Who am I again?

When Pierre and I head to an event, I often give him the backstory in the car, the year it is, who we are portraying, what he's wearing for the weekend. Seriously, all this usually happens in the car on the way to the event.
I, on the other hand, have been thinking about it for weeks at this point. But I'm the one who's into researching interpretation. He is a soldier Monday to Friday and drives me to events and makes fire and coffee for the weekend. I respect that he has a lot of his plate with being a Canadian soldier, and he respects what I do to be keen on being told who he will be for the weekend and that I've packed his clothes and everything he'll need.

I am a dramaturg, a producer of our little aspect of the living history experience.

This year is slightly different for us. We are portraying characters we have never portrayed before, almost 25 years older, history-wise, but also French. Up until now, I have relied on my background as a British army follower/wife/Loyalist. I have been able to draw on tidbits of information learned while employed at the Halifax Citadel, doing living history surrounding the Revolutionary War, and my own family background. We played at Fortress Louisbourg from time to time, but as set dressing, background characters that don't really need to be face-first with the visitor.

Back in November (2018), Hands On History presented a conference on Living History entitled the 'ReConference'. It was geared to living historians and all about interpretation. It was a fabulous experience to watch the live stream and geek out about living history interpretation. The main take-away from the weekend for me was how the visitor engages with the living historian. Our beloved Jane Malcolm-Davis spoke about the sweet spot of interpretation for the visitor is a mixture of first and third. Being able to interact with the living historian as they would have been 'in the period' but also able to ask questions that only a modern, third person interpreter could answer. I have been thinking about how I can incorporate this blending of interpretation styles into my own work all winter.
Creating a character has been easy for me, visually. I look at the era we are re-creating, and then pick the clothes to suit. Most of my career has been costume design and production. The visual is my language. Recently, Jas. Townsend company began a youtube series on how to get involved with living history start here with this link. They explain really well that there are several layers to creating a character to use, a persona. The visual is just one aspect of it. Many reenactors only get this far in their character development, and that is OK. There's always a need for set decoration, background 'extras', and the chorus members. My work with Fort Ticonderoga has pulled me out of the 'set decoration', and into the 'face-first' interpretation, so I need to have a back story, I need to move between first and third person interpretation. people will ask who I am and why I am there.

So, who am I again? In a French fort connotation, mid century, Seven Years war period? The year is 1757. Pierre is relatively simple, he's an older French soldier who does mostly fatigue duties now. He can pull out his heavy French accent, sprinkle his French-Canadian patois throughout his language and be in character. But I am English speaking, I know a bit of French, and a bit of Gaelic. I needed to hit the research books.

Here is my back story...

In 1757, I am about 47/8 years old. I was born in Aberdeen Scotland in 1710 to a shipping family. A friend of my father's hired me on as a young woman to go to the New World and become a cook for his growing family. His name was Rodrigue, we would be going to Louisbourg on Ile Royale. I was happy there, but clashes with the British made life difficult in the mid-century, and in 1745, the British captured the fortress and expelled its citizens. Monsieur Rodrigue decided to return to Europe, since he had land and holdings in France. I decided to stay behind in North America, having fallen in love with a French soldier. We would move on to Montreal, to garrison there. Little did we realize we would find ourselves even further out on the frontier, at Fort Carillion in 1757. Now, I cook for officers there. It is cold, and I miss the ocean. Now that Lent has begun, spring may be here soon enough. I can at least hope for warmer weather. 

The Rodrigue family are originally Portuguese. Senior Rodrigue was a shipping pilot in Port Royal, Bahamas, but also Placentia Newfoundland. The younger generation have storehouses in Louisbourg, eldest son Michel also has a house. Michel's younger brothers Pierre and Antoine are the active sailors. The brothers supplied the French colonies through their Louisbourg storehouses, with other ships coming in from Quebec to trade everything from fashion items to foodstuffs. When Michel returned to France in 1745, the brothers all still plied their trade, and Pierre and Antoine returned to the fortress when things quieted down again. Their house and storehouses are among the reconstructed buildings at the fortress, and one of my favourite spots at Louisbourg. I could live in that house.

And with that, our 'costumes' are now finished and had final fittings. And I am about to begin my pre-cook for the weekend's event. Our first event of the season, and I am excited to try some new things, both in interpretation, but also in character development.

In related news, I am in the final editing stages of my thesis proposal. It goes to review on Tuesday, and I defend the first week in April. This PhD is feeling like it might actually happen, that all these thinky-thoughts have purpose. ONWARDS! Sa'Coche!

Rodrigue House, Fortress Louisbourg, photo by Douglas Sprott