Finally There's Sun Digital Study Guide

ABOUT THE CABARET

Finally There's Sun
A Cabaret of Resilience
Curated and Directed by Sara Farb and Steve Ross

Finally There's Sun House Program

Grade and Curriculum Connections

• Grade 7+
• Global Competencies: Critical Thinking, Innovation, Creativity, Self-Directed Learning, Collaboration, Communication and Citizenship
• The Arts
• English
• Language
• Canadian and World Studies
• Social Sciences and Humanities

Synopsis

Curators and directors Sara Farb and Steve Ross, along with fellow performers Noah Beemer and Germaine Konji, take us on a musical journey through a year of enormous change and growth. They explore the isolation, the loneliness, the upheaval and the unexpected silver linings that came out of a time like no other. Join us to reflect on this "great pause" as we move forward and get back to living freely.

Themes and Motifs

• Loneliness and Isolation
• Change, Hope and Resilience
• The Human Need for Music

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

• Why do people sing?
• What has been the role of music in your life during the pandemic?
• How does listening to music affect your mood?
• What changes to you hope to see in our world as we come out of the pandemic?
• Which song resonated with you most? Why do you think this is the case?

MINDS ON

Objective: Students will explore how art forms can affect us deeply, especially in times of isolation.

Materials: Computer/internet access, any materials needed for their chosen form of expression (paints, microphone, etc.).

Directions:

• Have students identify a particular song, poem, book, television show or other artistic form of expression that has been especially helpful them throughout pandemic isolation.
• In small groups, ask students to share these with one another and to describe the impact of their chosen piece.
• Invite students to use the debriefing questions to shape their discussion together.

Debriefing Questions:

• Did you return to a familiar artistic form or something new?
• Did any members of your group choose the same piece?
• What did you discover about your own abilities to cope in difficult times?
• In what ways can art help us to feel less alone?

CONNECTION TO THE ARCHIVES

The co-curators and co-directors of this cabaret have worked together many times before including as part of the cast of our production of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in 2016. 

Ruby Joy as Susan, Barbara Fulton as Mrs. Beaver, Sara Farb as Lucy and Steve Ross as Mr. Beaver in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, dramatized by Adrian Mitchell, 2016. Directed by Tim Carroll. Set design by Douglas Paraschuk. Costume design by Dana Osborne. Lighting design by Kevin Fraser. Photography by David Hou.

The Stratford Festival's Archives maintains, conserves and protects recent and historical records about the Festival and makes those materials available to people around the world. Our multi-media archival holdings date from 1952 and extend through to contemporary materials. We house correspondence, production records, Board minutes, photography, design artwork, scores, audio-visual records, costumes, props and set decoration, press releases and other promotional materials: these document the processes that bring a production to the stage and reflect all aspects of mounting a play from the administrative to the creative and beyond.

RESOURCES

Finally There's Sun Showstarters

Study Guide PDF  Finally There's Sun

Contact us to book a streamed viewing of this production for your class: groups@stratfordfestival.ca

EDUCATION SUPPORT PARTNER

TOOLS FOR TEACHERS SPONSORED BY

 PROUD SEASON PARTNERS 

 PRODUCTION CO-SPONSOR

PRODUCTION SUPPORT IS GENEROSULY PROVIDED BY JODY & DEBORAH HAMADE AND BY DR. ROBERT & ROBERTA SOKOL. 

SUPPORT FOR THE FILMING OF PRODUCTIONS IN THE 2021 SEASON IS GENEROUSLY PROVIDED BY RICHARD & MONA ALONZO, THE JOHN AND MYRNA DANIELS CHARITABLE FOUNDATION, THE HENRY WHITE KINNEAR FOUNDATION, MARTIE & BOB SACHS, ROBERT & JACQUELINE SPERANDIO, ALICE & TIM THORNTON AND BY AN ANONYMOUS DONOR.