Taking centre stage

Erin Hurley

A fun and self-deprecating sense of humour disguises Erin Hurley's impressive academic pedigree, but it does not disguise her obvious love for the stage.

Owen Egan

Hurley's experience as a young actress extended into undergraduate theatre studies at McGill, a master's at Brown and a PhD at City University of New York. Her time in Manhattan allowed Hurely to absorb the queer and feminist oeuvres of the city's celebrated WOW Café, and to cultivate her own research on the interaction between nationalism and the literal and figurative apparatus of the theatre.

Hurley is inspired by her recent return to the province as a professor in the Theatre and Drama Program in the Department of English. "Quebec is a fruitful and rich area in which to interpret performance forms that ask us to think about, to imagine, national identity."

Playwright Michel Tremblay exemplifies the manner in which national sentiments can become fused with the stage, she says. In studying the relationship of stage and national identity, Hurley has also looked at the popularity of Céline Dion.

"Understanding Céline Dion is a manner of understanding Quebec that's not explicit, that can't be explained through direct referencing; rather, it's about how she makes people feel," explains Hurley.

Hurley's other research interests include post-colonialism, a pressing issue because "the sense of displacement it creates is becoming ever more common."

But displacement is a feeling that Hurley herself can hardly complain of these days. Though she enjoyed her most recent post at UBC, she is glad to return to Montreal, whose theatre scene enjoys "a deeper layer of professional tradition." The city also allows her to "live in French and English once again."

Hurley has had a busy first semester at McGill, teaching courses in Restoration theatre history and dramatic theory to undergraduate students. She has been impressed by the dedication of her students, many of whom are juggling demanding studies with burgeoning acting and playwriting efforts.

"They're bright, work hard and they're always there," says Hurley; "As well as all the work they put into their own plays, they've also taken up the academic stuff with enthusiasm." She strives to engage the students by bridging academics and theory in stagecraft.

So what has changed at McGill since the time when Hurley was an undergraduate on this campus?

"Well, there's so much more French on campus these days, both among faculty members and students. It feels like McGill is more connected to its surroundings linguistically," Hurley says.

Just as McGill has been evolving, there likewise have been changes for Hurley during the past few years. This time her arrival on campus has not been alone, but accompanied by Mark and Hugh, her husband and three-year-old son.

The twin demands of family and a career haven't diminished Hurley's energy in the slightest. On the contrary, the English Department's latest addition seems poised to bring down the house.

Jeff Roberts