The University of Lethbridge’s Fall Mainstage production takes a deep dive into how pop culture and the iconic animated series The Simpsons bring us all together.
Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play is written by Anne Washburn, and is a production featuring musical numbers, fight scenes and more that explore how pop culture can help keep communities going in a post-apocalyptic world.
Pat Chan is the show’s director, choreographer, and fight director. She told My Lethbridge Now explained that the characters keep themselves entertained in this setting by reliving, retelling and reimagining past episodes of The Simpsons.
The Matt Groening-created series is currently in its 38th season and is the longest-running American animated series, longest-running American sitcom, and the longest-running American scripted primetime television series, in both seasons and individual episodes.
On the impact of pop culture and legacy of a show like The Simpsons, Chan said, “What binds everything is culture, and that’s what really attracted me to direct this play.”
She noted as an Asian director, it was interesting to study the differences, but more so the similarities between Eastern and Western culture.
“The Asian values and western values are very different, and then being an Asian director, I have to find the middle ground for this cultural exchange,” Chan said.
“I come from the 80s, so I know quite a bit of The Simpsons stories, and the culture, the pop culture [impact] and I’m educated in the western ways, so I’m quite open to both cultures, so I just [had] to find the middle ground for it.”
Chan added, “It’s quite interesting … [there are] different values, different morals, different ways of thinking but yet at the same time, at the base level, it’s the same.”
The play is Chan’s Mainstage directorial debut at the U of L, and she changed some aspects of Washburn’s script. Some of the changes include adding original music, extending choreographed fight scenes, and making music references more current.
Chan said music student Izzy Paige composed a score that helped reflect the story’s current and futuristic setting.
The show’s music director and pit band conductor is Dr. Sandra Stringer.
Chan added that directing the show reminded her that theatre can bridge cultural differences and highlight their similarities.
Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play debuted on Oct. 28, with performances also scheduled for Oct. 29-30, and Nov. 6-7, with each show at 7:30 p.m. each evening at the University Theatre.
Tickets are available through the U of L website. All U of L students can get a complimentary ticket with their student ID.
A video previewing the show can be seen below, courtesy of the U of L.
