Kooman gets solitary with We Are the Body
Stephen Hunt, Calgary Herald
Red Deer playwright Andrew Kooman inherited something pretty special from his grandfather, a Presbyterian minister.
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Red Deer playwright Andrew Kooman inherited something pretty special from his grandfather, a Presbyterian minister.

“I inherited all his sermons,” Kooman says, “(written) over about a 50 year stint as a minister.

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“I think,” he says, “that’s where my connection to words really comes from.”

That connection to words has produced a new drama, We Are the Body, which launched a Calgary run at the Pumphouse Theatre Wednesday night, following its world première in Red Deer.

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The drama tells the story of a trio of prisoners trapped in solitary confinement in Romania who are being persecuted because of their Christian faith.

As a way of coping with the agonies of solitary, one of the prisoners begins tapping out sermons in Morse code, helping provide spiritual sustenance to the other prisoners.

The drama was inspired by the writing of Richard Wurmbrand, whom Kooman stumbled across researching a different play inspired by the Second World War occupation of Holland by the Nazis.

“(Wurmbrand) was a Romanian Christian,” Kooman says, “and he was imprisoned for about 13 years by the Soviets.

“I was just amazed at his story,” he adds, “just the period following World War II, where Romania had fought alongside Germany, and sent more than a million to war — and then near the end of the war, they turned and joined the Allied side.

“That whole notion,” he says, “of an entire nation changing allegiance after such an intense commitment at the national level, at such a cost of human life, and sort of becoming apostate to the very allegiance they were fighting for really intrigued me.”

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The drama reunites Kooman with Burnt Thicket Theatre, which produced She Has a Name, a 2013 Calgary Fringe Festival hit which also enjoyed a successful national tour.

He’s also working again with director Stephen Waldschmidt, who directed She Has a Name.

“Steve Waldschmidt is incredible,” Kooman says. “I really trust his sensibilities, and then the actors are just fantastic, so I have a lot of confidence in the show.”

At a time when the planet is boiling over with religious conflict, We Are the Body dramatizes the redemptive power of faith in a way Kooman believes is universal.

“Many people went into prison (for their belief),” he says. “Many died, but many people came out of it alive and with their faith intact.

“I think there are really universal themes (in the play),” he says, “whether you’re a person of faith, or (not) — to me, what I like to explore (in my writing) is that human story.

“You hear headlines from around the world,” he adds, “especially in places like Libya, Syria, (or) Sudan, with people pushed to the brink to stand up for their faiths — so it’s really a relevant story.”

And while he never really considered following in the footsteps of his grandfather to become a minister, Kooman feels as if he’s following in his footsteps — and other faith-based writers, such as Wurmbrand — in his own uniquely theatrical way.

“These great writers of faith,” he says, “who write words down definitely inspired me in my career.

“It’s a pretty neat thing to think about,” he says, “adding to that body of work.”

Burnt Thicket Theatre presents We Are the Body

at the Pumphouse Theatre through May 23

burntthicket.com

shunt@calgaryherald.com

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