Reflection

Julia, Nadya and I did well in our final performance. I also believe that in the short(ish) amount of time we had, we worked hard and accomplished what we wanted to. The concept of our scene came across to the audience, but could have been further developed with more character work, scene work, and addressing unanswered questions.
At first, we wanted the mothers to be sisters. That would have been a really interesting connection to make between the two stories, and tie perfectly into the lost/missed connections we read about in Krik? Krak!. Unfortunately, we did not develop that plot line enough. We could have added more reflection on their childhood, and how different that was than their own children. There was also some miscommunication in that some of us thought we were sisters and others thought we were just friends. It did not show in the performance, but it did inhibit us from really developing our characters.  I personally still thought we were sisters.
My own character could have used more development, because I was not sure her thoughts on her child becoming more American. This is partially because the book never really expresses the mother's side of the story. It does seem like she does so much to support her daughter in America, and she is never seen outright getting upset with her for not conforming to Haitian culture. However, she is still doing work (that she probably doesn't need to do) while her daughter is rising up in the world. I decided to lean towards the side of support, but I know that my character did not have clear, strong feelings on either side of the debate.
In fact, I think the beliefs of both other women could have been further explored. Julia's character, the Night Woman, could have had a much stronger interruption and could have been clearly affected by the other women's ungratefulness. I don't think that is Julia's fault, because we should have written it better into the script. Nadya's character, the mother from Caroline's Wedding, was clearly against the "Americanization" of her children, but that could have escalated into an argument between the two mothers, instead of one (me) pushing aside disagreement to help her friend.
If we had a bigger performance space and the tools to really work on this scene, I would definitely have the Night Woman further away from the action, until the very end, when she interrupts. I also would have thought about my blocking a little more. I could have used body language to better show how I felt about my daughter becoming Americanized. I also could have reacted more, especially when the Night Woman interjected at the end. It just felt kind of awkward, which I am sure the audience could see. She also didn't interrupt right in the middl of a line, which made the inturrpution look like less of an interruption and more like a cue.
None of this means I didn't like my script, or that we did poorly. I really liked our idea of having Julia off to the side until she interrupted. I also liked our choice to include a connection to Lili, playing along with the theme that would have been present if they were sisters. Finally, I loved portraying the  connection between mother and daughter in Haiti vs. America, and how that changes, and why.

Top 5

1. Mom in my own: I really love the legend of the Wings of Fire.
2. Neighbor in Abby's: She is a character that hasn't been explored before.
3. Madonna in my own: The contrasting religion would be interesting to explore
4. Lili in Kathleen's: I like the idea of telling the story through time, and watching the relationship break down.
5. Mom in Abby's: The power vs. gender question here is really interesting.

Adaption

I want to adapt Nineteen Thirty Seven. The strength between the mother and daughter was really interesting in that story, but what really pulled me in was the mothers escape from the war with the Dominican Republic and the legend of the wings of fire. I want to adapt that to stage with two, maybe three actors. They would be the mother, daughter, and maybe the Madonna. The plot would be telling the story of the wings of fire. I would have to make it either really detailed or add the story of her arrest. I think the Madonna would be almost like a god or something, or some know all of everything?? Maybe a fortune teller?? And I really like Ms. Guarino's idea of using fabric and dance, but I personally cannot dance or choreograph so I don't know if it would work. I would have them both tell their own stories, and try to understand each other better. The daughter can tell of her confusion as a kid, and the mom of her escape. At the end, right when they come to a conclusion, the mom would be taken away. I need some walk on parts to play the police. I am really not sure how well this would work, and if they are talking to each other or the audience, so I will need some help from fellow actors on brainstorming and writing a script. It would be also really interesting to play with color, clothing, and lighting in this scene. Since what stuck with me in this scene was the legend of fire, I would want reds, oranges, and yellows. It would be really cool to have some white as well,  because they discuss the theme of angels often. I would like to see these colors in costumes, lighting, and makeup. (Especially with the madonna??)
For costumes, I don't want it to look modern at all. I want thick cloth and a dirty appearance. I am not sure how much we can do with lights, but I want it to be very dark, with lights mostly in the center. If possible, maybe use some orange slides to get a warmer light? (I know I have to be careful with colored slides because of how they impact color on stage)
In terms of dialogue, I really want to include the call and response game used to identify the women. I also really want the last lines of the story. Maybe I'd put those in the beginning.
I want to highlight the mystical and magical aspects of Nineteen Thirty Seven. Perhaps they could be combined with the magic in Night women and Between the Pool and the Gardenias. It's a really interesting side of Krik? Krak! to explore. My goals with this proposal is to have the mom, daughter, and the Madonna retell the legend of the wings of fire.
Clearly, I don't have one way this could end up. It truly depends on the actors interested.

