Ruined

In deciding on an idea for a mock production of Ruined, it wasn't easy to come up with a vision right away. Lynn Nottage created such a powerful kaleidoscope of emotions and symbolism, reading her play was imagining poetry in motion. I certainly wasn't sure that I would be able to accurately capture those same emotions and symbolism myself. I wanted to find a place that would parallel the land of The Democratic Republic of Congo, where Ruined was set, and also serve as a symbol of the oppression and confinement that Sophie, Salima, Josephine, and even Mama Nadi, endure daily. I thought that a prison would be a great symbol of this oppression and confinement, but I wasn't sure I would be able to draw any parallels to the land. Therefore, I was delighted when I researched Folsom Prison and discovered the rich history that surrounded it, and its similarities to The Democratic Republic of Congo.

In Ruined, the land around Mama Nadi's bar is rich with minerals, especially diamonds. This has made the land viciously contested property. In fact, The Democratic Republic of Congo relies on this mineral wealth as the main staple of their economy. Likewise, the location for Folsom Prison was chosen not only for its availability of land, but because of the close proximity to an abundance of good quality minerals, granite in particular, that could be excavated. (Interestingly, Folsom, California, has a "rich" history of being a major part of the California Goldrush in 1848.)

For The Congo, hydro energy is currently an exciting possibility because the land is bordered on the East by mountains and virtually all of the country is part of the vast Congo River. For Folsom, the prison is also bordered by fresh water from Folsom Lake and the now defunct Folsom Powerhouse used hydro energy for electricity.

While the similarities of the land in Folsom and The Congo are numerous, I was also drawn to the prison itself serving as a symbol of the personal prison that Josephine, Salima, Sophie and Mama Nadi are in each day. For Mama Nadi, she is torn between exploiting and protecting the girls working for her. In a way, she is like their warden- caring for them but also businesslike when necessary. For example, if business is good, everyone eats, but if business is slow, then Mama Nadi makes sure that she eats and is taken care of first. Also, when we learn towards the end of Lynn Nottage's play that Mama Nadi is ruined, we understand more of the personal prison that she is in than we knew at the beginning of the play.

For Josephine, Salima, and Sophie, their bodies are their prison. Their bodies have already been used as weapons of the war by the rebels and soldiers who use rape as a way of destroying families and communities. By all of them now being together at Mama Nadi's bar / brothel, they have essentially gone from one prison to another.

To help give a sense of optimism where there doesn't seem to be any, I wanted to use bright colors in the scenic design. In addition, I thought that by keeping the bar neat and tidy, it would show that the bar is like the sanctuary that Mama Nadi sees it as. I can envision the bar being simplistic with only a couple of tables and chairs on the set. I would also have an old but working pool table where the rebels would play when they were at the bar and the soldiers would play when they were at the bar. This would be an interesting way to show that the two sides fighting against one another are actually quite similar. They both like women, drinking, and playing pool to help them relax and have a good time.

For the bedroom of Sophie, Salima, and Josephine, I would use a prison cell to re-enforce the symbolic prison that these women are in. The walls would be cement, to lend a cold feeling to the room, and the girls would sleep on bunk beds. Their beds would be old but the linens would be a bright, cheerful color to contrast the old bed. In addition, there would be fashion magazines, makeup, and toiletries strewn around the room as well as posters on the wall of local celebrities. All of these things would impart a sense of hopefulness that the girls have of one day being able to return to a normal society.

While I am not sure that anyone, professional or novice, could accurately recapture the complex and compelling story and emotions of Lynn Nottage's work, it was an interesting assignment for me to attempt. I enjoyed working with my classmates again and I felt that we each brought our own unique perspective to our production of Ruined but still held onto a unifying vision of confinement and hope for the women in the story.

Sesame Street Live: When Elmo Grows Up

Recently I decided to take my two children, Georgie, 4, and Marina, 1 1/2, to see Sesame Street Live: When Elmo Grows Up at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach. As avid Sesame Street fans, I was excited about the opportunity for my kids to see their favorite characters, life size and on stage. Knowing from experience to not announce what we are going to do until we are ready to go do it, I surprised the kids after breakfast. As we were cleaning up I said "Surprise- we're going to see Elmo!" My son screamed and my daughter just smiled and said "Mo?" The excitement and anticipation on their faces was palpable, and it didn't stop as we drove to the Ocean Center. During the twenty minute drive my son must have asked me a dozen times "Are we there yet?" As we pulled into the parking lot there was no mistaking what everyone was there to see. The parking lot was a sea of little kids, all dressed in their Elmo best. As I parked and we got out of the car, I realized that I was pretty excited too. After all, I had also grown up watching Sesame Street and it felt good, even nostalgic, to share this with my kids.

Once inside the theatre, we found our seats, but nobody wanted to sit. "Sunny Days," the theme song for Sesame Street, was playing and Georgie and Marina decided to dance in the aisles with some of the other kids in the audience. Finally, the lights dimmed and the kids all knew that was their cue to take their seats because the show was about to begin. I couldn't help laughing to myself, thinking about how fast the convention of taking our seats and being quiet when the lights dim are known to us.

This production of Sesame Street Live consisted of two acts. The first Act opened with Big Bird helping Prairie Dawn with a pageant about what you want to be when you grow up. Soon, all of the characters were on stage, dancing and singing about what they wanted to be when they grew up. A firefighter, forest ranger, and police man were just some of the ideas thrown out during the song. In fact, everyone but Elmo had an idea about what they wanted to be. Poor Elmo, even when he's confused he is adorable, and the children in the audience clapped and cheered louder for him on stage than anyone else. Looking around, I could see the adults smiling and enjoying the show as well. In Act I, we see Telly the Monster wanting to be a Cowboy, Grover wants to be a Police Officer, Bert & Ernie are going to be Forest Rangers, Abby Cadabby is a fairy in training, (she received alot of cheering, like Elmo) and Cookie Monster plans on being a fire fighter. At the end of the first act, kids were getting up from their seats and you could just see and feel the pure joy that was on their faces.

Act II opened in Elmo's World, where Elmo was still confused about what he wanted to be when he grew up. He thought that all of the ideas that the other muppets had sounded like alot of fun. Next is Baby Bear, who wants to be a train engineer. When he can't get his train to go toot-toot, Big Bird asks the audience to say toot-toot for Baby Bear. To my delight, Marina was participating, saying toot-toot, and clapping. Of course, Oscar the Grouch had to be there, and he just loves trash, so he and Elmo sing a song about loving trash. Elmo even wants to work with Oscar and trash! Finally, Elmo realizes that by being in the pageant with his friends, he can pretend to be everything that he wants to be, and once again, all of the characters are on stage, singing and dancing. As the muppets sang their last song, alot of them came down into the audience and were high fiving and hugging some of the kids. Telly the Monster actually scared Marina, who was dancing in the aisle- he almost ran her over! Overall, the show was very entertaining- it held my kid's and the others attention throughout the show, which was probably a good hour and a half. That's alot for this age group!

Reading the program, I realized what a full scale production this was. There is a Director, Choreographer, Music and Lighting Director's, and Art Director's. I also thought that it was interesting that alot of the characters voices were by one actor. For example, Frank Oz voiced Bert, Cookie Monster, and Grover. In addition, Caroll Spinney was the voice for Oscar and Big Bird. The entire show was high energy, lots of music and dancing, and a wonderful bonding experience for me with Georgie and Marina.