The National Arts Centre is featuring a Governor General’s Award-winning play about a character’s guilt after surviving the 1989 École Polytechnique shooting, also known as the Montreal Massacre.
The play, called The December Man, explores the impact of the tragedy on the lives of an ordinary fictional family.
Jean is a young man in the engineering department classroom on the day of the massacre. He is ordered to leave by the gunman, who then shoots all of the women in the room. The play follows Jean through the guilt of surviving what so many women did not.
The other two characters are Jean’s parents, Benoît and Kathleen, who watch their son live with self-loathing, rage and powerlessness after the traumatic event.
The play runs from Nov. 16-28, ending just eight days before the Dec. 6 anniversary of the École Polytechnique shooting. On that day in 1989, 14 female university students were killed when a misogynist shooter gunned down women he believed took his place in the “male” field of engineering.
“The December Man is an imagining of the impact of a hate crime,” says actress Kate Hennig, who plays Jean’s mother, Kathleen. “It puts the audience in a direct position of response to the crime and its societal effect. I hope it helps us all to see the extent of victimization in a crime such as this.”
She adds: “I also hope that people see that such hatred — any hatred — has a devastating impact, and that the losses and horrors of that day caused far-reaching and permanent change to Canada as society. I hope we can all have empathy for victims of trauma and their families, can recognize their struggles and give our support. I hope we continue to stand up for feminism, and for the rights and safety of women everywhere.”
Playwright Colleen Murphy says she wanted to explore the theme of how public violence affects private lives. Although The December Man is based on an event that happened more than 25 years ago, the theme is still very significant in today’s world. On Nov. 13, more than 120 people lost their lives when gunmen stormed restaurants and a concert hall in Paris, France, a hate-fuelled attack by Islamic extremists targeting innocent civilians.
“If you consider the events in Paris, you will understand what The December Man is about,” says Murphy. “In life we dream of being heroic and making the right decision, of being courageous in the face of terror, but the reality is that we react the way we must react. Human beings are very complex.”
Sarah Garton Stanley, director of the play, says that Murphy “tells the story of a moment that completely changed how Canada understood itself. As well, now more than ever, we need spaces where we can feel safe to feel big unbridled emotions together.”
In situations of violence against women, says Erin Leigh, executive director of the Ottawa Coalition to End Violence Against Women, anti-violence advocates are not asking men to be vigilantes. But there are many ways for men to support women.
“I think a lot of men believe in ending violence against women, but don’t know what to do about it,” she says. “It’s important to really look at a few things. What can you do in your day today life to be a male ally in the prevention of violence against women? As a father, you have an opportunity to raise your kids in a way that respects women. If you have daughters, how do you support them to achieve a sense of empowerment? I think peer-to- peer wise, men can stop glorifying different aspects of violence.”
Dec. 6 is now commemorated as Canada’s National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. The Women’s Events Network, a coalition of women’s organizations that includes OCTEVAW, holds a sombre vigil at Centretown’s Minto Park every year to commemorate the lives of women lost to male violence.