If We Were Birds

by Erin Shields

Erin Shields' award-winning play is a shocking, uncompromising examination of the horrors of war, giving voice to a woman long ago forced into silence, and placing a spotlight on millions of female victims who have been silenced through violence, delivered through the lens of Greek tragedy.

Genres: Plays, Canada, Tragedy

112 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2011

Reviews

[max theodore · Rating 4 out of 5]

IIIIIII AM GOOOOOOOING CRAZYYYYYYYYYYYYYY. this is a retelling of the procne and philomela story, by the woman who wrote MILF Satan Paradise Lost, with a narrating chorus of women harmed by wartime sexual violence from various real-life historical conflicts. i honestly don't even know how to talk about how good this is. the way the themes all cohere. the constant imagery of blood and chewing and eating and flight. the incestuous undertones that emphasize the violence of the family unit before that violence visibly erupts outward. the fact that philomela is SO YOUNG. the first scene between the sisters and their lighthearted banter and earnest curiosity about sex versus the rest of the play. the monologues. the first lines. the last lines. i'm on my hands and knees coughing and retching

PROCNE
I think marriage is like death: we consume ourselves in imagining what's on the other side and then all at once we're there.

[Emily Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read If We Were Birds by Erin Shields in my dramaturgy class a couple years ago, and just recently saw my graduate school’s production this spring 2019 semester. I believe there are many plays that need to be performed today, because they are relevant to this generation and stress a message that needs to be told to the public; If We Were Birds is one of them. The disturbing themes of war violence and sexual assault present in the play sadly mirrors many of today’s current events: The #MeToo Movement, the increasing cases of sex abuse in the United States, and new understanding of war violence and its tragic outcomes. If We Were Birds is an excellent play to assist victims to speak up against violence and beg for change and justice to protect others from sexual assault.

A contemporary retelling of the Metamorphoses myth of sisters Philomela and Procne, If We Were Birds is unique in bringing a classic Greek tale and putting it in a modern-day scenario. The script is both beautifully and disturbingly detailed throughout the play: Procne and Philomela’s sisterhood, Philomela’s childlike naivety, Procne and Tereus’ rushed and intimate marriage, Tereus’ eventual lust for Philomela, Philomela’s distress and strength after the rape, Procne’s anger and revenge against her husband. When performed, If We Were Birds can be a breathtaking theatre experience. Similar to reading the script, the reader could even feel the chest-crushing tension and the close sisterly bond the female leads have throughout the play. Shields’ writing is very raw and fearless in presenting both the good and worst that take place in the play. She is also really clever to include twentieth-century stories of women who were victims of war and sexual violence, making the play more real and closer to home than one might expect in a script.

This is a play that might be best to see performed than just reading on one’s own unless one is patient in reading scripts and can bear the explicit scenes that take place. While getting the chance see If We Were Birds on stage was an incredible and intense experience, I am however glad that I saw the performance. This particular production was clever in not involving much gore as one might expect from the Greek myths (which is really not needed when you read the text), but lets Shields’ writing flow on its own along with the acting and costuming to present the disturbing scenes that take place on stage. Some scenes were difficult to watch, but it made the messages in If We Were Birds very strong and relevant. One thing I have learned throughout my career is that theatre sometimes has to display hard truths about humanity and violence which need to be acknowledge in order to improve ourselves and understand the world around us. This play is successful in doing just that, while also including some dark humor and precious moments (primarily with the sisters) so it is not all doom throughout the production. If anyone is interested or curious in seeing If We Were Birds performed on stage, I would highly recommend it, but let them know about the themes the play presents during the performance. I am really happy that I got the chance to see my school perform Shields’ adaptation of the Philomela and Procne tale, and I would tell others to consider seeing and reading this play in the near future.

[Phillip · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second adaptation of the Philomena and Procne story I've read--the first being Timberlake Wertenbaker's--and I found this one much easier to follow and more engaging. I think Werternbaker tries to do a lot of interesting things, but they may be things that require staging and don't work as well on the page. Shields, however, has written a play that works equally well on the page or (I imagine, I haven't seen it performed) on the stage.

One thing that Shields did that I think is remarkably effective is threaded this play with the language and descriptions of actual survivors of military sexual violence, from places like Nanjing, Bosnia, or Rwanda. The fact that these descriptions of sexual violence as a tool deployed against a civilian population are derived from real testimonies increases the horror of the play, which brings to light just how little progress human beings have made toward becoming "humane" in the past several millenia.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I wish I had seen this performed instead of just reading it, but wow. This is powerful. So important. I had a conversation recently with a man who did not understand the violence inherent in the terms men use to describe women (or to mock other men). I could not properly convey to him why a negative reaction to such language isn't an issue of sensitivity or political correctness, but rather literal practical survival skills. That women have good reason to be wary or fearful. He isn't going to read this, but I will be researching these conflicts and hopefully be better armed for the next conversation with someone who thinks "everything is fine for women now."

Get angry!

[Sarah Pitman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written, beauteous, though the heightened language and classic-tragic style felt like it put a bit of a wall between myself and the characters. There's not a lot surprising or new in this if you know the original story, though the chorus adds something I suppose. Incredibly rough, be forewarned.

[Anja · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was very interesting to read a story about women who have been raped in the form of a play. It's shocking and brutal but also well written.

[Lorenzo Sivilotti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Devastating, in affect and effectiveness alike.
10/10

[Madeline Rossell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really well written, but incredibly uncomfortable to read. Be sure to check trigger warnings and read the synopsis. Subject matter is heavy

[Luka Hodgson · Rating 5 out of 5]

please read

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jan 22, 2023: Re-read of this: still as brutal and stunning as ever. Sickening and honest. One of the few plays I’ve read that drives me to want to direct it if only to try.