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Writing for Us
A CurtainUp New Jersey Review
Summer in Sanctuary
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The playroom has the distinct odor of feet, with a dash of
sweat for good measure, and the bathrooms smell like, well
like public bathrooms. You get the picture. And then
there’s the homework room where I teach a class on creative
writing-and this room has it’s own scent. And no matter how
many times I’m here, I can never remember what it reminds me
of. — Al
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Al Letson
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Letson was decidedly the outsider when, in 2006, he accepted an offer to teach creative writing at a community center in the economically challenged Jacksonville Florida neighborhood of Springfield. Just as the children, mostly young adults, were challenged to survive in an almost constantly life-threatening black ghetto, Letson was challenged to implant a love of words in his charges.
As the son of a Baptist minister, Letson was determined to bridge the educational, social and economic divide that separated him from the unreceptive students. Discouraged but not a quitter. He gives us a dramatic blow-by-blow account of a tumultuous summer in which his efforts are thwarted at every turn. A breakthrough occured during an unexpected encounter with the police while on a road trip with his supervisor and a group of students on Route 95 North. Not being a plot spoiler, I won’t divulge what it is that Letson unexpectedly discovers and what it is that sparks in the students' a collective enthusiasm.
With Letson’s talents, more recently turned towards playwriting and as host of the National Public Radio show State of the Re:Union, he seems to have found a very effective frame for his very individualized performance style, under the direction of Rob Urbinati. The rarely used single stage prop is a desk (a la Gray). He’s a stand-up guy who lets his mouth, as well as his hands and feet, drive his concise prose, lyrical digressions, and the many vivid impressions that define his compelling presentation.
What it is about this good-deed-doer (pardon this cliché) who slowly, despite all odds, becomes committed to finding some way to activate the creative urge in his charges who otherwise openly mock, defy, and resent him for his role as a mentor? It doesn’t take long to see what it is. While Letson losses little time convincing us that he is a darn good story-teller, focusing on the confrontations he has with the most belligerent students, particularly with one sassy young woman (“What attitude? I have no attitude!”).
Often quite funny as he gives many of his students distinct voicse, he is even funnier when recalling his own youth and his lack of skill on the basketball court (unheard of for a black youth). The memory of his first romantic crush is a hoot. First and foremost, Letson always insures that he has the audience firmly in his grasp even with an occasional (unnecessary) aside (“You’re normal.”) This personable performer needn’t worry that we might require more to win us over than his pungently poetic text.
As contender during the 1990s on the slam poetry circuit, Letson’s ability to communicate is a given, and the audience at the performance I attended, were with him all the way. One plus for the close rapport with Letson is that he is performing in the 50-seat studio theater, smaller of the two spaces at NJ Rep. Despite Letson's proximity to the audience, lighting designer Jill Nagle works wonders in providing him with exactly the right atmosphere at the right time —, often taking on a poetic tract of its own.
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Summer in Sanctuary Written and performed by Al Letson Directed by Rob Urbinati Scenic Design & Properties: Jessica Parks Lighting Designer: Patricia E. Doherty. Costume Design: Patricia E. Doherty Running time: 90 minutes no intermission New Jersey Repertory Company, 179 Broadway, Long Branch, NJ. (732) 229 – 3166 Tickets: $35 with discounts for students (full –time 13 – 25) and groups of 10 or more. Performances are Thursday, Fridays at 8 PM; Saturdays at 3 PM and 8 PM; and Sundays at 2 PM. From: 03/08/12 Opening: 03/10/12 Ends 03/25/12 Review by Simon Saltzman based on performance 03/10/12 |
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