INUVIK
Imitating animal noises is never loud enough for drama teacher Abe Drennan.

Xavier Sommerfeld, left, and Colm Kingmiak-Devlin do a jig for their audition. - Stewart Burnett/NNSL photo

"Can you do that louder?" he asks students howling like a wolf in front of him during their audition. "Good job, but louder than that!"

Drennan recently held auditions for East Three School's big play of the year, How the Raven Stole the Sun, which tells a classic aboriginal tale about how a raven brought light back to the universe.

Students show interest

The lineup for auditions on the elementary school side stretched so far that teachers couldn't accommodate everyone in one day.

Some students came prepared, with dances they put on, lip-synching or even telling jokes. Others took direction on the spot, usually being told to show how a rabbit walks or sing a little song.

For Drennan, what mattered most was passion and teachability.

"These kids are directable," he said afterwards. "That's what's really nice to me. It's great to see them responding to the audition. That's a big thing. Some of them were pretty nervous about it, but they did a great job. It shows the kids are probably going to respond well in rehearsals, too."

For elementary student Tatum Mistaken Chief, the audition was a chance to be more active and brave in front of people.

Her partner for the audition, Tyra Bain, thought similarly.

"I think our audition went good," said Bain. "It seemed interesting. (The goal is) not to get scared to act in front of people."

There are 15 speaking roles up for grabs in the play, with about four more group parts.

The school's high school side had a smaller turnout for auditions, with only about nine students showing up, but those who did were very passionate about the performance, said Drennan.

"It was very different," he said, comparing the two auditions. "There weren't as many students but the ones that were there had been involved in productions in the past, so they were pretty reliable students. They've got two years of shows under the belt and I can trust them."

Culture added to script

The play's script has gone through a number of drafts and edits to incorporate both Inuvialuit and Gwich'in elements, as well as make it ready for a stage.

Grade 12 student Angela Voudrach had a big hand in the writing process, said Drennan, who also implored the school's language teachers for help.

"It's an interesting evolution," he said.

Slight differences

Typically, the main story is the same across aboriginal cultures, but what the raven turns into to get inside the man's body - whether a grain of sand, a pine needle or otherwise - differs. 

Once the cast is figured out, students will do a script read and then start rehearsing at least twice a week during lunch.

The play will be performed in May.

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