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Courtroom Drama Comes To Life
JHS Students To Perform ‘Mockingbird’ Trial
A group of Jamestown High School seniors will perform a staged reading of
the trial scene from "To Kill a Mockingbird" at 8 p.m. Tuesday, March 31, in
the auditorium at the Robert H. Jackson Center.
Their performance, which is free and open to the public, will be Jamestown’s
final event of the 2009 Big Read.
“The students at Jamestown High School have really impressed our directing
team with their dedication and focus on accomplishing a meaningful
production of this serious work,” said Randy Gadikian, Big Read coordinator
and director of the Daniel A. Reed Library at SUNY Fredonia.
Since they auditioned for their roles, students in Christopher Tehan’s Drama
II class have been working for about two weeks under the direction of Dan
Lendzian and Aundre Seals, New York City actors and directors who graduated
from Fredonia in 2006 and 2007.
“We’re looking at the heart of humanity in this play,” Seals said.
Lendzian pointed out Defense Attorney Atticus Finch’s advice to his daughter
in the book, “You never really understand a person until you consider things
from his point of view – until you climb into his skin and walk around in
it.”
“That’s what theater allows us to do,” he said.
“ ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ is my favorite book. I read it in sixth grade and
fell in love immediately with Scout. It’s an honor to play her,” said
Mackenzie Caldwell, who narrates the story.
“It’s a totally different experience reading the book compared to being in
it. You feel the emotion more,” Ms. Caldwell said.
Like Scout, the narrator, Rachel Kanicki finds herself in the role of an
observer as Judge Taylor.
“I like the judge part. I watch what other people are doing and evaluate,”
she said.
“Judge Taylor wants Atticus to win. He’s supposed to come off as impartial,
but he wants justice to be done,” Ms. Kanicki said.
As for Mr. Gilmer, the prosecuting attorney, Griffin Nieves said, “I feel he
thinks he’s right, but the questions Atticus brings up are confusing to him.
He represents the outlook when the story took place.”
According to Seals, “Griffin is doing a great job of not playing the
villain. He’s a man who lives in his time.”
The students’ performance is funded by a grant from the Carnahan-Jackson
Humanities Fund of SUNY Fredonia and the Teaching American History Grant of
Jamestown High School.
“This has been a great opportunity for high school students to work with two
‘theatre guys’ who do this for a living,” Gadikian said.
The Jackson Center is located at 305 E. Fourth St., Jamestown. For more
information about the performance, call Prendergast Library at 484-7135,
Ext. 225.
Besides “To Kill a Mockingbird,” a classic novel by Harper Lee, the Big Read
has also featured “Robert H. Jackson: New Deal Lawyer, Supreme Court
Justice, Nuremberg Prosecutor,” a new biography by Gail Jarrow.
Book discussions, movie showings, displays and programs at public libraries
and community centers throughout Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties during
February and March have helped area residents explore the theme Lawyers and
Literature.
The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in
partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts
Midwest. Major sponsors are the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation,
Fredonia College, the Robert H. Jackson Center, the 1891 Fredonia Opera
House and the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System.
*Jackson Center To Show ‘12 Angry Men’*
“12 Angry Men” will be shown at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 11, at the Robert H.
Jackson Center, 305 E. Fourth St. This 1957 film, in which one juror tries
to convince 11 others a defendant is not guilty, is being shown as part of
The Big Read under its theme Lawyers and Literature.
Area residents who are reading “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee and
“Robert H. Jackson: New Deal Lawyer, Supreme Court Justice, Nuremberg
Prosecutor” by Gail Jarrow are also invited to watch “Inherit the Wind” on
March 18 and “Nuremberg” on March 25 at the Jackson Center.
For more information, call 484-7135, Ext. 225.
*Big Read
Discussions To Focus On Legal Aspects*
The legal aspects of “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee will be the focus
of discussions at 2 p.m. Tuesday, March 10, and 7 p.m. Thursday, March 19,
at Prendergast Library, 509 Cherry St.
Big Read discussion leader Jennifer Champ will compare the novel’s courtroom
procedures with the 1931 Scottsboro Trial.
For more information, call 484-7135, Ext. 225.
Smith Memorial Library
is happy to announce that we will be participating in the National Endowment
for the Arts Big Read Program again this year with a program scheduled at
6:30 on Wednesday, March 18, at the Library.
This year's project is being called:
"Lawyers and Literature" and will be promoting 2 books: To Kill a
Mockingbird by Harper Lee and Robert H. Jackson: New Deal Lawyer,
Supreme Court Justice, Nuremberg
Prosecutor by Gail Jarrow.
Greg Peterson, a well-known Chautauquan
and Board Chairman of the
Robert H.
Jackson Center,
will be presenting the program entitled “Atticus Finch and Robert H.
Jackson: From the Same Cloth?”
Both books are available at the Smith
Memorial Library. We have been given several paperback copies of To Kill
a Mockingbird and everyone is welcome to come in and pick up a free
copy, first come first served :) Multiple copies of Robert H. Jackson
are available to be checked out.
So, please join us on Wednesday, March
18, at 6:30 for Greg's presentation and some tasty desserts with a Southern
flair! And... all in attendance can enter a drawing to win a To Kill a
Mockingbird DVD.
Audubon To
Present Children’s Program At Prendergast
JAMESTOWN – The Jamestown Audubon Society will present a craft program called
“Making a Mockingbird” for children at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 7, at Prendergast
Library as part of The Big Read.
Children will learn about local birds by coloring them, cutting them out and
festooning a tree with them, while listening to their songs.
The program’s host is Linda O’Brien, a retiree of Southwestern Central School,
where she led after-school bird watching and feeding.
This year’s novel for The Big Read is “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee.
