Xara Choral Theatre Ensemble is calling for stories of women involved in relief efforts after the Halifax Explosion.
The Hours Turn to Nothing, Xara’s collaboration with author Ami McKay, premiered in Halifax in April. Despite the evidence that women were needed and present following the explosion, they’ve largely been excluded from the narrative.
“A number of first-hand accounts exist from medical personnel; however, stories of women and children are frequently left out of the historical record,” says a press release from Xara.
The ensemble “wants to help correct the oversights of history” and The Hours Turn to Nothing is an effort to pay tribute to those women. It spotlights their stories—specifically, those of the midwives and nurses who travelled to Halifax in the aftermath of disaster—through an interdisciplinary choral performance. The show is touring across the Maritimes over the summer.
The ensemble is now asking anyone with a family story about a woman aiding in the explosion relief efforts to contact Stephanie Kincade.