‘Raw and beautiful’: An endangered necessity brought back to life

Aqua. Wasser. Eau. Naam Plao.

Wherever you may be, there is a word for water. It is essential to life.

Despite this basic need, there are so many people who do not have access to clean water.

This is the message Welland Centennial was able to convey with its original production, “We are the Water.”

Through movement and music, Centennial tells the story of a lake full of clean and pure water that gets taken over by an evil corporation and becomes corrupted, infecting the once peaceful lake with pollution before being saved by rain, summoned by the audience.

Using exclusively physical theatre with no dialogue, the actors were able to distinguish themselves through costumes and movement. By doing so, the actors were able to portray deep emotions and convey to the audience what they were feeling.

One standout performance was by the Water Mother, played by Sasha Protsenko. She did an extraordinary job guiding the movement of the Water Ensemble with her flowing actions and graceful aura.

As the leader of the evil corporation that was polluting the water, Creed Sloan’s commanding presence and defined, solid movement led to a powerful performance.

The Evil Corporation itself as an ensemble was great, using the various set pieces as machine parts and big, robotic movements to contrast the fluidity of the water.

Not only was the acting and the message incredible, the tech aspect of it was astounding as well.

Patrick Balint, Mason Chantler and Marina Grmusa created fantastic lightscapes that not only matched the feel of each scene, but also faced the task of using none of their theatre lights and only portable lighting so they could easily bring the show wherever they pleased.

The versatile set pieces, made by the set construction club, were used in many different ways throughout the performance.

The music, composed and performed live by Zachary Johnston and Kalan Bridgeman, fit each scene perfectly, setting the mood and pace of the movement.

The logo, created by Creed Sloan, effectively employed an array of symbolism featuring water droplets and reaching hands, with each part of the artwork emphasizing a different part of the play’s theme.

Overall, this production was the purest form of activism, a raw and beautiful performance advocating for the right to clean water for everyone.

As shown by Welland Centennial with “We are the Water,” clean and safe drinking water should never be taken for granted, and together, we can make a change.