INTERVIEW: New theatrical show comments on climate change, displacement, identity
Photo: Mammelephant, a new show in New York City, stars Zhanna Zakharova. Photo courtesy of Rio Che / Provided by Everyman Agency with permission.
Lanxing Fu has crafted a new play with music for the Superhero Clubhouse, a theater company she co-directs, that looks at the all-important issues of climate change, displacement and identity, according to press notes. In fact, Superhero Clubhouse is dedicated to presenting work on climate justice and environmental justice, so the new works into their repertoire perfectly.
Mammelephant is so-named because audience members view the action through the eyes of a mammoth-elephant hybrid, which might sound like an impossible idea until one searches the internet for some of the de-extinction projects that are out there (and which directly influenced Fu). Performances run through Aug. 6 at the 122CC Second Floor Theater in the East Village of Manhattan.
Helping Fu is composer Trevor New and director Nana Dakin. Together this creative team has created a piece that draws inspiration from an ancient Sakha song-poem, among other sources. In the cast are Jen Anaya, Imani Russell, Izzy Sazak and Zhanna Zakharova. Zakharova actually grew up in the Indigenous Republic of Sakha where her mother still resides, according to press notes. She understands first-hand the deteriorating conditions due to climate change in the republic, which is located in the northeast region of Russia, and Fu’s intention is to have the actor give voice to the Sakha people in the piece.
Recently Fu exchanged emails with Hollywood Soapbox about the new show. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
Did you have to conduct research on climate change and the displacement of people and communities?
Yes, we learned a lot from scientists who work in this part of the world on subjects related to climate, permafrost and extinction. One of our original collaborators on the piece, Sergio Botero, is a biologist — he was a part of our creative process and also provided a foundation of ecological knowledge upon which we built the play. We learned most of what we know about the impact of permafrost thaw on the Sakha Republic through conversations with various Sakha people, including our collaborator/performer Zhanna Zakharova, and also through reading a lot on all of the above. I also conducted interviews with most of our creative team about their experiences with migration, displacement and adaptation to change — which were a huge influence on the piece.
What’s the significance of having the audience experience this story through the eyes of a mammoth-elephant hybrid?
The ‘mammelephant’ — a creature cut off from time and their matriarchal family — is an avatar for anyone who has ever experienced displacement, which is particularly relevant as the climate crisis forces many humans and other species to migrate. The mammelephant is also an avatar for anyone who feels unmoored or overwhelmed by an increasingly uncertain future. How do we make decisions for our own happiness while also taking care of the long-term future? How do we find hope and joy in our lives, when the world feels like one big existential crisis? How do we adapt to wide scale change?
Recently Congress stalled once again on climate change legislation (Sen. Joe Manchin pulling the plug on a deal). What are your thoughts on the United States’ inability to confront this crisis?
Frankly, it doesn’t surprise me. While I do think that strong federal action on climate would be incredibly impactful, we need to embrace the power that lives at the grassroots and local level. Systematically oppressed communities have been organizing for environmental and climate justice for decades, and hold the knowledge and solutions we need to move forward. The reasons why the United States hasn’t followed their lead and implemented these solutions by now are the root causes of the climate crisis: capitalism and white body supremacy. These problems are cultural; new laws won’t solve them any more than they did with the integration of schools during Reconstruction and the reactionary Jim Crow period. It’s hard to simply legislate change. Adapting to and mitigating what we can of the climate crisis requires a shift in culture. That’s where the arts are vital.
Is focusing your theater works on climate change ever too restrictive? Do you feel there’s enough dramatic material for you and your company to explore?
We center all of our work around climate and environmental justice, and I find it incredibly expansive. The questions and ideas we explore are interconnected with every aspect of human society. We are looking at how ecosystems work — ecosystem meaning the entire network of built, natural, human and more-than-human beings that make up our home. “Eco,” from the Greek “oikos,” means home. Climate justice is social justice, racial justice, economic justice. We see storytelling as an act of collectively imagining a better future. The climate crisis is a slow warping of our reality, and we need a lot of new stories about how we get where we want to go within this new reality.
Would you call this activist theater?
I’m not sure. I would say that the work we’re doing is two things. One, modeling the world we want to live in through our process; how we come together as diverse groups to make decisions, relate to each other, use resources. Two, inviting people to envision together, to activate our imaginations as a powerful and undervalued political tool. I don’t know if that’s considered activist theater; we aren’t advocating for a specific policy change, and we’re not educating people on how to reduce their carbon footprint or recycle better. We’re trying to see if we can seed regenerative cultures on a small scale.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Mammelephant, written by Lanxing Fu, runs through Aug. 6 at the 122CC Second Floor Theater in the East Village. Click here for more information and tickets.