Endgame background

• Originally written in French
• Translated into English by the author
• More authentic translation
• "humorous portrayal of death"= interesting dynamic
• After reading the script, it did not seem humorous, I am interested in seeing how that plays out on stage
• Beckett had a bleak background
• Also possible influence of Irish theater?
• "The Dead" had a very ominous theme despite being about a party
• also lacked a concrete theme
• Beckett's absurdist theater is not about symbolism 
• but can't it be interpreted that way?
• I think the show is full of unintentional symbolism, but we should not read too far into the lines
• ESPECIALLy because he translated it himself to insure nothing was lost in translation
• "People are afraid of Beckett" is very interesting
• he wrote shows for more than a crowd
• The cast is extremely talented
• Reg E Cathey won an Emmy for House of Cards
• Lynn Cohen was in Sex and the City and Hunger Games
• Brian Dennehey has won MULTIPLE Tony Awards

Krik? Krak! thoughts

“Krik? Krak!” is a storytelling/riddle solving game played in Haiti to pass time. The way I understand it is one person says “Krik!” and another says “Krak!,” and then the person who said “Krik” gives a riddle to the one who said “Krak” in response. We see this type of call and answer game throughout the short stories, for example in “Nineteen Thirty Seven,” when the daughter identifies the identity of another women through a series of questions with prescribed answers. This is also seen in “Caroline’s Wedding,” as the game Grace and Caroline are taught by their mother. The one true example of “Krik? Krak!” (besides the epilogue) is in the first story, Children of the Sea. They play the game while on the boat, and use it as an escape from reality. However, other call and response games played through the story bring the characters closer to reality, specifically the society of woman with flaming wings.

This dynamic of using storytelling to escape and understand reality is demonstrated in all of Edwidge Danticat's writing.Therefore, I believe that it says something deeper about Danticat herself, and her reason for writing. I am sure every author has heard “why do you write?” a thousand times, and sometimes the answer is scripted, and sometimes it is inspirational, and other times it is simply “because I can.” However, if you asked Edwidge Danticat that, I believe she would direct you to her stories. Her stories tell the tales of oppression, escape, and hope. While writing them, she is given an escape from the outside world, but perhaps more importantly, she is able to get in touch with herself.

Not many authors think of reading and sharing stories as a “call and response,” but I disagree. For a book to be a book, somebody has to read it. Somebody has to “respond.” There is more to stories than the words on the page, somebody has to give them meaning. Using Krik? Krak! As a title shows the reader that they are just as involved as the author is, an important sentiment that we don’t commonly see. I do think it is important to recognize that the readers determine the book, and it was an incredible idea of Edwidge Danticat to use her power and appeal to the people.

The epilogue was especially interesting. The significance of “Krik? Krak!” and storytelling clearly shine through. There is talk of 999 women who sacrificed everything to give the narrator a chance. She begs her mother to let her write and gets nowhere. She talks about the time they all spend to braid hair, and describes it as close to her heart and very sentimental. She then relates braids to stories. Each strand is a piece of a story, and individually they may not mean much, but together they look like a gorgeous braid. Danticat looks at those 999 women as strands in her braid. Storytelling means the world to Edwidge Danticat. Choosing to use a Haitian game/version of storytelling as her title shows us how Edwidge Danticat depends on storytelling.

Edwidge Danticat

Edwidge Danticat wrote about how literature can be both a window and a mirror. I love reading, and used to spend hours reading every day. (Unfortunately, I don't have that much free time anymore.) My collection of books is even in alphabetical order. Since I started reading so early, my school didn't have the resources to show me classics or renowned authors like Danticat's favorites, and instead read YA novels and fantasy stories. Those books became like a second world to me. One of my favorites is called "May Bird," and it's about a girl who travels to the underworld. I had nothing in common with her, but I found myself relating to the skinny only child who made friends with ghosts named "pumpkin head" and dreamed about being a superhero. This book also served as a window to another world, where saving the world was a viable option for a 12 year old girl.
I see the same theme in Krik? Krak! As a white teenager born and raised in America, I have no real connection to the characters. However, the themes of a generational divide and trying to break free from something, even if I am not nearly as oppressed as those in Haiti, are extremely relevant in my own life. In that sense, Krik? Krak! allows me to see myself in the characters, while still escaping to another world.

