Do you ever worry that your child is being bullied? Or maybe that your child is a bully themselves? As my son gets older and his peers become increasingly important I start to think about some of the issues and pressures he will soon be facing and wonder how to broach these topics.
Well, this weekend we had the perfect opportunity. My son and I went to see a play at the wonderful Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People in Toronto. The play was called The Shape of a Girl and was inspired by the tragic case of Reena Virk who, at 14 years-old, was brutally beaten and murdered by a group of her peers.
Here is the premise of the play:
Braidie wonders if the teen accused of a shocking act of violence is so
very different from her and her friends. This “monster in the shape of
a girl” propels Braidie to examine her own past and confront the truth
of her often-terrifying teenage world. Is she courageous enough to
intervene when her friends’ bullying of a classmate goes too far?
This
gripping and powerful play is inspired by a true story.
gripping and powerful play is inspired by a true story.
The character of Braidie is played by the very talented Georgina Beaty. The story consists of monologues and reflections by Braidie about the evolution of her friendships and the targeting of one girl over the course of many years. After hearing about the death of Reena Virk, Braidie begins to look closely at herself and her friends and question how different they are from the “Young Offenders” who were involved in the brutal crime against a girl her age.
As Braidie speaks we begin to see her internal dialogue and conflict. At one point she says, “The only way to avoid being the target is to stay silent.” Her fear of becoming an outcast herself is often overwhelming and makes her incapable of taking action and standing up to her friend.
In addition, we see the self-centredness of Braidie and her friends and their lack of empathy. Rarely does Braidie see what it must be like for Sophie, the target of the bullying, and she even goes as far as stating with confusion that she thinks she can understand and relate to why Reena Virk was targeted by the group for being different.
This play was incredibly powerful and I would highly recommend it. My son was a little young so he did have some questions on and off as the story was not told chronologically and consisted of just one character only referring to the others. However, he still got a lot out of it and it has spawned a lot of subsequent conversation about responsibility and empathy.
I feel that this play and its message is especially important for girls. As the story illustrates, the bullying by girls is often very subtle which makes it difficult to detect but also very difficult for anyone involved to draw attention to it. The fact that the play is from the perspective of a teen makes it that much more powerful and real.
If you have a tween or teen and The Shape of a Girl is in your town I highly recommend you take your child to see it or recommend it to your school as a class trip. It is definitely food for thought and fodder for important conversations.