To Kill A Mockingbird: Guilty of Brilliance - Maya Athena Ballolla

 Maya Athena Ballolla

To Kill A Mockingbird

To Kill A Mockingbird: Guilty of Brilliance 

TW: Rape 

“All rise.” One of many notable and powerful lines which built the story of To Kill A Mockingbird on February 14 at the Orpheum Theatre. The awe-striking script of Aaron Sorkin matched with the tasteful vision of director Bartlett Sher moved the audience and created an eloquent narrative. 

To Kill A Mockingbird follows a trial of a black man, Tom Robinson, and his dutiful white lawyer, Atticus Finch, as narrated by Atticus’s children Scout and Jem and their friend Dill. When Tom is falsely accused of raping an “innocent” and white Mayella Ewell, Atticus Finch steps in to serve what hopefully will come to a just ending. Going back and forth between narration of the story and the trial, opinionated, frightened and determined characters step up to the stand, testifying for what happened in their eyes on the evening of November 21st. 

A debate of morals, actions, innocence and justice, the play was an impactful social commentary that is painfully relevant today. With heavy themes of racism and rape, each actor did well by their roles in respecting the themes of the play while sporting outstanding performances. One of the most notable relationships of the show was that of Atticus Finch and Bob Ewell. The infamous Atticus Finch was portrayed splendidly by award winning actor Richard Thomas. Thomas captured the fine line between Finch’s desire for justice but as a white man. Joey Collins demonstrated nothing but dedication and perseverance to the role of Finch’s counterpart, Bob Ewell. These relationships were best portrayed in the courtroom. While there was no short of verbal arguments and bickering, the subtleties of body language and death stares elevated their character dynamic to a whole new level. 

As Sorkin’s script was the main star of the show, the set and costume design were well-done but not flashy. Sets were moved by actors, keeping their humble appearance without distracting the audience with flashy technological design. In addition, costumes were understated, representing each character without stealing the spotlight. These augmentations led by the brilliant crew including scenic designer Miriam Buether and costume designer Ann Roth complimented the show perfectly. 

Although the storyline of the show is enthralling, a few moments in Sorkin’s script seemed to drag in comparison to the rest of the quick and climactic scenes. Moments on Atticus’s porch between Atticus and other characters fell a bit flat and while there seemed to be an intent of calmer energy in some of these scenes, it felt dulled down in some areas, resulting in a less intriguing conversation between characters. However, these moments of low energy didn’t last long and the show overall kept to a pretty high standard.

Powerful dialogue matched with moving performances has truly taken To Kill A Mockingbird to a new level. The show is a fantastic adaptation of Harper Lee’s novel which is a perfect show for deep reflection and is truly guilty of brilliance.