How do we make art about trauma? The question is age old, and the answer, ever evolving, is often best expressed by the art itself — the paintings, movies, novels and performances that try to communicate how a traumatic event can change a person’s life.
It’s in this vein that Tough Guy, the new play running from October 28 to November 8 at Fringe Theatre Adventures, opens on the funeral of someone killed in a mass shooting at a queer nightclub. From there, it follows a group of friends, many of them also survivors of the shooting, as they try to process a collective trauma — together and alone — and grapple with irreversible loss.
Written by Hayley Moorhouse and directed by Brett Dahl, the play oscillates between past and present, juxtaposing the characters’ lives before and after the shooting, and creating a potent contrast when the most joyous moments of their lives collide with the most agonizing.
Dahl says that the play is about how we talk and make art about traumatic events. “Ultimately,” they say, “it’s a journey towards joy and community in the wake of tragedy.” We talked to the Edmonton director about creating art about the present and the role of art in times of tragedy.
Edify: How did you come to direct the play?
Dahl: When I was in my master’s program at University of Alberta, in 2023, I directed an actor in a production, Hayley Moorhouse. They happened to be in a local program called RISER, hosted by Common Ground Arts, which is a launching pad for emerging playwrights and producers. They already had the idea of a play dissecting what happens after a shooting in a queer nightclub, and asked me if I want to come aboard as director.
Edify: The show deals with contemporary subject matter.
Dahl: What’s fascinating to me — and important and terrifying — is that the play is more relevant today than it was when Hayley had the idea for it. In our first workshop two years ago, some of the trans rights issues — that are now our reality — were just being proposed.