We received the following letter from Dr. Kristi Costello, Assistant Professor of Composition, Rhetoric, and Writing Studies at Arkansas State in Jonesboro after the Arkansas tour was completed. (Dr. Costello arranged for our performances at the Harrisburg Juvenile Detention Center and Arkansas State):
I am so glad that “On The Row” came to Arkansas State University. I would love to see this production performed at every university, high school, and I am not being hyperbolic in this suggestion. This powerful play helped students, faculty, and members of the Jonesboro community see the humanity of the many people incarcerated in this country; illustrated how a mistake and a matter of seconds can impact one’s life forever; and reminded us of the ways writing and being part of a community can help us work through our feelings, ideas, and trauma. It illustrated how looking back is an important step in moving forward. Since the performance, faculty, staff, and members of the community have shared with me how moved they were, not just by the performance, but by the project director and the performers, and have expressed their desire to do more in our community – more for the incarcerated, more with writing groups, simply more…
…this staged reading doesn’t just move us to tears and laughter (though it did surely do both of those things). It didn’t just inform and educate us (though it did and did those things well). It inspired us. It inspired us to do more and be better.
Thank you Prison Story Project!