There’s nothing like food and friendship to warm up a cold night. On this episode, host Tina Pittaway heads to Antigonish Nova Scotia to drop in on a potluck dinner organized by the cast of New in Town, a recently staged community theatre show. Equal parts comedy and variety show, it brought together about a dozen recent immigrants from countries including Iran, Afghanistan, China and the United States. They formed strong bonds over the months of writing and rehearsing the show. Cast members and organizers pull back the curtain to share the experiences, stories and ideas that inspired the show and how they are creating new lives here in Canada.
29 - 44
It’s hot - very hot. It depends on where you come from. The definition of hot changes.
TP:
There’s nothing like food and friendship to warm up a cold night.
The folks gathered here tonight in Antigonish Nova Scotia all got to know one another about a year ago.
They met when they came together to stage a variety show called New in Town.
And over the months of writing and rehearsals, bonds of friendship were forged.
NIT Singing (Anuj speaking)
448
We met every Wednesdayevening. And then suddenly we said, you know, let's meet for potluck.
TP:
Equal parts comedy and variety show, it brought together about a dozen recent immigrants from countries including Iran, Afghanistan, China and the United States.
Anuj:
We met every Wednesday evening and then suddenly we said let’s meet for potluck.
Singing
TP:
I’m Tina Pittaway.More from the New in Town cast and crew, coming up next on Countless Journeys, from the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.
MUSIC OUT
SFX people arriving
TP:
Jyotsna and Anuj Jain stand at the front door of their home in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, welcoming a steady stream of guests for a potluck.
These get-togethers happen about once a month or so.
And tonight there are about 20 folks gathered from Syria, China, the United States, Iran, Afghanistan and Antigonish.
SFX (taking coats, laughter)
TP:
The Jains are from India originally and moved here thirteen years ago when Anuj joined the Coady Institute at St. Francis Xavier University as a senior fellow.
They know first-hand the challenges of settling in a new country.
And it was Jyotsna’s work with newcomers that led to this group coming together last year.
It was a heavy time for lots of people still adjusting to changes in socializing habits brought around by the pandemic, including the students Jyotsna met with weekly for English classes at the local library.
Jyotsna wanted to find a way to lighten things up a little.
Jyotsna: :41 - :59
I work with newcomers. I teach them English.
And when they come to class, they have all these anecdotes that they tell me, which they have with people in the community. they have fun, and they talk to them, and they enjoy what they are talking about.
TP:
It was this lighter side that Jyotsna wanted to explore. In part to help dispel some of the preconceived ideas that local folks may have towards newcomers.
Jyotsna: 1:00 - 1:30
This is something that the community, the larger community of Antigonish should know about it. And they don't really know them.
They feel that these are refugees who have come here - they don't know anything. They don't know how to laugh. They are very sad and this and that.
But it is not like that. Yeah, they are in a new place. But they want to enjoy. They want to also forget. So that's the reason why I said okay, that fun part is what I wanted everyone to see.
153 - 200
and that's where I thought that why not have something where we bring newcomers together and have a cabaret, a humorous night.
TP:
She approached Arts Health Antigonish, a community group comprised of artists, healthcare workers and educators with a track record of fostering projects that promote community health.
Laura Teasdale :06
My name is Laura Teasdale, and I am one of the coordinators of New In Town Comedy Cabaret.
1:24 - 1:39
Jyotsna recognized that what people needed most - because she works with them every day - was laughter. She was the one who said, let's make this one all about comedy and about laughter therapy. And that's how it started.
TP:
Laura is an Antigonish born-and-raised playwright, actor & musician, with a background in something called laughter therapy.
LT: 4:25 - 5:20
The whole movement started because people were trying to figure out “how can we get these benefits of laughter” because we know what laughter does, we know about it reducing cortisol and reducing dementia and heart problems and I mean, it goes on and on, all the benefits.
So you start with just physically laughing, physically making the, the, the mechanics of laughter.
And quickly, because laughter is one of the most contagious things on earth, quickly it becomes real.
And you can get all of those physical health benefits and mental health benefits by these simple games that end up becoming true laughter.
Jyotsna 5:08 - 5:46
because they were my learners and most of them, I knew them very well, and they, They have a lot of, uh, when they come to class, they have a lot of trust in me.
So, whatever stories they tell me, uh, whether it is a sad story or a happy story or any kind of story, they knew that it would, it would remain with me, it would not be going out anywhere.
And that built their confidence in me. Knowing that I would not put them in a place or a situation where they will have to talk or have to do something like this. Right, andthat's key. And that's a key thing.
Ru Hai 1:03 - 1:07
My English name is Alex. My Chinese name is Ru Hai.
