historique Nippo-Canadienne – en Anglais seulement – qui suit. Il a été numérisé au format PDF directement
des notes du  programme et ensuite converti en Word à l'aide d’un logicielle OCR.

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Japanese Canadian History Timeline

1877    Manzo Nagano, first Japanese individual known to land and settle in Canada.

1890s Issei, Japanese immigrants, establish stores, boarding houses and other businesses along Powell Street. This neighbourhood becomes the major settlement of Japanese Canadians until WWII.

1938 - 40 RCMP kept surveillance on the Japanese community. However, they recorded no subversive activity.

Dec. 8 1,200 fishing boats «rre impounded and put under the control of the Japanese Fishing Vessel Disposal Committee. Japanese language newspapers and schools closed.

Feb.7All male "enemy aliens" between the ages of18-45 are forced to leave the protected coastal area before April 1. Most are sent to work on road camps in the Rockies.

Mar.16 First arrival at Vancouver's Hastings Park holding center. All Japanese Cana­dian. mail is censored from this date.

Mar.25 B.C. Security Commission initiates a program of assiqning men to road camps and women and children to ghost town detention camps.

Oct. 22,000 persons of whom 75% are Canadian citizens (60% Canadian born, 15% • naturalized) have been uprooted forcibly from the coast.

1943Jan  Order in Council grants the Custodian of Enemy Alien Property the right to dispose of Japanese Canadian properties in his care without the owners' consent,

1944Aug. 4Prime Minister King states it is desirable that Japanese Canadians are dispersed across Canada. Applications for “voluntarq repatriation" to Japan are sought by the.Canadian government. Those who do not must move east of the Rockies to prove their loyalty to Canada. "Repatriation" for many means.exile to a country they have never seen before.

Sept. 2 Japan surrenders. All internment camps, except New Denver are ordered closed and settlements of shacks bulldozed

1947Jan Deportation orders are cancelled. 4,000 Japanese Canadians have already been "repatriated".

1949Mar Restrictions imposed under the War Measures Act are lifted and franchise is   given to Japanese Canadians.

1984JanTheNational.Association. of Japanese Canadian Council meeting in Winnipeg unanimously passes resolutions seeking an official acknowledgement and redress for the injustices committed against JC during and after World War II.

1986 May 9 Price Waterhouse Associates assesses income and-property losses at not less than $443 million in 1986 dollars.

 1988 Sept. 22   Acknowledgement, apology and compensation.

1996                   The Census of Canada shows a Japanese Canadian population of 77,130, indicating an intermarriage rate of over 90% in recent decades.

A Therapeutic Session that Deeply Heals

by Nancy Snipper

 A pendulum, hard plastic, heated hand rests, different coloured infrared lights applied to my different chakras, metal “prongs” to test the alignment and balancing of these chakras before the healing begins, a quartz mask – these are the “tools” that the gentle voiced Dr Norma A. Morin Maya uses to bring your soul, body and spirit into blissful peace. Her company is Serenity, and the name is apt.

Dr. Maya has studied intensely over a dozen techniques of body healing. I went through testing, cleansing, emotional breaking, and liberation. I have never experienced anything like that in my life.

  
At the end of my detox session held in San Miguel’s magical Juarez Park, I felt an openness, a contentment I had not felt before I set myself prone on her bed.

I loved her voice, her questions and the top attention she paid to my body and emotional issues.

If I were to move to San Miguel de Allende, she is the one Dr. I would see once a week – not the chiropractor, not the osteopath, not the masseuse, not the reiki expert – oh no; it would be Dr Maya in whom I would put my complete trust, and I would know – that after each visit, I would be getting closer to my authentic, vulnerable self, and I would cry  when – as I did after my first experience – Dr. Maya laid her hands on mine. Maybe I will move just because of her.

Did I mention that her sweet smile, pure brown eyes and amazingly gentle face with a voice to match reminded me of Our Holy Maria. 

Aging -- A Matter of Universal Interest

Aging -- we all experience it -- how can we stop it? Here is an interesting, informative short video that deals with this with pizazz and humour.
Le vieillissement - nous tous l'expérience - comment pouvons-nous l'arrêter? Voici, une courte vidéo informative intéressant qui traite de cela avec pizazz et d'humour.

Amigos de Animales

Call it puppy love

by Nancy Snipper

Spading and Neutering Animals in San Miguel is Savior’s mission

San Miguel has an invaluable organization called Amigos de Animals. Its mission is to sterilize cats and dogs so there won’t be massive reproduction and the heart-break of unwanted animals. This community-oriented organization is especially directed towards Mexicans who cannot always afford the cost to go to a vet.

Arno Nauman realized there was a great need for this some 15 years ago, and he singlehandedly formed Amigos de Animales and developed it to grow into the vital entity it is today which now benefits from many volunteers. His grass roots rallying resonated with people and it has paid off: his passion for animal protection led to the creation of new laws related to the matter, including punishment for animal abuse. The fervor of his commitment to promote better lives for animals and their pet owners in reducing the number of unwanted, homeless dogs and the suffering that ensures. He has helped enormously and his legacy will continue to leave its mark as he prepares to retire.

