Prison Visit

Sorry for this post being a little late, but it took a little while for the visit to sink in. It was an interesting experience going to the prison. One aspect that really troubled me was the grounds. Outside each of the three housing units where elaborate markers bearing the unit's name such as "Avery". The markers where very beautiful, some made of stone, others involving garden waterfalls. It bothered me because it seemed almost a mockery of what this place really is. They seemed to be a strange "home sweet home" sign for their prison. It made me feel like they where making fun of the prisoners there, that this was their home for the rest of their life. It was very unsettling.
On a lighter note I thought that the door closing in the segregation cell was a little funny to see everyone jump like that. I sure it was intended purely as a joke. However the entire segregation unit was very daunting. Rows of single cells, low lights, spartan atmosphere, and metallic furniture. It felt both like a factory and a prison at the same time. I was very surprised when they told the group that many of the inmates did not take advantage of the offered 45 minutes of time out of their cells, but when I saw where they would go, I would probably stay inside as well. Suffice it so say it was a cage big enough to stand and walk in a small circle and little else.
The corrections officers seemed to be very polite, and at the same time proud of their job. Their was evidence of a family atmosphere in unlikely places such as a notice board with race pools for the officers. All the officers seemed to know the other's name, and I believe I remember a conversation involving a monthly barbecue for the officers. This aspect was not surprising to me. If I where to work in a prison I would probably develop fast relationships with my fellow officers as well to help cope with the stress of working there.
I'm very thankful we had this opportunity and I hope some of the other company members will share their feelings as well.

Prison Visit

On Monday and again today I will be taking members of the cast and artistic team to visit Avery/Mitchell Correctional Institution in Spruce Pine. I have taught for about six years at Foothills and Western Youth in Morganton, so I am fairly well acquainted with the prison environment. My Drama Department colleagues Rob Bowen and Laura Facciponti have also done some prison teaching. However, I must admit that when we were taken into a segregation cell, I found myself feeling very uncomfortable -- especially when the cell door started to close (I think the officers were playing a little joke). The students on Monday's trip had many different reactions, which I hope they'll share. I found the visit very sad. So many young lives ruined, many of them for "crimes" like drug possession. While the United States has only 5% of the world's population, we have nearly 25% of the world's incarcerated population. Prisons have become a multi-billion dollar business in America -- we have built an average of 50 new prison each year for the past twenty years. Dubious laws such as "three strikes an your out" and the sentencing guidelines laws, as well as the closing of so many mental health facilities since the 1980s has led to an explosion in the prison population. At around $35,000 per year to house inmates, and much more in maximum prisons where the cost approaches $60,000 a year, we warehouse people from 16 to 85. Surely this money would be better spent on education, substance abuse rehab programs, and social services. Of course there are people who need to be removed from society -- we could never eliminate prisons entirely. But our use of prisons as a substitute for rational social policies and community involvement is a blot on our nation's soul.
As Fyodor Dostoevsky said, "A society should be judged not by how it treats its outstanding citizens but by how it treats its criminals." And, I might add, how it treats those who spend their lives guarding those criminals. In Gates of Injustice: The Crisis in America's Prisons, Alan Elsner quotes a prison guard as saying there are three things you get when you take a job as a correctional officer: a truck, a gun, and a divorce. Increased suicide rates, substance abuse, and domestic violence is the result of spending eight to twelve hours a day in the stressful conditions of our prisons. Anybody who is acquainted with Philip Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment, recently written about in The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil, will recognize how the prison environment can turn normal people into abusers very, very quickly.
Perhaps it is time for us to consider whether our current approach to law and order is working, and whether there might be better ways to keep our society safe without destroying the lives of inmates, guards, their families, and their communities.

Rehersal Tonight

I feel like we really worked hard tonight on a lot of aspects of the show. I think the best way to judge how a rehearsal goes is how you feel when you leave. I felt great, and I think everyone else did as well. It seems to be shaping up very well. I hope you all feel the same way. Thanks for the hard work everybody!

Music, Music, Music.

Skyler Goff here wanting to express how blown away I was at how amazing last night was. Our Guitar Player Jeff has joined the crew and in quite a remarkable way. I got chills last night just watching him pick the songs up with just one listen to the music. He has truly brought new life into the show!

In addition to being one of the ASMs for this show, I'm also on the light hang crew. We started the hang last night and boy am I excited!

First off, I'd like to say that neither I nor the faculty thought I'd live to see the day that I would enjoy being thirty feet off the ground balancing an expensive piece of equipment on my legs over a hole in the floor. But, I have been nurtured into a true love of hanging lights. For most of the work I've done on shows here, I've gotten course credit - like everyone does - depending on how much time the job took and how well I did. For this hang, though, I just volunteered to be on the crew.

I get a deep sense of satisfaction while working with my hands, especially on something so fun. Also, time in the grid (the "ceiling" that the lights are hung from) affords one a bit of space to think. I enjoyed it, especially since working on this show has raised a few questions for me.

I can't help but wonder if there is a conflict here between so serious a message about what others want for and the fact that we're presenting it in such a decadent (for lack of a better term) art form. While it's true that as an educational setting, we reuse and recycle as much as we can, there is still quite a bit of waste in theatre. It comes with the territory. So what are we really saying here?

Any ideas?

Sad

We just found out today that one of our cast members has suffered a medical emergency and has withdrawn from the university. We all wish Russell the best of luck with his recovery, and we're sending him our thoughts and prayers. Tonight, we decided to dedicate the production to Russell.

The Hidden Benefits of Thousand Kites

Veronica Williams here. I just wanted to say how beneficial being on the cast for Thousand Kites has been for me. I have learned so many things, been taught so many lessons, and have made friends while in the process.

Coming to college has been extremely stressful for me personally. For the longest time I had a hard time talking to people because I am so shy. It was also especially hard for me because I had to leave the youth Theatre group I had been with for around 9 years. So naturally, I was worried when I came up here if I would "fit in" with this new theatre group. But I was so relieved. I was welcomed from the day that I stepped into Carol Belk Theatre. I knew that I had not only come to the right school, but picked the right co-curricular activity (and one of my majors as well) when Rachel and Russell-two of the chorus members in the show- how to project my voice properly without screaming. And that's not the only thing I have learned: I learned a new warm-up techinique from another one of the chorus members, a new line memorizing technique from Scott, and of course, about the U.S. prison system. I have also learned about UNCA theatre, it's terminology, and it's way of doing things, which I have a feeling will come in handy as I do more and more plays.

So, in short, I consider myself very lucky to be able to learn about and spread the word about such an important issue, while meeting awesome people within the theatre department. I feel honored to be given the opportunity to be in this play.