![]() ![]() When Bob Ewell pays a visit to the Finch house after Tom Robinson is given the death penalty and shares a few words, the infamously respectful do-gooder puts Ewell in a chokehold, calling the drunkard inferior and beneath him. Perhaps one of the most altered scenes of the play occurs in the final half hour. Sorkin’s adaptation seems to focus on making audiences question their perception of Atticus Finch today. “At the end of the movie, he’s sort of like, ‘Oh well, isn’t it great that we solved racism?’” “It’s a little bit like a white savior sort of moment,” Moore said of the character of Atticus Finch in the 1961 screenplay. The character of Atticus Finch has been criticized in recent decades - with many people knocking the portrayal of him as a “white savior.” He got to the very heart of the story - Atticus Finch. But Aaron Sorkin sort of modernizes that and gives the African American characters more of a voice.”īut Sorkin changed more than just a few characters and scenes. “You don’t really get to hear a lot from him or learn a lot about him or the character Calpurnia. “In the book, the Tom Robinson story is only two chapters,” Welch said. Along with Calpurnia, Sorkin also shines a brighter spotlight on Tom Robinson (Yaegel Welch). Calpurnia (Jacqueline Williams) is transformed from a background character into a challenger of Atticus, often making fun of his ideals and supporting the fighting spirit of the Finch kids over Atticus himself. ![]() And while I’m still a very large part, it isn’t necessarily what the play centers around.”Īlong with this, Sorkin notably gives more scenes to Black characters. “It’s more about Atticus’s loss of innocence and his journey to understanding. The story is not about my loss of innocence,” Moore said. “I am the narrator, but I’m not the main character. ![]() In fact, Scout is no longer the main character at all. The characters provide a comical twist to the painful tale that often reflects real life.īut Scout’s role as a co-narrator isn’t the only change Sorkin makes. She’s constantly getting to the heart of the matter and asking questions about what it was, why it was, what does that mean?”Īlthough the play relates to the book and movie in that it is narrated by Scout, she is joined by Jem and Dill as the play’s narrators. “Scout is on a quest for truth,” Moore said. Scout is constantly asking questions, and this is portrayed in the scene where she manages to unmask the angry mob as her “friends and neighbors.” Cunningham (Travis John), who she bonded with towards the beginning of the play. The Broadway play maintains classic scenes - such as when Scout (Melanie Moore) confronts a mob of men with childish innocence. ![]() This highest-grossing American play in Broadway history, directed by Bartlett Sher and on this tour starring Emmy Award-winner Richard Thomas (Atticus Finch), transformed audiences into courtrooms for a nearly three-hour performance. “To Kill a Mockingbird,” which opened for its Broadway run in 2018, came to Kentucky Center for The Arts June 20 to 25. Over 50 years after the release of both the movie and the book, playwright Aaron Sorkin takes the story of “To Kill a Mockingbird” in a direction that subtly and at times drastically alters themes and events of the book, making for a controversial take on a classic story. Elizabeth Kramer, Executive Director, Arts Angle Vantage Even with changes, cast of ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ say Sorkin’s play captures cruelty of racism, loss of innocenceīy Sammie Haden | Arts Angle Vantage ReporterĭuPont Manual High School, Class of 2025 Then teen reporters Sammie Haden and Adam West got to see the show on opening night, giving them further insights to write their articles.Īrts Angle Vantage and the participants are grateful to Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Brian Edward and Joanne Sweeny, University of Louisville’s Brandeis School of Law professor and the associate dean for academic affairs, actors Melanie Moore and Yaegel T Welch, and teacher and actor Shona Tucker, who just moved back to her hometown.Īs always, we appreciate LEO Weekly and Editor Erica Rucker for helping us elevate youth voices and the arts by practicing the values of collaborative journalism. One was deeply familiar with the book and movie and another came to it anew.Īrts Angle Vantage gave them opportunities to interview legal experts who talked about the intersection of race and the law with a historical perspective and how it pertains to Harper Lee’s story and to ask questions of the show’s current cast members and members of the original Broadway cast. “To Kill a Mockingbird,” here with PNC Broadway in Louisville’s recent presentation of the touring production, gave Arts Angle Vantage teen reporters different opportunities. ![]()
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