Music society hopes for smash hit at Toonik Tyme

SEAN McKIBBON

IQALUIT — “Atai Joseph qaujimagavit taimana Joseph pijuna” — giggles erupt among the throng assembled inside the Inuksuk High School cafeteria, as a mostly Qallunat choir tries to fit Inuktitut lyrics to a tune they were singing in English only moments before.

“That’s what this musical is all about — singing together,” Pierre Brault tells the group of people who have come to audition for the Iqaluit Music Society’s second annual musical production, Joseph and the Technicolour Dreamcoat..

Brault is directing the play, which music society members are hoping will be a smash hit during Toonik Tyme this year.

Brault, a professional actor whohas just finished a showing of his one-man play Blood on the Moon at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, says he started in his chosen career in much the same way as the people who have come out to volunteer to help in the musical.

“I started out in community theatre, and I just immersed myself in many, many plays,” Brault says.

This is his second time directing a musical in Iqaluit, having also been at the helm of the music society’s production of Godspell last year.

“Sometimes it’s nice to do it for the fun and community spirit,” says Brault, explaining his attraction to a remote northern venue where few people from outside the community are likely to see his work.

He says that the first time he came to Iqaluit, he was struck by the beauty of the place.

“I was in shock for about four days,” says the director, who before 1999 had never been north of Val d’Or, Quebec.

“But after that I was more impressed by the immense community spirit, the way everybody here pulls together and really supports each other and depends on each other.”

Brault says he hopes the community will pull together around the new production, which he says tells a story of people who depend on each other for survival.

Retelling the biblical story of Joseph and the “coat of many colours,” the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice musical uses humor, music and a modern, pop-culture take on Old Testament characters.

“Religious themes are popular here. The musical is something that works on many different levels,” says Brault. He says the play should appeal to Iqaluit audiences, because it deals with family ties, an appreciation for the land, and movement on the land for survival.

The play has many parts, a large chorus and needs all kinds of volunteers to help with sets, lighting and props, Brault says. If people want to be involved, there is certainly room for them to take part, he says.

“I’m hoping a lot of people come out to support this and support their community,” Brault says.