Carey, Get Out Your Cane

Debra and I parked the car in front of Carey Dardompre's home on a residential street in Arlington, Massachusetts. Carey somehow ended up on our shortlist as a Haitian art expert, so we scheduled a meeting to pick his brain. Confident that we should see his art books and worried that they might get damaged or lost should they leave his home, we trekked from CST to Arlington.

When we walked in the door Sara, our set designer was already knee-deep in art books. Carey towered over the three of us with waist-length dreadlocks and an infectious laugh. A red electric bass was perched against the wall, which save for the bass, was almost completely covered in bright, colorful paintings.

Carey chatted animatedly as the three of us perused the glossy bilingual pages filled with images of island art and photographs of Haitian rituals.

The books were filled with naive, bright images; Sirens, (mermaids) beasts acting as humans, sequined Voodoo banners, sketches, paintings, and found-object sculpture.

One of the things Carey stressed in our afternoon together was the presence of the Voodoo religion in Haiti -- how it's practiced, hidden, and celebrated.

Voodoo ceremonies often utilize a houmfo, or altar, adorned with objects, food, and images that will please a lwa, a spirit. Each family has a guardian lwa, who comes to them in times of need. We talked about whether the Mother in Ti Jean would have a Houmfo in her house -- could we use that in the play? How would the Mother use it?

Carey also talked about Voodoo's deep roots in symbolism -- what may seem like an arbitrary design choice in a painting is actually soaked in meaning and mythology. He pointed to little stars painted in the background of a more abstract painting.

"These stars just look like stars to most people, even most Haitians, that's what they are. But what they represent is a coming-together of the spiritual and the earthly; the visible and the invisible."

I'm trying to think of a really witty way to comment on the above quote and draw a connection to the nature of the play.

Try to imagine it.

Welcome to the Bois Blog!

Hello, and welcome to the official dramaturgy blog for the Underground Railway Theater and Boston Playwright's Theater production of Derek Walcott's Ti-Jean and His Brothers.

We'll be using this blog to post everything you need to know about Haiti, Derek Walcott, the production and whatever other surprises we run into.

Feel free to comment, discuss, and dive into the fantastical world of this classic play.

-Papa Bois