A play by and for young people to overcome ecoanxiety

On the occasion of the youth week in British Columbia, the Theater Some Assembly presents its new play, Our last tree, May 2 and 3 at the Vancouver Roundhouse Arts and Leisure Center. A show co-written by professional artists and adolescents who deals with climate change.

Since February 2024, Valerie Methot has been working with a group of adolescents on climate emergency.

After many exchanges, the playwright, director and scenographer realized that ecological questions were no longer a priority for part of them.

Some of them told me about a trend among young people to find it cool not to worry about climate change. Others expressed their anxiety in the face of this disruption and felt a feeling of uselessness, as if there may not evenexplains the playwright.

For these young people, it was really difficult to worry about climate change while adults in power did not seem to care. These conversations made me understand that it was an extremely important subject.

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A piece to fight against ecoanxiety

Faced with this observation, Valerie Methot, scriptwriters, playwrights, poets and 10 adolescents sought to write a show that could interest young people more in the consequences of climate change without them feeling overwhelmed by anxiety.

This workshop was decisive and has really highlighted the importance of the message of this piece, namely the importance of connecting to yourself, others and the planet on which we liveunderlines the director.

This is how the group had the idea of ​​the play Our last treewhose history takes place in a world where young people share an urgent need to save the planet and save each other.

This play really talks about the importance of links and the construction of a community by showing that we have to take all our responsibilities and that we really connect to the community, because we are stronger as a community.

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Respect and benevolence

In total, around 140 young people and 25 professional artists participated in the development of this play.

To ensure that all the members of the group were fulfilled during the conception of the show, the playwright created a meeting in which each participant could speak of a subject that was close to him.

At the end of the meeting, we establish an agreement so that everyone feels safe, respected and can express their concerns without censoring them. Young people and artists feel more confident to commit and talk about this subject which is very disturbing for most of ustells the playwright.

25 years of theater per and for youth

Founded in 2000, the theater company Some Assembly The aim is to have adolescents and professional artists collaborate to create pieces that deal with important questions that you are confronted with.

Since its creation, 31 productions have been carried out on subjects linked to mental health, diversity or identity issues.

This commitment allowed the Company to receive the youth prize from the city of Vancouver for its exceptional contribution to young Vancouvérois.

If there is one thing that I learned by working with young people for 25 years, it is that when we offer young people a safe space where they feel respected and where they can express their creativity, they then become daring, strong and very inspiringtells Valerie Methot.

The room Our last tree is presented on May 2 and 3 at the Vancouver Roundhouse Arts and Leisure Center during the youth week in British Columbia, which takes place 1^is have May 7.