She Has A Name
2012 Tour
Go the the official She Has A Name Tour page: www.shehasaname.net
Burnt Thicket Theatre in partnership with Raise Their Voice Against Injustice have announced a 6 month North American Tour of She Has A Name, a play by Andrew Kooman, from May – October 2012
The Vision
After a very successful world premiere in February and March of 2011, Burnt Thicket Theatre in partnership with Raise Their Voice now plans to tour She Has A Name across North America. Our mutual goal is to produce powerful theatre in cities across North America to compel thousands of more individuals to engage the story of human trafficking in a meaningful way.
Tour Framework
The tour will consist of a combination of week long runs of self-produced shows in chosen cities and presentations within Fringe Festivals across North America.Potential Schedule* (total of 80 – 90 shows).
A Brief History
In January of 2010 Burnt Thicket Theatre hosted a workshop of Andrew Kooman’sShe Has A Name.At the conclusion of the workshop we read the play for an invited audience. After the reading we asked the audience for their feedback. One gentleman asked if it was possible to simply sit quietly for a while in the impact of the play. When the audience did offer feedback the discussion quickly turned to what could be done about the injustice of human trafficking. This response compelled us to find a way to produceShe Has A Name.
Fast forward one year. On March 12, 2011 we packed upShe Has A Name, said good-bye to Red Deer, thanked our team and took a deep breath. We had just experienced an incredible three week run. We could not have anticipated things going any better. There was so much to celebrate. We were sold out for the entire three week run in Calgary and Red Deer, received excellent reviews in major newspapers, began important relationships with a number of organizations, were able to financially honor our artists, and best of all saw impacted audience members ask how they could take action against human trafficking.
We now find ourselves compelled to tell this story as extensively as possible. Interest from across North America indicates that the timing is right thatShe Has A Nameis a story people are ready to hear and respond to.
Help us bring the show on the road! There’s some sweet perks too!
She Has A Name – IndieGoGo Campaign Launch from Raise Their Voice on Vimeo.
About Human Trafficking
There are 27 million slaves in the world. Experts estimate nearly 1 million people are trafficked every year into some facet of the sex trade. Human trafficking is the fastest growing criminal trade, second only to the illegal sale of drugs, with an estimted annual profit of over 31 billion US dollars.
The statistics are staggering. Yet it is important to remember that each person caught in slavery has a story – a story that will likely go unheard. Help us bring an important story to life.
Synopsis: Haunted by anguished voices, a lawyer poses as a john to build a legal case against a brothel trafficking girls into Bangkok. Can he win the trust of a young prostitute and convince her to risk her life for the sake of justice?
Praise:
– Winner of the SAW / Alberta Playwright Network Award in 2009
– She Has A Name [is] a heart-wrenching hit… 4 stars
Louis B. Hobson, The Calgary Sun
– an interesting and thought-provoking drama that works…. Kooman has created electrifying scenes [that] will make audience members hang onto every word.
The Red Deer Advocate
– From the moment She Has A Name began I was powerfully aware that I was being brought into the violent and evil reality of human trafficking. The play continues to accurately display the complexities of those who are victims of sexual exploitation in the sex trade as well as the challenges of those who are working to rescue these victims. Andrew Kooman has created a very realistic and brutally honest portrayal of the life of one young girl ensnared in human trafficking. She Has A Name will open your eyes to the reality of millions of victims in the world today who live in these brutal conditions, but more importantly it will hopefully open the hearts of those who attend to become engaged in seeing human trafficking end. This play brings the nameless victims of trafficking into our western world and makes them all too close and real to ever forget. You must see it!
Mark Wollenberg, Regional Representative, Western Canada
International Justice Mission Canada
– As a professional working in the field of counter human trafficking in Canada and abroad, I found She Has A Name chilling in its proximity to reality. By demonstrating the many challenges and complexities of providing effective assistance and support to a victim of trafficking, the play reminds all of us about the heinous nature of the crime and why we should all keep working hard to put a stop to it.
Lara Quarterman, Calgary Coordinator
Action Coalition on human Trafficking (ACT) Alberta
Rebekah Armstrong, Solicitor Te Nahu Lovell & Co Executive Director of Prescha.org
– She Has A Name is a story that haunts me. This play’s emotional journey will grip our audiences by the heart, offering them a meaningful encounter with the art of theatre. But it is their live experience of Jason and Number 18?s powerful story that will inspire and stir them to lasting action. I believe She Has a Name will be a force that moves many Canadians to become ‘new abolitionists.’
Stephen Waldschmidt, Director of the World Premiere
