''Strike!'' is a 2005

historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

stage musical depicting the Winnipeg General Strike. It has been adapted into a

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

radio production, a 17-minute short film, and the full-length feature film ''Stand!''.

Content

''Strike!'' focuses on Mike Sokolowski, a

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

immigrant from Galicia who was killed by

Royal North-West Mounted Police The North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) was a Canadian para-military police force, established in 1873, to maintain order in the new Canadian North-West Territories (NWT) following the 1870 transfer of Rupert’s Land and North-Western Territor ...

on " Bloody Saturday", 21 June 1919. The account of his life is heavily fictionalized, and is character is composited with another

Ukrainian-Canadian Ukrainian Canadians ( uk, Українські канадці, Україноканадці, translit=Ukrayins'ki kanadtsi, Ukrayinokanadtsi; french: Canadiens d'origine ukrainienne) are Canadian citizens of Ukrainian descent or Ukrainian-born pe ...

labourer. Sokolowski begins the play as an

anti-Semite Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

who loathes so-called Jewish Bolshevism, but learns better due in part to a romantic sub-plot involving his godson Stefan (originally Myron) and his Jewish neighbour Rebecca.

Performances and adaptations

After two private workshops in 2003, a public outdoor "preview" of ''Strike!'' was performed at Old Market Square in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

on 15 May 2004. In May 2005, the full play was premiered at

Rainbow Stage Rainbow Stage is a not-for-profit musical theatre company and outdoor theatre operator, located in Kildonan Park in north Winnipeg, Manitoba. The covered amphitheatre seats up to 2,600 people and operates from May to September. History As urban p ...

in Winnipeg's

Kildonan Park Kildonan Park is a park in the West Kildonan area of northern Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Established in 1909 as a park, it features the Peguis Pavilion, Rainbow Stage, the Witch's Hut, an Olympic-sized outdoor swimming pool, duck pond, and s ...

as an independent production. The next fall, a revamped version premiered at Saskatoon's

Persephone Theatre Persephone Theatre is a regional theatre company in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. The company was founded in 1974 by director Brian Richmond and sisters Janet Wright and Susan Wright and named after the Greek goddess Persephone. The first seaso ...

. On 15 May 2007, a special performance at Winnipeg's

Burton Cummings Theatre The Burton Cummings Theatre is a theatre located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Built by local impresario Corliss Powers Walker, it was originally known as the Walker Theatre. The building was renamed after singer-songwriter and Winnipeg native Bu ...

was recorded for national broadcast on

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

. The theatre was chosen in part because it had been used as a meeting-place for labour activists prior to the 1919 strike. The radio adaptation was broadcast on

Labour Day Labour Day ('' Labor Day'' in the United States) is an annual holiday to celebrate the achievements of workers. Labour Day has its origins in the labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for ...

, 3 September 2007. In May 2009, an outdoor, street spectacle version of the musical premiered in front of Winnipeg City Hall—the site of the original events that inspired the musical. Summer productions of the full-scale musical were held at the Canwest Centre for the Performing Arts in July/August 2009 and 2010. The Edmonton premiere of the musical occurred on 24 April 2013 in conjunction with Workshop West Theatre, at the Timms Centre for the Performing Arts.

Adaptations

A interactive script/CD book based on ''Strike!'' was released by

Playwrights Canada Press Playwrights Canada Press is a Canadian publishing house founded in 1984 by the Playwrights Guild of Canada. It was incorporated in 2000 as an independent company. Notable books *''The Adventures of a Black Girl in Search of God'', Djanet Sears ( ...

on 10 December 2007. ''Mike's Bloody Saturday'', a

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

about the events that inspired the musical (i.e., the controversy surrounding the death of Mike Sokolowski), premiered on 7 October 2011, and was written, produced, and directed by Danny Schur—the composer/producer/co-writer of ''Strike!''. A 17-minute film adaptation of ''Strike!'' was produced in 2007, and was meant to solicit interest in producing a feature film—which came to be with the 2019 film ''Stand!''.

Financing

''Strike!'' was primarily financed by a limited partnership of investors from across Canada, with a mix of arts grants and donations from Canadian labour unions.

Cast and crew

''Strike!'' was created by Danny Schur, who wrote the music and lyrics and co-wrote the text with

Rick Chafe Rick Chafe is a Canadian playwright from Winnipeg, Manitoba. He is most noted for his play ''The Secret Mask'', which was a shortlisted finalist for the Governor General's Award for English-language drama at the 2014 Governor General's Awards. His ...

References

Sources

''Vancouver Sun'': ''Strike!'' works for radio special
27 August 2007
The ''Ukrainian Weekly'' (Ottawa): Ukrainian Canadian's musical dramatizes Winnipeg General Strike
5 June 2005
Winnipeg Labour Council website: ''STRIKE'' New Musical Celebrates the Winnipeg Strike of 1919
12 May 2005

10 April 2005

External links

* ttp://strikemusical.com/strike/default.asp ''Strike!'' official website {{CBC Radio Dramas Winnipeg General Strike 2005 musicals Canadian radio dramas Culture of Winnipeg Ukrainian-Canadian culture in Manitoba Jews and Judaism in Winnipeg Plays set in Canada Plays based on actual events Plays set in the 1910s Canadian musicals Works about law in Canada