TP:
Ru Hai was working towards his Masters in Computer Science at St. FX when Jyotsna mentioned the idea of a variety show to him.
He was spending a lot of time on his own, and the opportunity to meet up with other folks, outside of the school environment was one he welcomed.
Ru Hai; 935 - 1045
So basically I lived on campus, in a single room. So, uh, other than going to the class, I would just stay in my room. So I didn't have much social, social life.
TP:
The group met with Laura and her co-producer Justin Gregg on Saturday afternoons for two-hour writing and rehearsal sessions.
Ru Hai 228 - 306
Because I never did show before, I thought maybe I couldn't do it. But, with Laura and Justin's help, they lead us to play some games for warm up.
And then we gradually, we just get to know each other and then we can just do better and better. At the beginning everyone was shy but after everyone was totally fine.
Laura Teasdale: 5:35 - 6:35
What we learned pretty quickly is, is that the pressures on newcomers are intense with financial pressures, finding a home, especially here because it's Antigonish and there's so many students.
But also we didn't realize how deeply they were connected to home and the worries of the brothers and the sisters and the nieces and the nephews was very intense.
And there's nothing that we could do to solve that. So, really, it became even more important, this precious time, this precious few hours a week of laughter, that you didn't feel like laughing maybe when you came in, but you were able to achieve that, and also to feel like you could talk about the issues, without feeling like you're putting it on anybody or weighing them down, because we're laughing together.
TP:
One of the stories that Ru Hai shared was his confusion in being asked “How are you?” when he first moved to Canada.
Born and raised in Beijing, Ru Hai wasn’t used to this question - and he thought strangers really wanted to know what was going on in his life. Here’s Ru Hai, talking about all of this in a radio version of New in Town they recorded last Fall.
NIT RADIO PLAY: 735 - 830
They always greet you no matter if they know you or not. I didn't get used to it at the beginning because in China people only greet someone they know. Besides, it would be impossible to say hello to that many people on the street.
It's like a tricky question for me to response when someone asks me “how are you doing?” or “how's it going?” At the beginning, I would think how I really feel that day and answer honestly. Then, I slowly find this is just a Canadian culture. Most of the time, people just expect you to say good or not bad. In China, especially in Beijing, we don't ask, “how are you?”
Instead, people like to ask,Which literally translate as, have you eaten?
I think this is more practical question.
FADE UP POTLUCK SINGING
TP:
Back at the potluck, Afshan Khaleghi is about to sing a traditional Iranian song.
Afshan is completing her PhD in Engineering.
She performed this song for New in Town along with another Iranian woman, Ati Omidi.
Ati and her husband Hamed moved to Antigonish in 2020 in order for Ati to have better opportunities, given the discrimination women face in Iran.
AFSHAN (describing song):2:51 - 3:12
It's about the bird of the early dawn.
It's just saying that you need to come out of the darkness and turn, turn the night to the early morning to the brightness.
And break the cage and come out and tell the song, like sing the song of the freedom.
SINGING
TP:
Stories about mix-ups with language are a pretty common theme in New in Town.
And for the radio play version, Ati and Hamed talk about one incident that Hamed had when he arrived early one morning at the chocolate factory, Peace By Chocolate.
NIT RADIO PLAY:
Hello, my name is Ati.
And my name is Hamed.
ATI
We are from Iran. We came here from Iran in February 2020. We left behind everything we knew, our money and a big loving family.
But Hamed supported me. He knew there was no way for a woman to get the credit I deserve or reach my potential in Iran. Hamed got a job right away at Peace by Chocolate and every single day he came home with a funny story.
Hamed
It is a very good factory. What very kind people. When I first went to work, I did not know English at all.
People would say, see you Monday. And I would say, see you Monday. What is Monday? Everybody always help me. They would give me a drive to work, and they would help me write my English.
One morning, when I went to work, I saw all the plastic bags everywhere. I asked my co worker, what's happening? He said, the deer like the chocolate and come sometimes at night to eat it.
I said, I love deer! I told him that I am very fond of deer. I saw them a lot in the city and they are very beautiful.
He told his friend, Hamed is crazy. He likes deer. One day I went to work and saw no one getting out of the car. And the big trash can was shaking. A big black bear jumped out. This was not a deer, it was a bear.
I got the two words mixed up.
ATI:
That was funny. You know, one day he came to me and said there was two women in the factory that had lunch together every day and their car had a license plate with both their names and a heart. He told me those two sisters really love each other. I said, no, honey, they're in love with each other.
