When I Grow Up I'm Gonna Get Some Big Words
By Starla Smith
Puget Sound News
Story: The dramatic and sometimes tragic events and demonstrations of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s-60s are retold at the Seattle Children's Theatre through the words of young people who practiced the non-violent resistence doctrine of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Vision: True life experiences from actual speeches, songs, essays, letters, diaries and photographs from the Civil Rights Movement are juxtaposed with the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. A slide show flashes a series of images from Dr. King's church packed to the rafters with freedom fighters to the harrowing images of the Klu Klux Klan.
Our grade: B+. A heart-wrenching moment in "Big Words" occurs during a mother's explanation of the facts of life to her young son—not sex, but segregation and his skin color. When she finishes with "Remember, you are as good as anyone," he asks, "But how can I love a race of people who hate me?"
The same earnest simplicity defines the narrative of this inspiring production. We glimpse the valiant people who finally refused to move to the back of public buses or away from the lunch counters. The cast presents a powerful primer about average folks who used hope and love in their daily struggle for freedom and equality in America—almost 200 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed.
Each actor plays several roles. Talented Demene Hall portrays a proud young girl determined to keep her new dress tidy after she is arrested for demonstrating. Hall then bends her body to become an arthritic grandmother who joins the freedom march, "I'm not doing this for myself," she cries, "but for my children and grandchildren."
Extra-critical: The play covers over two decades in 90 minutes—perhaps an over-ambitious effort and at times confusing for younger children. Fifteen plain wooden chairs on the bare stage represent churches, buses, homes and even the four young girls killed in the 16th Street Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Some children may also have difficulty with these rapidly-changing venues, although the singing and Barry Scott's powerful and resonant re-creations of Dr. King's speeches help connect the action. Since Scott sounds remarkably like King, many eyes teared during these shining words, especially the familiar "I Have a Dream" speech from the 1963 march on Washington. Be on alert: Parents should discuss the Civil Rights Movement and Dr. King with their children before attending this performance. As a cast member observed during the Q&A after the show, one man pulled the trigger of the gun that shot Dr. King, but hate and ignorance actually killed him.
Be on alert: Parents should discuss the Civil Rights Movement and Dr. King with their children before attending this performance. As a cast member observed during the Q&A after the show, one man pulled the trigger of the gun that shot Dr. King, but hate and ignorance actually killed him.
