Pre-Performance Lecture by Dick Brucher on Arthur Miller’s “All My Sons”

Sun, 09 Feb 2020 17:00:00 +0000

RESCDHEDULED FOR SNOW

NEW DATE: Sunday, February 9, 2020

12 p.m. reception and lecture (FREE)

1 p.m. show (WITH TICKET)

The McGillicuddy Humanities Center presents 91�� professor Dick Brucher, who will be giving a pre-performance lecture on Arthur Miller’s play All My Sons on Friday, February 7 at 12 p.m. The play, which broadcasts live from The Old Vic in London following the lecture, stars Academy Award-winner Sally Field (Steel Magnolias,��Brothers & Sisters) and Bill Pullman (The Sinner,��Independence Day). Jeremy Herrin directs the cast, which also includes Jenna Coleman (Victoria), and Colin Morgan (Merlin) alongside Bessie Carter, Oliver Johnstone, Kayla Meikle and Sule Rimi.

Brucher on Miller’s play:

Late in Arthur Miller’s All My Sons (1947), factory owner Joe Keller asks what can be more important than family. It was for family, and under pressure from the Army Air Force for production, that Joe says he told his partner to ship faulty airplane parts that killed 21 American pilots during the war. That past decision, revealed in the present, betrays the Kellers’ son Chris, an idealist and veteran, who insists that there is more to life than business profit and family loyalty. Miller domesticates corporate practice to create middle-class tragedy.

All My Sons is what Miller called a birds-coming-home-to-roost play, one in which retrospective action brings the past to bear on the present, and connects personal deeds and public consequences. Miller tried to make the play so untheatrical that audience members would mistake the world presented onstage for their own. Miller set out to capture—and to cause audiences to experience—the wonder in the fact that consequences are as real as the actions that cause them. This idea is as timely in 2020 as it was in 1947.

All My Sons was Miller’s first big hit; and it has remained among his most popular plays, up there with Death of a Salesman (1949), The Crucible (1953), and A View from the Bridge (1955/56). My introduction to the NTLive streaming of the play will discuss its basis in contemporary (1940s) events, the influences of Henrik Ibsen’s plays on Miller’s work, and the experience of modern tragedy. The talk will raise a few problems in interpretation and staging, particularly regarding characters’ motives and interactions.

What is NT Live?

National Theatre Live transmits the best of British theatre live from London to screens around the world. The broadcasts are filmed in front of a live audience, with cameras carefully positioned throughout the theatre to ensure cinema audiences get the best-seat-in-the-house view. Productions are transmitted via satellite to the Collins Center, then projected onto our high-definition screen — one of the largest in the state.

The post Pre-Performance Lecture by Dick Brucher on Arthur Miller’s “All My Sons” appeared first on Clement and Linda McGillicuddy Humanities Center.

Mary and Molly: In the Spirit of the Ancestors

Sat, 16 Nov 2019 19:00:00 +0000

The McGillicuddy Humanities Center and the Bangor Public Library present

“Mary and Molly: In the Spirit of the Ancestors, a Birthday to Remember”

A One Act play by Donna M. Loring

PRODUCED BY THE MCGILLICUDDY HUMANITIES CENTER DIRECTED BY WILLIAM S. YELLOW ROBE, JR.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16

2:00 – 4:00 PM

Minsky Lecture Hall, Bangor Public Library

No tickets necessary. Free and open to the public

91�� the play:

Mary finds a letter from her mother in an old trunk in her mother’s attic, addressed to her “to be opened on her 21st birthday.” With the help of her ancestors like Molly Molasses, will Mary embrace her full heritage and the part of her that she never knew existed, or will she choose to keep one hidden?

The play’s author, Donna M. Loring, and director, William S. Yellow Robe, Jr., will be available for a Q & A following the play.

This production is funded in part by a grant from the Maine Bicentennial Commission.

91�� the author:

Donna M. Loring is an author, broadcaster, and Senior Adviser on Tribal Affairs to Janet Mills, the governor of Maine.

Donna also is producer and host of Wabanaki Windows on WERU. Click to access the archived radio shows.

Donna grew up on Indian Island and graduated from the University of Maine at Orono with a B.A. in political science. She is a Vietnam veteran. Her professional background is in law enforcement, and she is a graduate of the Maine Criminal Justice Academy. Donna was the first woman police academy graduate to become police chief in the state of Maine and served as the police chief for the Penobscot Nation during the 1980s. She was also appointed aide de camp to then-governor Angus King and was adviser to the governor on women veterans’ affairs.

Donna was Penobscot Tribal Representative to the Maine State Legislature from 1999 to 2007. Among her many legislative accomplishments, she authored and sponsored LD 291 “An Act to Require Teaching Maine Native American History and Culture in Maine’s Schools.” Governor Angus King signed the Act into law on June 14th 2001. The law is changing the way Maine views its history. Donna’s book,��In the Shadow of the Eagle (Tilbury House, 2008) chronicles her experiences as the tribal representative to the State Legislature.

Among Donna’s many accomplishments are these awards:

Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from the University of Maine 2017
Alumni Career Award University of Maine 2017
Deborah Morton Award from the University of New England 2011
Donna M. Loring Lecture Series established at the University of New England
2009 Maine Community Foundation Service Recognition Award 2002-2009
Aide de Camp to Governor Angus King rank of Honorary Colonel 1999
Maryann Hartmann Award from the University of Maine 1999

The post Mary and Molly: In the Spirit of the Ancestors appeared first on Clement and Linda McGillicuddy Humanities Center.

plays Archives - Clement and Linda McGillicuddy Humanities Center