America vs Haiti

In both sides of the story, the Haitian and the American, there is a prominent generational gap between parents and children. This is especially prominent in the stories “Children of the Sea” and “New York Day Women.” These two stories have drastically different tones and settings, but both have a common theme of the divide between parents and children.

The female character in “Children of the Sea” describes the tense situation between her and her father. He is overprotective of her, and early in the story calls her a “man crazy-whore.” His anger was out of sincerity, but the character had lot of trouble coming to that realization. For a while, the two do not speak. They have trouble understanding each other’s motivations. Eventually, she comes to realize that her father has done everything for her. Slowly, she becomes thankful for his actions, harsh as they were, and understands that he always acted out of care for her. A very similar interaction occurs in “New York Day Women.” The daughter in the story sees her mother on the street, and begins to follow her. She was born in America, and blames her Haitian mother with giving her an unsupportive childhood. As the day progresses, the daughter discovers that while her mother was not taking care of her, she was making money taking care of another child. Again, the daughter learns to appreciate the sacrifices made for her by her parents.

This goes to show that the generational divide is not limited to one experience or situation. Children will always, to some extent, resent their parents, and later in life learn to appreciate them. This experience is not purely Haitian or American. By including this theme throughout all the stories, perhaps Edwidge Danticat wants her readers to look at their own lives with new perspectives, and appreciate what is sacrificed for them.

In the American stories, there is a lack of connection to the culture of Haiti. This is obviously not as present in the Haitian stories, and may speak to Danticat’s own connections. This disconnect is especially interesting in “Caroline’s Wedding.” Caroline was born on American soil, and therefore automatically and American citizen. Her sister, Grace, does not have this privilege. However Grace does not remember Haiti and does not feel like she belongs there either. Until she gets her passport, Grace is a woman without a country to belong to. She feels like she does not have a home. Caroline is completely disconnected from Haiti, and to some extend Grace is too. Both of the girls make fun of the bone soup, which the mother takes as a disconnect to their heritage. However, it is Caroline who jokes about dunking her head into the soup to prove its ineffectiveness to her mother, not Grace. Further, it is Caroline marrying a man her mother does not approve of. It is undeniable that there is more of a disconnect for Caroline then there is for Grace.

This disconnect is not nearly as present in “Nineteen Thirty-Seven.” While the main character, Josephine does feel disconnected from her mother, she still has a connection to the Madonna, and grows to get a strong connection with the voodoo traditions of the country. This is because she is right there, and has no escape from her culture. Josephine would never think to laugh at or doubt the powers of bone soup, because she was raised with the culture and experiences it every day. This theme of disconnection is extremely interesting, because Danticat herself was born in Haiti but left as an adolescent. She remembers enough of it to write like she lives in that society, but also has lived in America for long enough to understand the disconnect.

Krik? Krak! Notes (Night Women, NY Day Women, Between the Pool and the Gardenias)

Night Women

• Characters
• Mom
• 25
• Prostitute
• Symbolism of night
• Dreads the night
• Needs the night
• Stars
• "suitors" like looking at stars
• Stars in ghost women's hair
• Son
• Young? 
• Doesn't know his mom is a prostitute
• Father
• Out of the picture, left a long time ago
• Dead?
• Ghost of father
• Son sleeps in Sunday clothes?
• Mystical writing style
• Flows really well
• Sexual connections
• Blood spots on his forehead, as if a woman had been kissing him
• Pleasure in touching yourself
• Ghost women
• "woo strollers"
• Walkers?
• Babies?
• Story about women taking babies?
• Can make herself a goddess
• Multiple suitors
• Steady schedule
• Lies to son
• They are angels?
• Everything is a dream
• His father has been brought back from Heaven
• Pities the women with day jobs
• She has the days to herself with her son

