Events

Court Summons

In a meeting with Director Tracy Manning, the two of us brainstormed ways in which we could help the audience feel like they were in a jury. We came up with the idea of sending court summons to every student on campus. I wrote up the summons and based the design on a real court summons. They were then printed and distributed to every student a few weeks before opening night. If they brought a summons to the box office, they received a one-dollar discount.

Book Distribution

The head of the Office of Intercultural Programming, Rev. Dyson, wanted to get this book in the hands of the Taylor community. Over 200 books were given to students in the months leading up to opening night. These students were then given free tickets to the show, paid for by the OIP. Book discussion groups were had that were led by the same English professor who helped with the Banned Book Event.

Walk a Mile Charity

We didn't want to do a play about empathy and standing in orther people's shoes if we weren't going to put it into practice. Members of the Cast and Crew got together to join other community groups in Marion Indiana to raise funds for the homeless community and to walk a mile in the cold. We met our fundraising goal and were one of the top teams. It was an important reminder of the broader community outside of just us and our play.

Banned Book Event

The controversy surrounding To Kill a Mockingbird struck me throughout my research and conversations with the cast and creative team. I wanted to invite the Taylor community into these challenging conversations. I reached out to our director and a theatre-loving professor in the English department to put on this event. The English professor unpacked the history of book banning and censorship in America and then our director talked about the philosophical complexity of banning books in schools and how To Kill a Mockingbird teaches us to talk to children.

Capote Movie Night

Scout's childhood fiance, Charles Baker Harris, is inspired by Nelle Harper Lee's childhood best friend Truman Capote. The film Capote tells the story of the partnership between Nelle and Truman as they investigated for his soon-to-be-famous novel In Cold Blood. I worked with the student group IFC (Integration of Faith and Culture), to put on this movie for the Taylor Community. The ticket cost went towards the Walk a Mile Charity.