Thursday, March 5, 2009

"Doin' Time: Through the Visiting Glass"


From a UW press release:

A one-woman show that examines the impact of incarceration on families can be seen Tuesday, March 10, at 7 p.m. in the University of Wyoming Fine Arts studio theatre. The performance is free and open to the public.

Written and performed by Ashley Lucas, "Doin' Time: Through the Visiting Glass" is a joint production of the departments of Theatre and Dance and Criminal Justice and the Women's Studies and Chicano Studies programs. The play is also supported in part by the Wyoming Arts Council through the National Endowment of the Arts.

Lucas began conducting research for the play when her father was denied parole in the summer of 2003. As a graduate student in theatre and ethnic studies at University of California-San Diego, Lucas wanted to study the unrecognized community of prisoners' families and simultaneously write a play about the experience of having a loved one in prison.

Using her training in ethnography, Lucas conducted interviews in California, Texas and New York with prisoners' family members, former prisoners and people who do work connected to prisons or prison activism. She also corresponded with more than 400 prisoners from across the United States.

"Doin' Time: Through the Visiting Glass" uses monologues, voice-overs and video clips by videographers Jorge Nava and Nancy Loiselle to convey a variety of perspectives on the families of the incarcerated.

Photo: Ashley Lucas will perform her one-woman show "Doin' Time: Through the Visiting Glass" Tuesday, March 10, at 7 p.m. in the Fine Arts studio theatre. The performance is free and open to the public.