By Jason and Alisha Hagey
A finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, Heidi Schreck’s What the Constitution Means to Me poignantly probes our conceptions and misconceptions of the United States Constitution inside the Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre in Salt Lake City. A unique experience, What the Constitution Means to Me, is more than theatre. Schreck’s autobiographical play begins simply enough, but as the course of the production winds and turns through principles of the Constitution, by the end, it becomes personal for every audience member. With the final dimming of the lights, Schreck challenges us, the audience, and this performance becomes necessary for every patriotic citizen of the United States of America.
What does the Constitution mean to you? When Schreck was fifteen, she and her mother went around the United States, where Schreck participated in American Legion contests requiring her to answer this question in hopes of winning prize money to pay for her future college tuition. Their framework for these contests is the structure of the performance. Due to this framework, Schreck provides multiple, deep, and personal perspectives on our country’s most crucial governmental document.
Schreck (Playwright) finds a way to frame this discussion within the pages of laughter and spontaneous joy. Here in Utah, family history is practically a state pastime. Sitting in the audience and experiencing this story-telling style allows the memories to enfold and resonate (like a patchwork quilt). There is so much familiarity in the text to connect with.
Karen Azenberg (Director) helms this production with incredible evenness. A balance of perspectives is hard to do when it comes to something as hotly debated as the U.S. Constitution. Azenberg’s approach is never heavy-handed. Her concept makes the play even more compelling.
Becoming Heidi Schreck’s proxy, Laura Jordan (Heidi) is compassionate and intelligent. Jordan’s storytelling and careful consideration of Schreck’s text allow her to pull us into a comfortable, safe space to consider focused, serious questions about the Constitution. She does this with charisma and vulnerability in an alchemy that produces nothing less than a thought-provoking experience transcending the days following her performance.
Playing foil and friend Ben Cherry (Legionnaire/Mike) is sensitive and unguarded. Cherry knows comedic beats and approaches his characters with a beautiful admixture of humor and humanity. He disarms his audience with simple pathos, never pushing the envelope of our emotions with force. Instead, Cherry is universally understated; his deliberate pacing and meticulous care with every word are powerful.
Depending on the night, one of four teenage Debaters joins Jordan and Cherry. We had the pleasure of Sofia Brinkerhoff at our performance. If the other Debaters (Taryn Bedore, Naomi Cova, and Abigail Knighton) are even half as good as Brinkerhoff, you are guaranteed an exceptional experience. Despite her youth, Brinkerhoff was poised and irresistible.
The designers have a difficult task: How do you make a memory feel authentic while recognizing that each piece isn’t a faithful recreation of Wenatchee, Washington? Jo Winiarski (Scenic Designer) gives us a slice of Americana and a nod to small city halls. There is a moment in the show where Jordan talks about how this would be the appropriate time for a sweeping set change and then turns to the audience and says, “But this isn’t that kind of show.” We chuckle, almost thinking the set will go up and out and become shiny and different. When it doesn’t, it is comforting to be in the same room with the same lectern. It feels more honest, somehow.
Phillip R. Lowe (Costume Designer) is subtle – like most of the show. Through simple changes, the characters peel back articles of clothing (like the removal of a blazer) to demonstrate further breaking of the fourth wall and a shift in perspective. Brian Tovar (Lighting Design) equally relies on subtlety. The warms and cools play off the same character changes, helping us distinguish between the memory of Schreck’s 15-year-old self and the reflection of a middle-aged version. There is a scene in the show where Jordan is lost in thought. Underscoring is this soft but ever-present buzzing (reverberation). Bryce Robinette (Sound Designer) replaces the buzzing with silence when the character has a breakthrough. Small touches like these are layered throughout the evening.
What the Constitution Means to Me looks at decades and cycles of abuse through the lens of the Constitution. It also looks at decades of healing and growth through that same lens. How Schreck manages to be both subjective and objective, looking at two sides of the same topic with honesty, where it never feels preachy or didactic, is something of a marvel. There is such respect for various viewpoints that the debate is a breath of fresh air, giving us a nod to civility. Whether you are Team Abolish or Team Keep, the parliamentary debate ends with a handshake and an expression of gratitude. Often, we want an escape from politics in our antagonistic-attack culture. What the Constitution Means to Me celebrates the mess and the brilliance of the U.S. Constitution. The framework of the story encourages thought without hate. We plan to go back again, this time with our children.
There is no intermission for this production
A review by Front Row Reviewers. Pioneer Theatre Company presents What the Constitution Means to Me by Heidi Schreck
2019 Pulitzer Prize Finalist
Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre, 300 S 1400 E, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112
April 7 – April 22, 2023, Monday – Thursday 7:00 PM, Friday 7:30 PM, Saturday 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM
ASL-Interpreted Performance: Saturday, April 22 at 2 p.m.
Tickets : $35-46 in advance;, $5 more when purchased on the day of show.
Box Office: 801-581-6961
Open 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM, Mon. – Fri.
Pioneer Theatre Company
PTC Facebook Page
Constitution of the United States
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