HomeMy WebLinkAboutLakeshore Advance, 2012-06-27, Page 18Paul Ciufo ^' I first heard this marvellous story
twenty years ago. As a summer reporter for The
Lakeshore Advance, I was sent to interview Napoleon
"Nap" E. Cantin, son of Napoleon "Nap" A. Cantin,
and grandson of Narcisse. Nap had preserved
the family history very well and spoke about it
passionately. Narcisse and others at the heart of
the story really captured my imagination and I was
amazed that sleepy little St. Joseph had once been a
boomtown. Also, there's something quite poignant
about big dreams that fail. I empathized with the
heartbreak Narcisse and many others must have
felt. This could make a wonderful play, I thought.
In 2002 I finally got around to doing the research and writing. I'd been
urged to pursue it by Joan Karstens who took her cue from her aunt, Pat Cook,
Financial resources came from the St. Joseph & Area Historical Society thanks to
a Trillium Foundation grant garnered by an application ably written by Pamela
Hall-Grusska. I interviewed people who generously shared their memories
and knowledge of St. Joseph including Velma Cantin, Jean-Paul Cantin, Marc
Cantin, Jules Cantin, Phil Durand, Andy Rau, Adeline Denomy, Kathleen Rydall,
Tony Laporte, Alphonse "Pitou" Jeffery, John & Peter Jeffrey, Florence Masse,
Marguerite "Margie" Johnston, and Rosemarie Regier. Aimee Rau showed me a
statuette of Brother Anda and impressed upon me how much he means to the
community.
I spent hours in the treasure trove of an archive preserved by Nap F. and
relocated to Hessenland Country Inn. Even more valuable than the charts and
maps and ledgers and newspaper articles were the epic letters written by Narcisse
to his wife Josephine, his son Nap A., and his business partner Oliver Cabana. The
letters revealed what made Narcisse tick — his ambitions, his strengths, his value.,
his insecurities. Archivist Tracey Whitson-Bahro shared her valuable insights into
the material with me.
Tony Laporte invited me to his home to hear French Canadian fiddling by
Maurice Desjardine. Tony also loaned me Derek Blackburn's thesis proposal "lhe
Life and Work of Narcisse M. Cantin, Early Promoter of The St. Lawrence Seaway".
I read and re -read Joe Wooden's fine book, "A Drum to Beat Upon".
All of the above went into the first draft. Then we had public readings
of the script with talented actors now involved in this production and others
including Wes MacVicar and Gil Garratt. I listened carefully to everyone who
offered feedback and attempted to make the script better, more true.
For years the play sat on a shelf. I bugged and bugged Duncan McGregor
to direct the show and I finally wore him down. Duncan got the great idea to
create an outdoor production with a big cast, so I did some major re -writing,
attempting to make the play grander, more visually compelling. The Ontario
Arts Council came to the table with funding to support the development of the
script and production. Norm Tufts told me several key historical details I hadn't
uncovered in my research.
Eric Coates and everyone at Blyth Festival — a cultural jewel of this area
and Indeed the country — offered plenty of direct help with "Narcisse". They also
assisted indirectly as I improved as a playwright through re -writes, workshops
and productions of my plays "Reverend Jonah" and "A Killing Snow".
The community jumped aboard with sponsorship and enthusiastic
participation. Heather Klopp, Pat Rowe, Mike Miller, Frank & Liz Ihrig, Marc &
Pauline Cantin and many others gave me a new appreciation for the importance
of the story to this area. I was Inspired all the more In my efforts to make the
script the best it could be.
There are a few Important things I need to state about the final script.
I have taken artistic license to serve the dramatic needs of the play. However
most of what Is in the script is fact, or at least my best estimation given the
available information. A notable exception is that William Walsh and his father
are fictitious. The boy really cured of stuttering by Brother Anda was Charlie
Rau; I heard the story from Charlie's sister Florence Masse who witnessed the
healing first-hand. Foster -- the man who confronts Josephine in the post office
-- is fictitious as well. Also, I don't know for sure that Nap A. Cantin struggled
with alcoholism and was cured by Brother Anda. And I don't know that Nap
formally and explicitly cut business ties with his father. I don't know if switching
the ownership of properties to avoid creditors was Cabana's idea.
So to everyone who helped: merci beaucoup. To the entire community:
I sincerely hope I have served your story well, and that you enjoy the play!
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Duncan McGregor ^' What a ride this has beenllll The Historical Society of St.
Joseph and Area has been a very active task master with their community's heti
tage. They created a Commemorative Park to pique our interest in this community
and every year they give a breakfast in the park to share their passion for the St,
Joseph Heritage. They created an excellent website which is very user friendly.
They even have fi splendid book about the area, "A Drum To Heat Upon" written
by Joe Wooden.
What they didn't have was a play. So, they decided to have one written.
They commissioned playwright Paul Ciufo from Grand Bend to research and write
one, which he did. Then they decided to have it produced In an outdoor local set-
ting with involvement from the whole community. However, they needed funding
for the production, so they went out and raised the large target amount, and then
some.
4
And here it is!III
Welcome to Narcisse a community play
with attitude in a local outdoor setting, with live
music, live actors and actresses, with humour, with
respect, and with a ton of action. Oh yes, and it's
about the historical heritage of St. Joseph and area
toolIl
This has been an extreme pleasure as a
director to be a part. The support, cooperation, en-
thusiasm, commitment and talent are unsurpassed
In my theatre career.
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