About the project

Papa Records Everything is a new Canadian play written by Chantal Dobles Gering and directed by Sarvin Esmaeili. Papa Records Everything follows the story of Giselle on their 18th birthday, trapped in a zoom call and must re-discover how to connect with family. Through music and nightmares, this story explores communication, ownership and healing.

Excerpt:

Memory of a Birth

Blurry fantasy

Movement Sequence / Pantomime - Contemporary

Song: Bajo la Luna by Holly Collis Handford

Birds chirping. Silhouette lighting.

Nannies sing in Spanish offstage.

Mother enters SL. Shadowed Figure enters SR. Both carry briefcases.

They shake hands.

Nanny enters with a baby. Followed by Grandma, Papa, and Sister.

Family portrait centre stage.

Nannies in flowing white robes dance around the family portrait. 

Circular Patterns. Ceremony.

Black out. 

Lights up.

Family Portrait is missing Shadowed Figure.

Shadowed Figure lurks at a distance with a briefcase.

The world distorts into a nightmare. Nannies sing a creepy lullaby. 

Nannies pull around Giselle. Echoes of fragments of news report about Shadowed Figure. Nannies move like disjointed puppets. Lights flash. 

Nannies are dragged away.

Stage goes black. 

This project received financial support from the National Theatre School of Canada via the Art Apart program, an emergency fund for emerging artists who are affected by physical distancing due to coronavirus (COVID-19).

About the artist

Chantal (she/they) is a queer artist in the University of British Columbia (UBC) BFA Acting Program working on the Coast Salish Territories. Chantal is a choreographer, actor, singer, dancer, writer, theatre artist, poet, feminist, and healer. Chantal’s previous training: Arts Umbrella, Musical Theatre Intensive at Arts Club, Acting and Shakespeare at the Drama Centre London, and Riotous Youth at Bard on the Beach. Chantal’s previous acting credits include Concord Floral 2017 Push Festival, One of a Kind International Children’s Festival, Centurions by Sally Stubbs, Isle Dell’arte and The Changeling at UBC. In 2018, they founded the 24-hour playwriting competition Play4Change to bridge the social gap between academic, business and theatre communities to address societal issues such as environmentalism, destructive capitalism, mental health. Chantal’s art is about sharing truth and healing.