By Ashlei Havili Thomas
William Shakespeare’s Othello is one of the classics, but Little Man Theater Company is taking this well-loved piece and plunging the audience into one of the most charged times in American history: the Civil Rights Movement. In an interview with the company’s creative director Noah Kershisnik, the show’s director Archelaus “Archie” Crisanto and Chris Curlett who plays the titular character, we discussed the show, the theater company and its mission, and the larger Utah theater scene when it comes to Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC). We had a wonderful time talking about the themes of the show, as well as its overarching message to the audience of the role of allyship amid inequity. With performances over Juneteenth weekend, this is the perfect opportunity to learn, to listen and enjoy a wonderful piece of theater.
Noah told us a little about Little Man Theater Company. Started in 2018, Othello is the second production they’ve produced since COVID, following Comedy of Errors. “I like to focus on the actors and the things they need to perform and tell a good story,” Noah told us. “I have been in too many productions where people get too distracted by the props or set, so often the meat is neglected which is the actor and the story they’re telling.” That focus is obvious in this production, put on at Light Tree Studios, which according to Noah has become something of a community arts space with everything from heavy metal concerts to wrestling match rehearsals and artists mixing singles being done here. Noah talked a little about his start in Shakespeare under the direction of his mother, who runs a local children’s theater. He stressed his feeling of productions using design elements to distract from the show. He wanted his productions to “not [be] bogged down by the set or costuming, [but] focus on the relationship and words and feelings.”
While Archie had been sitting on this idea for Othello since 2014, the show didn’t really pick up until he started working with Noah in 2017. Archie spoke to us about what got him interested in this concept, and his work directing this show. Archie admitted he usually is an actor but noticed a definite lack in shows for BIPOC performers where they are the leading force. “I don’t see this [type of production] a lot in Utah theater and I want to keep this going and tell stories of other marginalized people,” he expressed. “So few shows are created around BIPOC actors.” The concept of putting Othello in the late 1960’s became more concrete while Archie was working on another Shakespeare play, Taming of the Shrew. While doing research into the 1960’s Women’s Rights Movement for Taming of the Shrew, he noticed several events happening parallel to that movement, many of which aren’t widely talked about or taught in school. He said, “The art I want to make is the stuff that says something from a different perspective from what we’ve usually told. We dug into lots of historical context to find the spin of ‘why’ things happened.” He stressed their focus of keeping the show historically accurate, and how seamlessly it works with the original story written by Shakespeare.
Chris, our Othello, spoke about his work as a Black actor in Utah and working on this show. While he didn’t grow up in the Beehive State, he has been in many productions over the years, such as Ragtime and Civil War. He expressed the exhaustion he’s been dealing with mentally working on such emotionally difficult shows. “It’s difficult to get leading roles, there are other things I’d like to do, where the stakes aren’t always so high or surrounded by oppression,” he admitted. He spoke passionately about looking for the stories left out about these charged moments in history, wanting to see those performed and celebrated. Wanting to bring those histories to light, digging up the unsung heroes’ stories and find new ways to not choose shows about oppression are all very important to Chris in our discussion.
In talking about the themes of the show, the Civil Rights Movement and this production, Chris, Noah and Archie all stressed how relevant these themes are to life today. The biggest theme we spoke on was allyship. Chris spoke about moving to Utah, and how people feigned niceness, asking a couple questions and being polite, but how this isn’t allyship. “It’s an action. . . Bare minimum [human interaction] isn’t allyship.” He mentioned he also stumbles when trying to be an ally to the LGBTQIA community but said being willing to get back up and continue to listen and be active is key. He said false allyship is “the number one thing that’s hurt me in this state especially in theater. . . [after shows close] everyone is moving on and supporting each other except those of color.” Archie also agreed with the need for allyship in the Utah theater community, and for spaces for BIPOC creators to tell their stories. Archie said Othello “talks a lot about allies and allyship and what it means to be an ally and what it means as BIPOC creators to trust our allies with our experiences.”
When talking about the production and the future of the theater company, Noah mentioned that they chose to perform Othello in June to coincide with Juneteenth. He also revealed that the Utah Black History Museum would be bringing their travelling bus exhibit as well as setting up an exhibit in the lobby on the closing night of the show. Noah also talked about why as a white man, he feels it’s necessary to do productions like Othello. “I feel like I need to make sure I’m not being insensitive and listening to BIPOC creators and I need to make sure I’m not just telling ‘white guy stories’. . . Too often the stories are told about white people with ‘supporting marginalized people.’ I’m happy being the supportive character and I want to make sure that we are telling more diverse stories. I need to use my platform to support those stories.” Little Man Theater Company also has an INDIEGOGO set up to help fund future projects like this one, telling the BIPOC stories that need to be heard.
Little Man Theater Company presents Othello by William Shakespeare.
Light Tree Studios, 740 W 1700 S, Unit 9, Salt Lake City 84104
June 16-18, 20, 23-25 7:00 PM
Tickets: $30
Website: https://othellograpevine.wixsite.com/website
Little Man Theater Company Facebook Page
Indiegogo: www.indiegogo.com/projects/othello-presented-by-little-man-theatre-company
Utah Black History Museum Facebook Page
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