Students act out public's varying perceptions of Muncie

By Jenny West, The Star Press, East Central Indiana, March 28, 2004

MUNCIE - Eleven students portrayed the public's perceptions of living in the Muncie community before a small audience Saturday night at Central High School.

The Dream: A Unified Community shared opinions collected by the student actors during recorded interviews with friends, acquaintances, relatives and random community members about race, diversity, unity, growing up in the Muncie area and the issue of renaming Broadway MLK Boulevard. Written material from newspaper articles and the recent "Middletown" study were also integrated into scenes.

Only receiving the final script on Thursday, the students - who attend both city and county schools - read dialogue and performed choreographed hand movements and dance steps during the show.

"I hope that the movement you see makes you hear these words in a new way," said Katherine Burke, show director.

Performers included Jackie Anthony, James Armstrong, Monica Boles, Brittany Bridges, Jasun Thomas, Felicia Bright, Nicole Caristi, Erika Garringer, Jade Jefferson, Katie Moore and Sanovia Williams.

Natalie Byrd, mother of performer Erika Garringer, said she hoped The Dream would display the more positive aspects of Muncie.

"I hope that the kids (in the audience) realize that Muncie isn't as bad as they think it is," said Byrd before the start of the show. "Sometimes, they see Muncie as being more racist and prejudiced than it actually is.

"I hope the show will have the same affect on the kids who are watching as it did on those performing."

Two Southside High School students - Mia Kappler and Ella Ditmars - attended in the hopes that the performance would be a stepping stone to ending racism.

"People can't chose who they are," Ditmars said.

While one student read a line, the others would stand or sit in poses while also incorporating simple dance moves for a contemporary style in between sets.

One comment collected in the interview process causes the audience to erupt in laughter. It read: "... But it's a place where everybody knows everybody. They know your mom, your grandma, your great-grandma. But you have to watch out 'cause you might end up marrying your cousin. That's the kind of place Muncie is."

The most dramatic scene was saved for last, when one student began reading a line and was slowly joined by the rest of the cast: "I would say Muncie is a nice town to live in. I grew up here, and I think it's a nice place to grow up. I don't think that all of the racial issues or all the community issues have been developed in the way that they should, but I think that the majority of people in neighborhoods know each other and trust each other. There is violence in Muncie just like you would find in any other city. But I think that it's a good place to live. And I think it is a place that can grow and become an even more prominent place than its is now. But I've always liked Muncie."

After the conclusion of the show, a time of discussion was held during which audience members as well as the students could share their feelings on the performance.

"If you came here thinking Muncie had no unity, we just proved that it does," Erika Garringer said of the diverse backgrounds of all 11 student actors. "If you don't see it anywhere else in Muncie, you've seen it right here on stage."

Contact news reporter Jenny West at 213-5825.