Board member, Maggie Hutchins notes: “One unneutered male or female can produce 100s of unwanted puppies and kittens for their lifetime, and that so often these adorable newborns end up on streets without, food, love or shelter. Maggie is one of 8 board members whose many responsibilities include registering owner and animals for sterilization weekend sessions, called, ‘blitzes.”

The blitzes are held in the San Antonio neighborhood and the Lion’s Club. The intense tagging process involved oversees up to 170 to 200 sessions per weekend. Maggie said it’s a lot of pre and post organizing, and the success of it depends of course on the vets who volunteer to do this. Amigos de Animales pays two fulltime vets and the rest offer their services free.” 

So there are the blitzes, the clinic and the traveling mobile that reaches out to remote areas. The org is busy every day of the week. “Fridays, we set out to travel as far as 20 kilometers to do our work and it is a fully operating clinic run by our two employed vets Vanessa and Omar.” 

Maggie has always loved animals; a voice spoke to her many years ago when she realized so many creatures do not have proper care. Amigos de Animales has a spot-on slogan: “The voice for the voiceless”.

Donations are so appreciated, and tax deductions are given.

Website: http://amigos-sma.org/about/ 

THE GIMBO BED

Healing the body with heated stones

on San Miguel’s Gimbo bed

by Nancy Snipper

It’s magic – just like the city itself. Set yourself down on a hard bamboo bed under which is a thousand semi-precious stones that are heated to work their magnetic energies as they penetrate your body to basically banish your imbalances and chronic illnesses. The stones are red amethyst, black jade, Biotitic, germanio,  yakodol, kiyoseki and cheongwang. Their healing specifics include, blocking electromagnetic, radiation, negative ions, augmentation of energy and body temperature, anti-oxidant and balancing and heightening energies.

Before I lay on my bed, I had to drink a special half-bottle of water from Queretaro (a nearby city) that was ionized and alkaline balanced. This was to rid your body of the toxins that circulated in the body at a heightened rate due to these beds that do indeed bring the blood toxins to the surface to be expelled after drinking the rest of the bottle of water after your 40-minute treatment. I don/t understand the total process, but the easy-to-read booklet plus a video are there to examine. I know that there is a grand benefit to what happens to you once you immerse yourself in Gimbo therapy

I met women there who are diabetic, arthritic and suffering from nerve diseases. They attest to their wellbeing of better health through these Gimbo beds.

I loved the heat, circulating into my body and witnessed the power of these stones before I tried the treatment. My attendant put a little magnet into a cup on the bed and it spun around in circles. The hot spot for the bed is marked with amethyst.  

How did I feel after? Renewed, energized, and my back pain was gone.

This Korean invention is over 1000 years old. It is recommended for those suffering from over 22 illnesses, including Parkinson, rheumatism, obesity, migraines, even tumors.

Is Gimbo a god for well being or a mere gizmo? You decide.

The address to try this wonderful healing method is at # 35 Insurgentes.

 Phone (415) 152-0100

San Miguel de Allende's best hairdresser

CATRINA

by Nancy Snipper

Her name is Vero and her husband is Juan Calros, Both are artistically inclined, Vero has been doing hair for over 26 years and she is  also a genius make-up artist – The Day of the Dead in San Miguel sports many of her make-up faces. They are so detailed, they appear like tattoos. Vero is fun and highly creative. Her hubby is the side-kick; he behaves like an adorable clown, but take one look at the fantasy nails he does for women, and you know this guy is all business.

I was astounded by their marvelous rapport with their clients, I was 5 hours in the chair, and yet it was I that was entertained completely by their wit and remarkable caring as to my hair.

Go there and be amazed.

Catrina is a cool place that brings beauty to your hair. Vero did to mine, so remember the hairdressing name of Catrina, which she and her husband own.  It’s at #104 Relox Street.

Croque ta Vie… a Gratonic Goodie!

              

Gluten and dairy-free health treats

reviewed by Nancy Snipper

Forget about the power bars and all those commercially attractively packaged foods that tell you no fat and really low in carbs. Who knows where the truth lies. Well, it lies in this sensational new snack product: Croque ta Vie.

What a great snack this foodie find is. The product is energizing and best of all, it’s gluten and dairy-free – created by a mother inspired by her children to create a fine foodie munchie that is 100% healthy.

They come in bars and bite-size bits.

Made by marathon runner, Sophie Pelletier-Roy in her Mirabel “kitchen”, Croque ta Vie makes granola bars and cereals from natural and organic ingredients with 10-12g of protein. They come in seven great flavours, including apple, chocolate, ginger, and more!

Enpowering and energizing for all ages. Gratonic is putting pure health in a delicious way into your body. I know, I couldn’t get enough of them when I tasted them at the press conference for Festival de Nouveau Cinema in Montreal.

You can go to croquetavie.com or on Facebook to see more information about the product.