Joe Turner's Come and Gone

Over the past week there has been a considerable amount of controversy generated by the August Wilson play, "Joe Turner's Come and Gone". The debate erupted last week when it was discovered that students at the Waterbury Arts Magnet School were rehearsing the play despite the objections of the Superintendent, Dr. David Snead. Dr. Snead's objection to the play was based on the fact that a rather offensive racial pejorative (commonly referred to as the N-word) is used repeatedly in the text.

This debate has produced five different articles on the Republican-American website, each with their own lengthy set of comments, as well as an editorial in Saturday's paper.

There have also been articles and comments in the Hartford Courant, and the New York Times. Furthermore, opinion pieces have been written by the American Theatre Wing and my friend Raechel Guest who runs her own Waterbury blog.

Articles on the Republican-American website:

School superintendent trys to cancel school play over "N-word".
Play's racial slur has school officials at odds.
Board considers need for school play policy.
Censored 'Finn' interests member of school board.
Teens prefer positive spin on slur, but school chief wants play halted.

Several of the articles also broach the topic of censorship in general, adding the latest sanitized version of "Huck Finn" to the mix.

Considering all the controversy that had been created, I decided to head out to the library and find a copy of the play in question. After reading the play, I feel comfortable offering my opinions on the content of the play, the role of language in the play, and whether or not the play is appropriate for high school students to be performing.

"Joe Turner's Come and Gone" focuses on the struggles of several black individuals to find their identity in 1911 Pittsburgh. This struggle reveals, through three characters, several divisions within the African-American community of the time.

The first character that brings these divisions to light is Seth Holly. Seth is in his fifties, and was born in the north. Despite being born in to pre-Civil War America, he shows very little understanding of the Southern way of life. He is not happy with the number of African-Americans coming North, and considers many of them backwards. His character uses the pejorative almost exclusively in the script, and employs the word to demean these Southern blacks.

The counterpoint to Seth is an older character called Bynum. He is an older gentleman from the South. The play refers to him as a "conjure man", and my best guess is that he was raised in the backwoods areas of the South. Though it is not explicitly mentioned, I would assume that he was from the Appalachia region of eastern Tennessee or Kentucky.

Lastly, you have the character of Herald Loomis. Herald is a younger man, in his early thirties, who has been forced to work in a Tennessee chain gang after being kidnapped by the titular Joe Turner. During his seven years of captivity, his wife leaves Tennessee and heads north, depositing their daughter at her mother's house on the way. Harold is extremely disoriented in terms of personality and his place in the world. At the end of the play, through an act of self-mutilation, Herald is able to find himself, and regain his sense of purpose in the world.

By bringing these and the other characters together Mr. Wilson shows the hardships that many in the African-American community had to face a century ago. I found the play very powerful and especially moving, and have come to the conclusion that the play can be a teaching tool for the students of Waterbury.

However, the discussion of content has, sadly, been lost among the concerns over the language in the play. As I mentioned before, the pejorative in question is not used in the text by a Caucasian character to demean an African-American character. It is used by one black character to demean another who the first considers beneath him. If we were to sanitize this play, the best analogy that I can think of would be "hick" or "hill-billy".

That is not to suggest that I feel the word is an appropriate word to use in modern society. I feel, like many who have commented before, that there is no place for such a racially charged pejorative in 2011. However, I am fully aware that among the African-American youth of today, the word is common in their vocabulary. Many of the students involved in this production have no appreciation for the power, the anger, and the hate that this word can evoke. While some may see that as a good thing, if people truly want to erase that word from 21st century vocabulary, they need to ensure that our youth know why it should be struck.

Furthermore, as has also been mentioned before, we have to respect our history, as ugly and unpleasant as it may be. While it might be nice for people to forget things that the United States has done wrong in it's 235 year history, we cannot ignore the phrase, "Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it." There is a time and a place for an intelligent, respectful, and appropriate discussion of where we've been as a culture, where we are, and where we're going.

So, to the crux of the issue, is a production at the Waterbury Arts Magnet School the appropriate venue for such a discussion? After reading the play, and thinking about it over the long weekend, I feel I have to say no.

My reason for not supporting a production of this play is not based on censorship, or even on the language used in the play. I am uncomfortable with the final scene of the play being performed on a High School stage. Despite all of the potential for learning, and all the benefits that could come from this play, I cannot condone a performance where a character cuts himself across the chest with a kitchen knife, and rubs his own blood on his face on a high school stage. If this production was being done at Post University, or any other local college, I would have no problem supporting it. However, I just do not feel that it is age appropriate.

