Go See Children of a Lesser God

For why is all around us here

As if some lesser god had made the world,

But had not force to shape it as he would?*

   -- Alfred Lord Tennyson, Idylls of the King

I have been volunteering, performing, and otherwise working at the Limelight Theatre in St Augustine for over 4 years now and this is the first time that I have been compelled to write about the experience.  I have to say that the current production of the 20^th season, Children of a Lesser God, ranks among the very best of the shows that I have seen there.

I had the good fortune of seeing the National road of the show back in 1981 while I was a cadet.  I found the show to be very moving and was surprised to learn of the conflict between hearing and deaf culture that is at the heart of the play.  I enjoyed the play immensely, but, perhaps because I was too young then, it did not move me as much as this current production.

The play takes place in the mind of James Leeds, a speech therapist at a school for the deaf in the 1970s.  James recounts his relationship with Sarah Norman, a maid at the school.  Sarah was born deaf and has resisted every effort to learn to lip read and speak, despite the fact that knowing these skills would better enable her to live in the hearing world.  The conflict between the deaf and hearing world comes not only from James and Sarah, but from Sarah’s mother and the faculty and students of the school.

Both leads are incredible.  As James, Joe Walz has the daunting task of delivering not only his lines, but also Sarah’s for the sake of those of us who do not understand American Sign Language.  His performance is powerful and nuanced.   He is the man caught between two worlds.  As a full fledged member of the hearing community, he naturally wants to help the deaf enter his world.  With Sarah, he is pulled into the deaf world where he struggles to understand a woman who does not want to enter his world.  Walz admirably conveys James’s struggle to connect with Sarah in the intersection of the two worlds.

Kristy Garcia-Santiago as Sarah commands the stage.  With nary a spoken word, Garcia-Santiago pulls the audience into her world.  Her beautiful, powerful, signing combined with her lovely, expressive face convey all that she says and feels so well that the oral narration by the others serves more to reinforce what she is saying rather than define it.  She is a force to be reckoned with every time she comes on stage and her Sarah is heartbreaking in her insistence that she will only do something she can do well.  The chemistry between her and Walz is palpable and served to totally captivate the audience.  I hope we see her onstage often.

With such powerful leads, the supporting actors are often in danger of being overshadowed.  Directors Heather and Britt Corry have cast their show well and their capable direction has elicited wonderful performances from all their actors.

Brian Kelly in histheater debut as hearing impaired Orin Dennis is a natural. His turn as a student who grows into a teacher/deaf activist is a joy to watch.  Amy Francis as Sarah’s mother Mrs. Norman is both brittle and touching as she tries to reconnect with the daughter she thought she lost.  As Mr. Franklin, the school administrator and bridge fanatic, Andy Fitzpatrick strikes just the right note of weary cynicism as he deals with a push for deaf power at the school.  In sharp contrast to Franklin is Edna Klein, winningly portrayed by Evelyn Peralta as idealistic young lawyer who is ready to help the deaf fight for rights that she does not truly understand.  Last and certainly not least, is Anna Styron as hard of hearing student Lydia, who has a crush on James.  Anna’s Lydia presents just the right touch of youth and woman as she falls for her teacher and tries to compete with Sarah.

The show flows smoothly thanks to the seamless light and sound operation of Brian Delker.  The set designed and lit by Britt Corry, meant to represent the mind of James Leeds, is starkly effective.  Consisting of a series of platforms and a few pieces of furniture, the set functions as number of places that prompts the audience to focus on the human interaction that is the heart of the play.  The play also features sign language interpreters for deaf audience members.

With this production of Children of a Lesser God, the Limelight Theatre has once again show why it is the preeminent theater in St. Augustine.  If you enjoy theater, think you might enjoy theater, or just want to pass a couple of enjoyable hours, go see this show.  This show is too good to miss!

*The excerpt from Idylls of the King above, is the source the term of a lesser god in the title.  I have my ideas about what it means, but I would like to hear your thoughts about it on the comments.