Created and Performed by Waawaate Fobister
Agokwe explores unrequited love between teenage boys from neighboring reserves. Mike is a hockey player and Jake is a traditional dancer. The boys notice each other at the Kenora Shoppers Mall and ultimately connect through a mutual love of movement while Mike is skating and Jake is dancing like grass blowing in the wind. They meet briefly at a post hockey-tournament party where they bashfully confess their desire for each other. However- youth, distance and isolation strive to pull the threads apart when tragedy intervenes. AGOKWE speaks to bullying, homophobia, unrequited love, social isolation and the lost traditions of the Anishnaabe.
Agokwe was developed through the Buddies in Bad Times Theatre Young Creators' Unit and had its world-premiere at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre in September 2008. It has since won six Dora Mavor Moore Awards, including Outstanding New Play.
Reviews:
"Agokwe is a magnetic plea for tolerance and action - Georgia Straight
"Agokwe tells a powerful tale about gay love on the rez - Vancouver Observer
"Waawaate Fobister brings down the house... - NOW Magazine