I realize this discussion and debate is far from over, but I wanted to share my concerns. Let me know what you thing, and we'll see how this all plays out at the Board of Education meeting on the 18th.

Early Thoughts on Election 2011

Tuesday nights announcement that Wolcott Police Chief Neil O'Leary is resigning, effective January 29, has sent ripples throughout the political circles in the city of Waterbury.

As was mentioned in the article, the conventional wisdom is that Chief O'Leary will announce his candidacy for Mayor of Waterbury sometime in February. Any announcement will have to wait until then, due to federal laws that prevent law enforcement officials from actively campaigning.

If the conventional wisdom holds, Chief O'Leary will be the second Democrat to throw his hat into the ring for the 2011 election cycle. He will be joining former Board of Aldermen President J Paul Vance Jr, who declared his candidacy back in December.

This would set up a very interesting situation for Waterbury Democrats this summer. A primary campaign between Vance and O'Leary would be guaranteed, and the primary could turn into a three way contest if Mayor Jarjura decides to seek a sixth term.

A three way primary within the Democratic party would be extremely intense and could quite possibly turn ugly. Whoever came out on top would either be severly damaged politically, or would be so strong that a victory in November would be almost certain. If the primary turns and stays nasty, Waterbury may experience even lower voter turnout in November as supporters of the two vanquished Democrats stay home.

I must admit that I am hoping that the primary campaign that would develop (if the conventional wisdom is correct) remains focused on the issues, and does not sink into personal attacks. The 20% voter turnout in the 2009 primary was apalling, and the City of Waterbury is in serious trouble when that many registered voters stop caring.

This is not the first time that I have mentioned the dropping voter turnout in Waterbury, and I feel this will become an extremely important issue as the 2011 election draws closer.

Moving down from the Democratic line, things are still quiet. There has been no public discussion yet regarding potential candidates on either the Republican or Independent Party lines. However, I do not think this silence is any reason for concern. We've just wrapped up the 2010 elections, and the 2011 elections are still over 300 days away. There is still plenty of time for things to change, and I'm sure that things will change.

It is obvious, though, that the municipal election campaign has started. It's going to be an interesting summer.

City Hall Rededication

Yesterday afternoon the City of Waterbury held a rededication ceremony and ribbon cutting for our newly restored and renovated City Hall.

Originally built in 1915 and designed by famed architect Cass Gilbert, City Hall had been the crown jewel of Waterbury until recently. Decay, and an act of vandalism, forced the City to act in 2007.

Now, after almost three years of work, the building is complete and the results are fantastic.


In this picture you can see one of the newly restored lamps outside of the main entrance to City Hall.


Here you can see some of the detailed woodwork that has been added to the different offices throughout the building.


Here you can see the entrance to the new Aldermanic Chambers, with one of the original quotes that Cas Gilbert added to the building. It has some good advice for those looking to serve the City of Waterbury.


Here you can see the newly restored brass chandelier that hangs over Aldermanic Chambers.


Here is the stained glass window that sits at the top of the grand staircase between the first and second floors.


In this last picture you can see me sitting behind the Mayor's desk in his new office. Mayor Jarjura was gracious enough to encourage people to have their picture taken yesterday.

Overall I found the ceremony very uplifting for the City of Waterbury. It showed how great things in Waterbury can be when people put aside their petty differences and work together for the common good. It also reminds the citizens what this city was, and what it can be again. Hopefully this start to 2011 brings some positive changes to the Brass City.

More Good Signs in Downtown Waterbury

My post yesterday about the busy weekend in Downtown Waterbury drew a comment on Facebook about some of the problems that our downtown still faces. While I have never denied that there are still issues to be worked out, there is a lot more going on than some people would believe.

Therefore, in the latest installment of my efforts to market downtown, I have attempted address these concerns. In no particular order...

Good shows at the Palace:
Fiddler on the Roof, Grease, Tosca, and Riverdance are all being performed at the Palace this spring alone. Also, there will be shows with Tracy Morgan, the band Chicago, Jim Brickman, John Mellencamp, and Clay Aiken. Sounds to me like there’s something for almost everyone there. And we can’t forget the past visits by Mya Angelou, Weird Al Yankovic, George Carlin, and Tony Bennett, as well as shows of Mamma Mia!, Hairspray, Avenue Q, and Spamalot that have all graced the stage there. (And those are just the ones I can pull off the top of my head.)