NY Day Women

• Daughter
 
• Works in advertising office in NYC
• Follows her mother, because she is curious
• Mother
• Old fashioned, very polite to others
• "never shops outside of Brooklyn
• 59
• Likes dentures
• Dad is a taxi driver
• From Haiti
• Nanny? 
• Watches a woman's child while she goes out on a run
• Is very wary of Shame
• Why she doesn't tell her daughter
• Never made it to her daughter's parent-teacher conferences
• Doesn't respect her mother or think her advice is valid
• Learns to accept her, by seeing her work for somebody else and make money for the family

Between the Pool and the Gardenias

• Baby
• Left on the curb wrapped in a pink blanket
• "Visions of loveliness" 
• Is she alive?
• She doesn't cry
• "Her head fell like any other infant"
• I am very sure this baby is not alive
• Looked the same as she did for three days
• Had to bathe her to keep down the smell
• Narrator
• Women
• gone through miscarriages
• Buries the child
• Relates a lot of things to magic
• She loves the baby because she represents everything she has lost
• Gets close with her mother through prayer
• Lili (from balloon story)
• Killed herself
• Godmother of author
• Son left to go to Miami
• "That voodoo nonsense that's holding the Haitians back"
• Her employers are snotty and rich
• Man sees her burying girl, accuses her of witchcraft
• Weird recurring theme of dead babies
• Why
• This story is very surreal and i ended it very confused

Night Women writing

The style of writing in Night Women started out much more choppy, and unlike any of the other stories. It sounds, in the beginning, like she is writing everything she thinks. Her sentences are short in the first paragraph, but get longer as she writes about her son and the stories she tells him. These stories are magical, and she uses tales of "ghost women" to comfort him and herself. Her lullaby-like language flows as the reader falls into her story, short as it may be. This relates to the comfort aspect, because despite some of the horrible things she is going through, her writing feels very soft and almost ethereal.
I find it interesting that she tells these stories to her son, but her style sounds like she is telling them to herself. There is only ones instance of dialogue to her son, and it's when she says "darling." That one word shows how much she loves him and is willing to sacrifice for him - but it also shows how she needs him to pull her out of her own mindset. She uses the stories to fool him, yes, but also to boost her up. She needs to believe she is a goddess so she can get through another night.

Love through Tragedy in Krik? Krak!

The theme of “Love” is present in each story we have read so far, but I could write 1000 words on love in each story - so I chose to highlight love between partners, not family. This is most present in “Children of the Sea” and “A Wall of Fire Rising.” Both of these stories portray love between partners, impacted in by tragedy. The results are drastically different.

The love between the two narrators in “Children of the Sea” is strong. It keeps them writing to each other even when they know it won’t be read. The girl keeps sane through hearing his voice, and he remembers their dreams together. Their love is never lost, despite being so far away. Danticat’s choice to open Krik? Krak! with this story established the theme of “love” as a major aspect of this book. I really enjoy the way Danticat allows the two characters to interact without communicating. To me, it shows that love is more than just a feeling we have for another - it’s a genuine connection, that ties two people. These are just teenagers, barely 20 years old, and yet they have such strong feelings towards each other. I think it says something about the way tragedy influences our love for others. In some cases, like this one, it strengthens it.

However, tragedy harms the love between Lili and Guy. It’s interesting to picture this couple the same age as the characters from the first story. Were they as connected? I believe Guy once loved her more than anything, and Lili is still reluctant to give up on him. Guy’s self esteem is clearly harmed by tragedy and poverty, driving a wedge between him and Lili. When Guy speaks of the past, he speaks with regret. Lili, on the other hand, tries to reach out to him. Even when he dies in the end, she doesn’t let the man close his eyes - because she knows he loves the sky. This is not the reaction of a woman not in love. Lili desperately wishes that they could have grown closer together through their shared struggle.

Through these portrayals two stories, we can see two very different ways struggle and tragedy impacts love. In “Children of the Sea,” their love prevails over distance, and through tragedy. Perhaps this is in part due to their ages, and their resilience. “A Wall of Fire Rising” paints a very different couple. They are older, and tragedy drives them away from each other. Another interesting difference between the two couples is distance - in the first story, being apart makes their love stronger. This is a unique trait of partners, and shows the strong side of Haitians. I also believe that “strong side” is present in Lili. She can tell she is losing her husband, but stays with him until the very end. I believe the theme of “love” says a lot about Haiti, and Edwidge Danticat. She is unafraid to tell both sides of the story, and wants her readers to understand that the unrest in Haiti brings people together, but can also drive them apart.

