The Arkansaw Bear

Director’s Statement

How do you come to terms with the loss of a loved one? How do you live your life to the fullest afterwards without leaving them behind? Hardest of all, how do you present this to a child in a way that is not as scary as it is? The Arkansaw Bear by Aurand Harris gives its own answers, but adds a fun song and dance to it. This play has a way of finding you at the right time, when you need to remember to have a little cry, and give your most to the living. I’m a big proponent of “theatre is for everyone”, and that’s exactly what The Arkansaw Bear is. It has deep themes and questions people have wondered about for centuries, but is so poetic and fun in a way that any age can digest. Talking bears aside, the story truly resembles real life. Death is scary and unknown, but we can’t run in fear our whole lives. We must learn to accept our own mortalities and find ways to leave a trace, so we may live on through others and others may live on through us.

- Olivia Maness