Clean up the Green:
It’s not perfect, but the Farmer’s Market that has been held there for the past five years has drawn good crowds from July to October. Not only those that live around the Green, but those who work in the area are often seen out and about getting their produce for the week. It’s my understanding that there has been some success with the concerts that Main Street has hosted there as well.

Furthermore, the Second Annual Spirit of Waterbury Festival this year was a huge success, as was the Fifth Annual Mardi-Gross celebration that brought thousands of kids to Bank Street for an opportunity to do a little Trick-or-Treating.

A Vision for Downtown:
Carl Rosa and Main Street Waterbury have had a plan in place for almost six years now. The Jarjura administration doesn’t always follow it, but much has been done to move along the path that was laid out in 2004.

This includes the market-rate apartments that opened back in January at 70 Bank Street. Isn’t it amazing that those 18 apartments were rented in less than six months? The developer who transformed that building has already started work on 12 more market rate condos in the “Apothecary Hall” at the intersection of Bank and South Main.

This vision also includes the façade improvements that have started in six different downtown buildings, five of them on Bank Street alone. In the future Main Street Waterbury will be rolling out a second round of applications for not only façade grants, but signage grants as well.

This vision also includes the work that Carl Rosa asked me to do regarding outdoor dining regulations for our many wonderful restaurants, regulations to prevent the proliferation of “newspaper boxes” that are not maintained properly, and new signage regulations.

Parking:
That’s going to be a problem in any city, but thanks to the work of Main Street Waterbury the city purchased a sweeper to clean the garage. Also, I have always found the garage well lit, and felt safe whenever I’ve parked there. In fact, during the warm weather months, parking at the Buckingham garage is usually my first option.

Also, if people want to avoid tickets, Main Street Waterbury has set up a website detailing the parking options in downtown. This site lists where the parking sites are, how much it costs to park there, and where you can get a Waterbury Meter Card. These cards allow you to put time on a parking meter, as well as taking unused time off the meter. That way you’re not stuck putting $1.00 of quarters in the meter for a 20 minute errand. In fact, you don’t even need to look for quarters anymore.

In conclusion, if someone asked me what I felt was the biggest problem facing downtown, I’d say perception. Not enough people are paying attention to the work Main Street Waterbury is doing, and the accomplishments that they have achieved over the past 5 years.

Hope to see you at the next big event!

Another Sign of Downtown Success

This weekend was another wonderful time for people to visit Downtown Waterbury. A few of the things for people to see included...

Performances of "A Christmas Carol" by Shakesperience Productions. Of the 6 shows, which were held in the Shakesperience studio on Bank St, 5 were either sold out, or had less then 10 empty seats. The crowds were wonderful, and those of us who were in the show had a fantastic time.

The Connecticut Dance Theater also had shows in their new space on Bank St. They recently took over the third floor of the old Howland-Hughes building, and converted it to a performance space.

Even if theater is not your thing, you could have spent the weekend looking at all the fantastic displays that the Downtown Merchants had set up as part of Main Street Waterbury's 5th Annual Holiday Decoration Competition. Main Street Waterbury announced today that the CT Dance Theater took the overall grand prize, while Cafe Europa won the people's choice award.

While you were enjoying the sights of our downtown businesses on Saturday, you could have also taken a tour of Waterbury's newly renovated City Hall. Two years of work are nearing completion, and the building is once again poised to be a public jewel for the Brass City. As someone who spent several months in 2007 fighting to have the building restored, the re-dedication on January 1 is going to be especially sweet.

Finally, after spending all that time walking around our revitalized downtown, you could have stopped in at any one of our fabulous restaurants for a bite to eat.

In fact, on Saturday afternoon I stopped over at Bank Street Bistro for a quick dinner between the two "Christmas Carol" performances. As I was leaving a gentleman, who had also decided to stay downtown after the show, stopped me to tell me what a fine job my fellow actors and I had done.

As I crossed Bank Street back to the studio, I remembered where downtown was when I joined Main Street Waterbury back in 2005, and how far we've come. I'm proud to have been a part of the process, and see that things are on the right path.