Robinson’s dignity as a human being demands that he tell his truth, despite Atticus’ admonishments. Welch, at a critical point in the trial, rebels against his lawyer’s advice. Robinson, portrayed with convincing complexity by Yaegel T. In a refreshing twist, they also express more opinions and agency. The Black characters in this version of “To Kill a Mockingbird” have less blind admiration for Atticus than in the original novel. The shift in perspective and timeline are the first indications this is a brand-new play. The three kids are the only characters to break the fourth wall, addressing the audience to make observations or to narrate within the action, sometimes acting almost as a Greek chorus. Often joining the two Finch children is the humorous but wise Dill, the scene-stealing 8-year-old queer boy visiting his aunt in Maycomb for the summer. Much of the action is told from the perspective of Atticus’ children, 11-year-old Jem and 7-year-old Scout. Atticus is guilted into taking on the assignment of defending the innocent Robinson, knowing full well that he himself will be vilified by his fellow white townspeople. The mockingbird of course is Thomas Robinson, a Black field worker in 1930s Maycomb, Alabama, who is accused of raping a white woman. Sorkin has Atticus deliver his famous line about mockingbirds directly to us, reminding the audience that we can “Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ’em, but remember, it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” We become, in effect, the 25th member of a 24-member cast, and we are all challenged to do better. There is no jury box on stage, rather the litigator addresses the members of the audience, shouting at us, begging us to take the word of a Black man over a white woman. He is a less stoic Atticus than we are used to, prone to outbursts of impatience and humor. All eyes stay on Thomas’ Atticus, especially in the courtroom scenes. His ability to embody the lawyer, widower and father feels as comfortable as a porch swing swaying in the breeze. “It takes about four minutes to make the audience forget about Gregory Peck and realize that they’re seeing a new piece and a new Atticus.”īroadway veteran and award-winning actor Richard Thomas, well-known to most Boomers for his iconic role in the 1970s TV series “The Waltons,” gives a superb performance portraying Atticus. “The audience comes into the theater and probably 98% of them have seen the movie and there’s one Atticus in their head,” said Sorkin in an interview with Variety last year. Sorkin and director Bartlett Sher have faithfully recreated the events and much of the language of the original book, yet have managed to dig even deeper, adding subtle layers to characters and plot. 10, who worries that playwright Aaron Sorkin has either ruined the iconic story or, perhaps worse, has nothing new to explore, can put their fears to rest. There was even an Oscar-winning movie in 1962, in which actor Gregory Peck had all of America fantasizing about growing up with a dad as noble as small-town lawyer Atticus Finch.Īnyone planning to attend Spokane’s First Interstate Center for the Arts touring production, running now through Dec. How do you adapt a book as universally known and beloved as To Kill a Mockingbird for the stage? After all, Harper Lee’s coming-of-age story about racism in the Depression-era American south has been read by (or at least assigned to) nearly every single high-schooler in the nation in the sixty years since it was published.
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