Krik? Krak! Notes (1937 and A Wall of Fire Rising)

1937

• What is a Madonna?
• Google: The virgin Mary, typically a picture or statue
• Interesting religious theme at play with the voodo religion in Haiti
• Special connection to mother
• "Cries"
• Oil melting wax 
• "Spanish speaking country" = Dominican Republic
• Narrator born on night of massacre
• "respectable" wrinkles
• Mother is a prisoner
• buys her fried pork
• Americans built prison
• In very bad condition
• Poor treatment of prisoners
• Shaved heads, throw water on each other so they do not grow the flames
• "Manman" = mother?
• accused of having "wings of flame"
• Referring to blood on her body after escaping massacre
• "Prison guards watched her more closely because they thought that the wrinkles resulted fro
• om her taking off her skin at night and then putting it back on in a hurry, before sunrise. This is why Manman's sentence had been extended to life"
• Jailed for witchcraft?
• Daughter being lied to?
• Actually jailed for running from massacre?
• Accused of causing a child's death
• Daughter does not speak
• Finally asked if mother could fly
• Response: "All the women who came with us to the river, they could fly to the moon and back if that is what they wanted"
• Metaphor?
• Betrayal of community
• Thoughts: Mother was unfairly jailed (obviously) but this story is particuraly sad because if the mother was not there to care for the baby when it's own mother was too busy, what would have happened to the baby? All she was doing was helping
• Massacre River
• Boarder between Dominican and Haiti
• Mother spoke to the sun
• Daughter: Josephine
• Mother lost her mom in the massacre, escaped through the river
• Women who went through the same experience came to the river with them
• Jacqueline
• Women who went to river with them
• Brings Josephine to the prison
• Krik? Krak! Call and response
• "code"-ish, communication between Josephine and Jacqueline. 
• Mother's death
• Women in the cell held something that belonged to mother
• "They kept their arms close to their bodies, like angels hiding their wings"
• Josephine believes they are angels
• Watch them burn the body
• "Flying"= escaping

A Wall of Fire Rising

• Guy: Husband
• Wants to leave
• Something happened that day
• Working at sugar mill next week
• Long list to get in: wants to add son
• Wife refuses
• Feels like he is losing wife 
• Angular hairline = troubled life
• Obsessed with hot air balloon
• Wants to escape
• Gets in in the air
• Jumps out, suicide
• Lili: Wife
• Feels like she loses husband at sugar mill
• Gender roles
• Guy thinks he can control her
• Thinks he knows what is best
• Wants Little Guy to go far
• Little Guy: Son
• Seven years old
• In a play
• "Boukman"
• Huge influence in Haitian revolution
• Speeches are powerful and impact both parents
• Given more lines because he worked hard
• Poor family
• News at 8
• Nightly event
• State sponsored
• Most of the town attended
• Sugar mill
• Owned by "arabs"
• Haitians of Lebanese or Palestinian descent
• Assad family
• Son had a hot air balloon
• Don't close eyes "likes to look at the sky"

Edwidge Danticat Quotes

"Love is like the rain. It comes in a drizzle sometimes. Then it starts pouring, and if you're not careful it will drown you"

"It is the calm and silent waters that drown you"

Both of these quotes are unique. The first one is a different side of love - it's something I have never heard before. Usually when I hear quotes about love, they don't talk about the danger. This reminds me of every story we have read so far. In the first, the two characters only have each other to hold on to. Eventually though, the boy has to throw away his journal, and letters to the girl he loves, because if he holds onto it he will die. He doesn't let their love drown them (literally). In the second, the mother's love for her daughter and mother got her thrown into jail, and in the third, the man who killed himself did it because he didn't feel like he was loved by his wife. He said they were no longer intimate, and had different ideas for the future of their son. The second quote is interesting because Danticat has been through a lot in her life, but the big things aren't what hurts, it's the small things. In each story, there is the reminder that Haiti is going through war and people are being brutally murdered. However, that isn't what hurts the characters. They worry more over the loss of a loved one than the danger they're in themselves. One thing that stood out to me was the sharp rocks on the road that seemed to hurt somebody in every story. We can all handle the big things together, but when it comes to personal, small things, sometimes we fall.