World War I has been a subject of interest for RH Thomson for some time. In 2002, he mounted the one-man show The Lost Boys, based on letters sent home by five great-uncles who had served on the front (four were killed in action). Back in January, he directed two of his former Avonlea co-stars — David Fox and Ian Clark — in Wild Mouth, which was set in Saskatchewan during 1917 and was about a woman who was coming to terms with the loss of her son in the war.
Now, he is involved with the project Vigil 1914-1918. Starting on November 4, at 5 pm local time, names of the 68,000 Canadians who died in WW1 will be projected onto various buildings in locations across Canada and on Canada House at Trafalgar Square in London. Names will be projected for thirteen hours a day, until the final name goes up at sunrise on Veterans/Rememberance Day (November 11). It is a joint effort between RH and lighting designer Martin Conboy, with the support of Veterans Affairs Canada.
Last year, they did something similar to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the battle at Vimy Ridge, projecting the names of the 3500 dead at the National War Memorial in Ottawa.
My grandfather’s name - Laurens Martinus Fleg –service # 796007 —
killed October 1, 1918