(Above: Left to right, the cast of A Lesson Before Dying — Dawaun Lawler, Zayne Clayton, Terrell Dickerson, Michael Hoekstra, Martha Moultry, Adam Leonard, and Stanley Coleman; photo courtesy of VLT.)
Edited by Randi Bjornstad
A Lesson Before Dying, the latest production at the Very Little Theatre, is a Romulus Linney adaptation of the novel of the same name, written by Ernest J. Gaines.
It tells the story of Jefferson, a young Black man from the backwoods of Louisiana, who is innocent of a crime he is accused of committing but is found guilty, given the death penalty, and sent to prison to await execution.
There, he insists that he will have to be dragged like an animal — a lawyer during his trial had referred to him as “no more a human being than a hog” — to the electric chair, but his godmother implores a schoolteacher named Grant Wiggins to teach Jefferson how to die like a man.
That sounds pretty dismal, but Hershell Norwood, who is directing the VLT production, describes the play as “a timely, enduring story about family, faith, loss, and the beauty of human connection.”
In fact, Norwood says, “This story is ultimately an uplifting one, enabling each of us to look inside ourselves for what binds us together.”
The cast includes Zayne Clayton, Stanley Coleman, Terrell Dickerson, Michael Hoekstra, Dawaun Lawler, Adam Leonard, and Martha Moultry.
A Lesson Before Dying at The Very Little Theatre
When: Evenings at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 20-21, 27-28, and Feb. 2-4; matinees at 2 p.m. on Jan. 22 and 29, and Feb. 5
Where: The Very Little Theatre, 2350 Hilyard St., Eugene
Tickets: $24, except for the Thursday evening performance, which is $20; available online at TheVLT.com or through the box office
Information: 541-344-7751
