Children of a Lesser God
by Mark Medoff
Directed by Jennifer Bangs & Jorilyn Tasker
Produced by Sweet Apple Productions
Reviewed by Jenny Wood
Sweet Apple Productions’ rendition of Mark Medoff’s Children of a Lesser God is sincere and well constructed.
Co-Directed by Jennifer Bangs and Jorilyn Tasker, the production utilizes spoken English and American Sign Language to depict James Leed’s (Ryan Brown) memories of his relationship with Sarah Norman (Rebekah Covington), a woman Deaf since birth.
The setting is described as “Inside the Mind of James” and while previous productions and the script itself have been criticized by some for centering the hearing teacher James’ perspective over Deaf student Sarah’s journey, the Co-Directors’ production choices successfully spotlight the heart of the conversation - how humans with different physical experiences of the world coexist.
The premise is clearly stated in the curtain speech when Tasker acknowledges the presence of ASL interpreters and advises the audience that - to paraphrase - sometimes the interpreters will be there and sometimes they won’t, and the varying levels of accessibility are kind of the point.
Technical Design by Miranda Hildner (Set) and Holli Price (Lighting & Sound) support this by establishing clear physical parameters for the action. A clean, grid-like set up allows the story to flow freely between locations while maintaining the feeling of a memory.
The show succeeds in exploring the dynamics of communicating in two very different languages. Daymond Sands is absolutely charming as Orin Dennis, Sarah’s hard of hearing childhood friend. Margaret Teague infuses flirtatious Lydia with enough youthful innocence to keep her overtures forgivable. Stacy Okafor’s attorney Edna Klein hits just the right note of well-intentioned but ill-informed advocate. Arthur Morton as Mr. Franklin is perfectly hateable throughout, Nancy Worcester’s Mrs. Norman is perfectly hateable until her lessons are learned.
And while Covington and Brown excel in their roles, what really made the show for me were the Interpreters, Theresa Watson and Jeremy Aston. Partly character and partly functional, they understood the assignment and nailed it. In every silence, I would look for them. Sometimes they were there, sometimes they weren’t. More than once, their sign choice was the beat that landed the joke. As a hearing person with completely Deaf friends, the experience was so authentic it was a little unnerving - which, in my humble opinion, is kind of the point.
Children of a Lesser God continues through February 25, SweetAppleProductions.com for tickets.
Cheers,
Jenny
Audience Rating: PG - adult content and explicit language
Run Time: 2 hours 45 minutes, including one 15 minute intermissions.
Accessible Seating: Available
Hearing Devices: Not Available. All performances incorporate ASL and ASL interpreters.
Sensory Friendly Performance: Not Available
Production Sound Level: Appropriate.
Noises or Visuals to Prepare For: None of Note
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