The Captain

Joan Bernier’s solo show, The Captain, is inspired by the final voyages of Québec Sea Captain Joseph Elzéar Bernier (1852-1934). Captain Bernier claimed the Eastern Arctic Islands for Canada.

After a lifetime of promoting northern expansion, Captain Bernier is confronted with the dangerous effects of colonization on the deck of his ship, The Arctic.

This play explores lineage – what is passed down – and how to navigate when you have lost your North Star.

Proceeds from this production benefit the Arctic Food Center:
Qajuqturvik Community Food Center (QCFC) in Iqaluit, Nunavut.
https://www.qajuqturvik.ca

Joan Bernier is an actor/playwright from the San Francisco Bay Area. David Ford, The Marsh Theater in San Francisco, directs the piece and worked collaboratively on the script.
With Thanks to Tina D’Elia and Rebecca Fisher who contributed Greatly to physical staging and character embodiment.

Press for The Captain:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-fringe-festival-2021-1.6064419
https://www.westmountmag.ca/fringe-reviews-and-june-entertainment-deadlines/

Trigger Warning for The Captain:
The language used by some of the characters is taken from historical records of the early 20th century and may be offensive to viewers.

The play discusses the troubling history of Northern Expansionism and its painful impact on the Inuit communities of the Northern Arctic Islands.

Historical references of the violence colonizers perpetrated against Indigenous communities of North and South America is also referred to in the dialogue of the play.