We probably had gay friends in Iran, but it's illegal to be gay there, so they would have kept that secret. Hamid went to work, and I started classes. I remember one time I was invited to stay with a friend, and I gave her a very beautiful Persian rug for hanging on the wall. She thought it was a carpet.
And set it in front of the door. I didn't want to make her feel bad, so I didn't say anything. But then her husband was about to wipe his dirty feet on it, so I screamed, Come on! That's a handmade Persian rug! She was embarrassed, but now we can just laugh about it. It was all okay.
TP:
The play is set in a coffee shop, and it pretty much mimics the real rehearsals for variety show.
The coffee shop is closed to customers and serves as a practice space for newcomers to rehearse for a play.
Laura Teasdale and Justin Gregg play a couple who stumble into the rehearsal, thinking it’s for newcomers like themselves who just moved to Antigonish from another small town in Nova Scotia.
NIT 821: (LAURA)
Right in here. Look, Karen's Cafe. New in Town Meeting. No, we just have to... Is this the New and Town Meeting?
LAURA 7:40 - 9:16
There's also an old tradition in Antigonish of these two characters who are kind of these idiots. They're clowns, you know. And, and, uh, since I was a kid, this has been part of theatre that's created here.
These two old timers, these two weirdos, you know.
So it was really fun to get in that. And I knew that people would get it and would accept it, that we're making fun of ourselves. Also, I, we wanted the audience to see the newcomer's sense of humor. So to see, Oh, they're okay with the, with ignorance a little bit, you know?
And so that's why we went quite extreme.
Like we were trying to be innocently ignorant, you know, not, not deliberately racist or deliberately bigoted or anything like that.
It was just, Just very sheltered, and more than most people are. Of course most people in Antigonish are not that sheltered. But it did enable us to ask questions.
ANUJ: :32 - :50
So what we had was in the first three and a half months we just had a ball. Hey, I'm Anuj Jian and I am one of the actors in this play.
TINA: And how did you come to be involved?
ANUJ:
Actually, it's a funny story. My wife just told me you have to be there. (laughter)
210 - 255
So what we had was in the first three and a half months we just had a ball. I’m Anuj Jain, one of the actors. Uh, most of us were meeting for the first time.
Afshan and Ati, who are just amazing women.
Afghani man who just arrived in Antigonish, you know, uh, dodging bullets literally.
Uh, so we, we had, you know, we had just amazing time knowing life stories of these people and it is very unusual to became such deep friends. Uh, meeting for the first time and in three months time, we are some of the best of our friends.
We explored these, all these odd questions.
Uh, for example, um,“You speak very good English.” This phrase is told, you know, without realizing that somebody actually may have English language in the, in the country they're coming from.
So we explored all these aspects of, you know, what people go through, what they find odd. Uh, or my story was around shoveling snow.
620 - 8:00
so this is a story of, um, we arriving here in this new home.
And, um, our neighbor, um,our neighbor across the road, Gary Humphreys, uh, just taking us in under his wings, uh, arriving with fresh tomatoes to saying welcome to the neighborhood.
And that was the start of a very long, deep, uh, beautiful friendship we had with the family. So this was our first winter and he he said, why don't I take you to a trip to a Canadian Tire?
And I had no clue why he was taking me to the Canadian Tire, but I tagged along anyways.
So we went there, he took me to the boot section and then he took me to the shoveling section and that he took me to the, um, the jacket section. And I kept looking at it and said, you know, I have enough things and I don't know why he's taking me around.
Then he pointed me to the salt, uh, in the corner of the, as we are walking out and says, there's a salt bag. I said, Oh, okay. And we just walked out and I had no clue what he was trying to do. Um, you know, two months later, this was October, you know, two months later, of course, snow arrivedand then I realized, so I kept running to him for simple things of, you know, how do you shovel?
When do you shovel? How do you clear, uh, this heavy pile of snow, uh, at the end of your driveway, a constant battle you have with the, the truck. Uh, and so long story short, um,five, five months later, we are sitting down in May or June, uh, on the deck having a beer and I confessed, you know, how little I knew about Canadian winter, forget about, you know, how to manage it.
And he also laughed saying, you know, I was hoping you will make some purchases, but he was too polite to say anything to me.
SFX People saying goodbye, dishes clearing
TP:
As the evening winds down, plans are already being made for the next gathering.
With food and friendship on the menu, and also plenty of laughter.
(Out on laughter at the door)
f you'd like to hear more stories like this and help new listeners discover this podcast, make sure to rate Countless Journeys on your favourite podcast app or leave us a review. Countless Journeys comes to you from the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, located at the Halifax Seaport. I'm Tina Pitaway.
Bye for now.