The related craft program is free and open to the public.
Ruth Lundin, president of the Jamestown Audubon Society, will also present a
program for adults called “Back Yard Birds and Their Songs” at 7 p.m. Monday,
March 9, at Prendergast Library.
The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in
partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest.
Major sponsors are the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation, Fredonia College,
the Robert H. Jackson Center, the 1891 Fredonia Opera House, and the
Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System.
For more information, call 484-7135, Ext. 234. The library is located at 509
Cherry St., Jamestown.
Audubon
To Present ‘Backyard Birds’ Program At Prendergast
JAMESTOWN – The Jamestown Audubon Society will present a program on “Backyard
Birds and Their Songs” at 7 p.m. Monday, March 9, at Prendergast Library as part
of The Big Read.
This year’s Big Read novel is “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee.
One of the quotes from the book is, “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make
music for us to enjoy … but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin
to kill a mockingbird.”
“For sheer length, volume, and enthusiasm, the mockingbird’s song is one of the
best,” said Ruth Lundin, president of the Audubon Society.
Mockingbirds are known for their long, complex songs that include imitations of
many other birds. They are also famous for how much they sing.
“This is usually enjoyable, except when they sing all night long!” she said.
The Audubon Society is partnering with Prendergast Library on the Big Read this
year because of the prominent place of a bird in the book and the opportunity
that presents to share information with people about birds and their songs.
Ms. Lundin’s program is free and open to the public.
The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in
partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest.
Major sponsors are the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation, Fredonia College,
the Robert H. Jackson Center, the 1891 Fredonia Opera House, and the
Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System.
For information, call 484-7135, Ext. 225. The library is located at 509 Cherry
St., Jamestown.
To Kill a Mockingbird Book Talks
The Library will host four sessions for people who would
like to talk with others about this classic American novel. Free and open to the
public, discussions will take place in the library’s Fireplace Room at: 2 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 24; 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26; 2 p.m. Tuesday, March 10; and 7 p.m.
Thursday, March 19.
Ms. Jarrow will speak at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25, at the Robert H. Jackson
Center on the topic “Bringing Archives to Life: How I Researched & Wrote the
Biography of Robert H. Jackson.” After the presentation, she will sign copies of
her book.
The Jackson Center will also host a series of movies about lawyers at 7 p.m.
each Wednesday in March. Titles are “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “Twelve Angry Men,”
“Inherit the Wind” and “Nuremberg.”
At Prendergast Library, the Jamestown Audubon Society will help children “Make a
Mockingbird” during a craft event at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 7, and inform adults
about “Backyard Birds and Their Songs” at 7 p.m. Monday, March 9.
Because the main character in the Big Read novel walked to work every day, two
colleagues from Fredonia College will share tips on starting a walking regimen
with a Prendergast audience at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 24.
Other book discussions, movie showings, displays and programs are scheduled at
public libraries throughout Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties during February
and March. Information is available at www.fredonia.edu/bigread/ <http://www.fredonia.edu/bigread/>
or by calling any local public library.
Prendergast To Kick Off Big Read On Feb. 3
JAMESTOWN – Prendergast Library will kick off The Big Read 2009 on Tuesday, Feb.
3, with several events promoting the theme “Lawyers and Literature.”
From 8:30 a.m. to noon, radio personality Jim Roselle of WJTN will broadcast
live from the library to promote the reading project that partners members of
the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System with SUNY Fredonia and the Robert H.
Jackson Center.
“The purpose of The Big Read is to bring communities together through books.
Jamestown’s kickoff events are a perfect example of that happening,” said Randy
Gadikian, director of Daniel A. Reed Library at SUNY Fredonia.
From 5 to 7 p.m., the public is invited to “Stroll Down Mockingbird Lane” in
Prendergast Library’s main reading room, where they can listen to music, view
collectibles, and sample refreshments that reflect the era and setting of this
year’s Big Read books.
The titles being featured are Harper Lee’s classic novel “To Kill a Mockingbird”
and Gail Jarrow’s biography “Robert H. Jackson: New Deal Lawyer, Supreme Court
Justice, Nuremberg Prosecutor.”
Copies of these books for library users to borrow plus free book marks and
readers’ guides will be available in the main reading room.
Refreshments during the kickoff event will feature “A Taste of the South”
provided by Elegant Edibles caterers, Forte Restaurant and Friends of
Prendergast Library.
“Southern cuisine presents so many tantalizing possibilities,” said Assistant
Library Director Tina Scott.
The staff has also set up a display of items from the 1930s, when “To Kill a
Mockingbird” took place, and the 1940s, when Jackson did much of his important
work. This display will be available for viewing throughout February and March
during regular library hours.
Reference librarians will also provide suggestions of other titles readers might
enjoy.
As The Big Read unfolds, more activities are planned in Jamestown such as a
conversation with biographer Charles J. Shields at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 11,
at the Robert H. Jackson Center, 305 E. Fourth St., Jamestown. Shields will
share interesting facts he learned about “To Kill a Mockingbird” author Harper
Lee while doing research to write a book about her.
At 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at Prendergast Library, children are invited to
make a memory box to store their treasures. The Children’s Room will provide
materials, but children must register and bring a box to decorate.
An appearance by Ms. Jarrow has also been confirmed for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb.
25, at the Robert H. Jackson Center.
Big Read activities being offered throughout the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library
System can be found at
www.fredonia.edu/bigread/. All events are free and open to the public.
The National Endowment for the Arts presents the Big Read in partnership with
the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest. Major sponsors
are the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation, Fredonia College, the Robert H.
Jackson Center and Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System.
Prendergast Library is located at 509 Cherry St., Jamestown. For more
information, call 484-7135, Ext. 225.