100 Arthur Street,Winnipeg,R3B 1H3,CA
POST-SHAKESPEARE PROPAGANDA
Shakespeare with bite.
Welcome to a beginner’s lecture on Shakespare’s First Folio text analysis. The lecture covers: grammar and spelling, historical context, misplaced memories, climate disaster, violence, Sam Rockwell, family abolition, masculinity, nepotism, propaganda, inflation, T4T, and talking dogs. No lunch provided.
i am your spaniel, or, A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare by Gislina Patterson is a drag performance lecture in which a Shakespeare scholar reads A Midsummer Night’s Dream too closely and turns into a dog. It’s about the family as a site of control, theatre as state propaganda, being in love, becoming a traitor, transformation, desire, Iggy Pop, being good, being bad, and what it means to be a man.
“A brilliant collage of scholarship, anecdote, political theory and visit to the dog park. Woof! ” 4 STARS – Glen Sumi
“As Patterson’s personal history aligns with historical record and speculative invention, this flamboyant and meandering account goes off the rails in a highly focused and purposeful way.” – Istvan Reviews
“Dasha & Gislina’s works remind me of Jarman, Greenaway & Abramovitch in their ability to articulate a singular vision & create revolutionary works.” – Sadie Berlin
Performances will take place in the VideoPool Output space, on the second floor of the Artspace building at 100 Arthur Street.
Created by We Quit Theatre
Gislina Patterson – Playwright, performer
Dasha Plett – Director, dramaturg, performer
The performance is 90 minutes with no intermission. Audiences are welcome to exit and reenter the theatre during the performance.
Development of i am your spaniel was supported by the Stratford Festival Lab. We Quit Theatre acknowledges the support of Canada Council for the Arts and Manitoba Arts Council. i am your spaniel, or, A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare by Gislina Patterson premiered at the 2023 SummerWorks Performance Festival as part of SummerWorks Presentations.
Performance accessibility information
All performances are COVID-Conscious Performances; all audience members are required to wear masks in the theatre. If you do not have a mask an N95 will be provided for you.
During all performances audiences are permitted to exit and reenter the theatre and use phones on silent.
The performances on Sept 15 and 16 will both be live-streamed. A link to the live-stream will be emailed to all advance ticket holders for these performances.
The performance on Sept 16 will have open integrated description.
Content: references to and descriptions of animal abuse, familial abuse, forced marriage, classism, homophobia, eugenics, masochism, landlords, murder, gender dysphoria, childhood sexual trauma, child abuse, transphobia, dog attacks, institutionalization, memory loss, capital punishment, suicide, racism, racial capitalism, agoraphobia, violence.
Sensory: Sudden light changes, loud sound effects and music, layered discordant sound and image. Footage featured in the performance includes some flashing light, brief nudity, implied violence and dog attacks.
A visual story for the performance is available upon request.
Venue accessibility information
Getting Here
There is no reserved parking for Artspace patrons or employees. There are a number of paid lots within a block of the building. Examples of which are located in front of Bodegoes on Bannatyne, next to Chosabi on King St. (northbound one way), and next to The Kings Head on King St. (northbound one way).
For locations of accessible parking, open the JPG “Accessible Downtown Parking Locations” on the left side of this page https://videopool.org/accessibility/
Both doors to artspace have automatic door openers
A wheelchair lift is located inside the King St doors
The Output is located on the second floor of artspace, accessible via a standard passenger elevator. There is no voice-assist or braille in the elevator but there is raised numbering on the keypad.
The Output A/V Venue
The gallery door is not automated, but is propped open before and after each performance.
The door frame is 88.5cm wide and 212cm high.
The floors are timber floorboards that are smooth but slightly warped.
The walls are dark grey, lighting is typically dim.
There are three large windows with blackout blinds
There is a wide hallway outside the venue with seating that can act as a quieter space
WC / Washrooms
1st floor, and 2nd floor have non-gendered, multi stall washrooms. Washrooms on these floors have wheelchair accessible stalls with handrails, but do not have automatic doors. One of the two washrooms on each of these floors have urinals that are not enclosed by locking doors.