The Cuckoo's Nest
Ismailova Theatre of Dance presents "The Cuckoo's Nest": the North America’s first contemporary ballet adaption of this classic story. While there have been numerous stage play adaptations, this will be the first time this story is told primarily through dance!
You may have seen the famous 1975 Movie "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" starring Jack Nicholson. This film won all 5 major Academy Awards as well as 6 Golden Globe Awards the year it came out. It became an important cultural touchstone in the years to follow.
This engaging story explores themes of freedom, fitting in, love and friendship, loyalty and honour, and the individual versus the system.
Running time: 70 min
Show rating: PG (parental guidance suggested)
Venue: Fairview Library Theatre,
The original music and signature choreography of Ismailova Theatre of Dance has moved audiences across Canada since 2010. The company has produced numerous sold out shows, earned rave reviews and received the Toronto Arts Foundation Award twice in 2015 and 2017. In 2019 the company produced North America’s first dance theatre rendition of Mikhail Bulgakov’s “Master and Margarita”. In 2020 they produced “Seeking Everyday Magicians”, Canada’s first fully live immersive digital production. In 2021 the company presented an immersive production of “Journey With The Wind” where audiences were invited into the woods to witness the dance performances unfold around them under the trees, across the meadows, and alongside the river.
Click here for Content Warnings and Terms and Conditions of the event.
Plot summary of The Cuckoo's Nest:
Content warning: this production delves into subject matter surrounding abuse of psychiatry and abstractly portrays instances of physical violence, self harm, suicide and death.
Tired of weeding peas at a penal farm, the tough, freewheeling McMurphy feigns insanity for a chance at the softer life of a mental institution. But he gets more than he’s bargained for, much more.
He is committed to the care of Big Nurse - a full-breasted, stiff-gaited tyrant who rules over her charges with chilling authority. Her ward is a citadel of discipline. Strong-arm orderlies stand ready to quell even the feeblest insurrection. Her patients long ago gave up the struggle to assert themselves. Cowed, docile, they have surrendered completely to her unbridled authority.
Now, into their ranks charges McMurphy. The gambling Irishman sees at once what Big Nurse’s game is. Appalled by the timidity of his fellow patients, he begins his one man campaign to render her powerless. First in fun, and then in dire earnestness, he sets out to create havoc on her well-run ward ... to make the gray halls ring with laughter, and anger, and life.
For our adaptation of the story of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey we chose to reimagine the context of some elements of the narrative, to better suit the perspective and experiences of our creative team and cast. Our intention is to make this powerful classic story relevant to entirely new segments of the population.
The setting of our version of this story is inspired by the Soviet era Central Asia rather than 1960s United States of America.
Our Artistic Director Merey Ismailova is a Kazakh woman, native to the region of Central Asia.
She drew parallels between the historical experiences of her family and community during Kazakhstan's colonial past, specifically its Soviet period, and the themes in Ken Kesey’s book surrounding oppression of Native Americans. Key topics she drew from to inspire our reimagining of Ken Kesey’s story include: forced collectivization and industrialization, use of mental asylums as a tool of repression, treatment of ethnic minorities in the USSR, and an ecological catastrophe of the Aral sea.
Aral Sea*:
The Aral Sea in Central Asia, formerly one of the largest inland seas in the world, has shrunk more than 90% of its size since 1960. The disaster was caused by Soviet large scale river diversion projects. The water was used for agriculture and industrial use, and once-mighty upstream rivers Syr Darya and Amu Darya became gradually reduced to desiccated beds downstream at the delta. This has many similarities to the water policies that had parallel harmful consequences in the American West, like Colorado river and several others, a theme that is touched upon in Kesey's novel.
As a result, some 40,000-60,000 Kazakh fishermen have lost their livelihoods. In addition, the area's inhabitants have suffered health problems — from throat cancers to anemia and kidney diseases — and infant mortality in the region has been among the highest in the world. To this day the pace of degradation and desertification of the ecosystems in the deltas of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya is increasing.
Political abuse of psychiatry in the Soviet Union:
Psychiatry was used to disable and remove from society political opponents (“dissidents") and any members of society that could not or would not fit with the Soviet ideology and propaganda narrative.
Finally, the original story focuses very much on the perspectives and issues of men. To add our own perspective, we chose to cast characters regardless of gender and shift some of the issues they deal with throughout the show to themes of motherhood and womanhood.
Terms and conditions of the event:
- Tickets are non-refundable unless the event is cancelled by the organizer
- Latecomers may not be admitted to the event
- Seating is general. All seats have a good view of the stage. Arrive early to get the best seats
- Content warning: this production delves into subject matter surrounding abuse of psychiatry and abstractly portrays instances of physical violence, self harm, suicide and death.
- YOUTH ticket holders will be asked to present an ID to be admitted to the event
- YOUTH ticket holders need to be 25 years of age or younger
- SENIOR ticket holders need to be 65 years of age or older and may be required to present an ID at the door
*Dr. Oral A. Ataniyazova, M.Sc. 3rd World Water Forum report at Kyoto, Japan
