Author: Jeremy Candelas
Why do we visit the theater? Often the answer is merely for the pure entertainment value it provides to us. We go to the theater to laugh, to cry, to feel somekind of emotion. But what if theater stirred more than just the emotions inside of us, but simultaneously sparked a desire for change? Such is the hope of Sam Morrison ‘17 and Ithaca’s Civic Ensemble, especially in their upcoming performances of On the Corner.
Finding a New Role on Campus
For Morrison, who originally came into Cornell with an undecided major, but is now a Government and Performing & Media Arts (PMA) double major, his outlook of the role of theater has rapidly transformed since arriving at Cornell.
“I had actually never acted before Cornell, but freshman year I signed up for Introduction to Acting and the 24-Hour Playfest. So that combined with a class I took on theater andsocial change, they really changed how I thought about theater from merely an entertainment perspective, to then seeing it as a genuine tool for empowerment and social justice.”
In his sophomore year, Morrison continued with his theater pursuits. Describing himself as “kind of addicted to acting,” Morrison recounted “about a dozen projects, a dozen different plays [he] was involved in, in different capacities” in his second year on campus.
Provided by Sam Morrison
Theater in a New Light
Throughout the various projects he found himself involved in, Morrison found his true passions in what he deems “grassroots theater” – his preferred phrasing to “social justice theater.”
Still, Morrison also began to explore other theatrical outlets outside of the Cornell environment. While completing a recent internship in NYC, he participated with the group “Sounds of PortRichmond” from Staten Island – a collaborative effort between community members, Wagner College and the group ImaginingAmerica. The group put on a performance of a play, Every Time You See Me, which was partlysparked by the death of Eric Garner. The play, a commentary on race relations in Staten Island, showed Morrison “just how integral of a part of the community that theatre can be.”
“I had a very strong impulse coming back [to Cornell] to continue that kind of work. So when I investigated Civic Ensemble, who call themselves ‘a civic-minded theater troupe,’ a bit further, it really sounded a lot like what I did at Staten Island, and I wanted to be a part of it as much as I could.”
Sensing an opportunity that he could not let go to waste, Morrison volunteered his support in marketing the performance, and to an extent, the Civic Ensemble itself.
“Part of my marketing is not just getting people to see the show, but to get involved in Civic Ensemble. They will take almost anyone willing to take on the challenge of acting, and I think that’s wonderful – it really fights the misconception that art is for the elite. I feel that a lot of students would be pleasantly surprised if they knew about this, and that it was happening in this community.”
For Morrison, the overall mission of Civic Ensemble and the plays they perform, provides individuals – both experienced and inexperienced in theater – with a powerful opportunity to “connect across communities by telling, listening to, and sharing stories with others. It’s very empowering.”
Furthermore, Morrison believes that Civic Ensemble’s performances provide the audience with further opportunities to be involved than more conventional theater allows.
“In drama, there’s a binary created between the performers and the participants. Ironically, theatre is strictly monologue; so there’s no dialogue between audience and performance. Whereas Civic ensemble uses a model that can cultivate relationships rather than simply present a vision they or the playwright has.”
In particular, Morrison finds On the Corner to be a “powerful piece, done very strategically so that people will enjoy it. It’s been in development since June of this year. A lot of the piece was inspired from improvisation. There’s quite an interesting mix of very experienced actors and people who have never acted before, and I think that’s fun to watch.”
Provided by Sam Morrison
Moving Forward
“What I want to learn that is largely missing from the PMA curriculum is social justice theater, or grassroots theater, or whatever you want to call it. Theater that works with marginalized groups, one that is less entertainment but more about empowerment – that’s what I want to work with.”
Morrison’s passions for theater and social activism combined have inspired him to take on a number of tasks which take both into account. Beyond his current work with On the Corner, he is also a member of Ordinary People, another so-called social justice theater troupe.
“Throughout the year we do various performances for different events and organizations. We’ve experimented with guerrilla theater, and we’re kind of in a transition mode as a group. Additionally, we totally rewrote Tapestry for this year, with only one monologue being the same. So now it’s an actual story – it’s one narrative instead of a bunch of unrelated skits. We’ve tried a lot of different ideas this year, just experimenting with different forms of social justice theater.”
Using his own experience as a primary motivation, Morrison hopes to encourage others to pursue theater in the Ithaca community, especially for those who are interested in social justice issues. He says that in recent years, “losing the bridge from the community to the institution through art has been devastating. Ithaca has a very active theatre community, which students are unfortunately, largely removed from.”
The hope of Morrison is that being exposed to groups such as Civic Ensemble, and to performances of plays such as On the Corner, will encourage students to “literally leave Cornell – the little place on the top of the hill where we learn about the rest of the world – and to begin to bridge the gap between Cornell and the Ithaca community.”
For Morrison, being able to have a role in the process is something that he stressed time and time again that he was thankful for.
“I feel lucky just to even be a part of this process. I jumped on board last minute, and Sarah and Godfrey welcomed me in whatever capacity I could commit to. I really hope to be more involved in future projects.”
Where to See On the Corner
Civic Ensemble’s On the Corner opens October 7th, and will performances will begin at 7:30 PM on Wednesday thru Saturday. On Sunday the 11th, the performance will be at 4PM. Civic Ensemble asks that you pay what you can for tickets, with a recommended price of $5 for students and seniors, and $15 for adults. You can go to civicensemble.com to reserve your seat, or call 607-241-0195.
