Bluebird Express

May 23, 2014 6:11 AM

Prison of Oz: Staying Human in an Ohio Prison Dorothy, something of a diva, let the laughter subside. Then she started to sing with a voice of resounding beauty about a land she once heard of in a lullaby, about chimney tops and lemon drops and wanting to fly away. "Why oh, why, can't I?"

Link contains text and video about a prison production of The Wizard of Oz, including interviews with actors and scenes from the show.

posted by EvaDestruction (6 comments total)

Theater is some of the best therapy I've ever had. And it takes as much teamwork and discipline as any sport I've ever seen.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 6:26 AM on May 23, 2014

I feel like including this quote in an article about a play performed mostly by convicted child rapists should have been thought through a little more:

"One of these days they might be sitting next to you at your kid's softball game. That's just the truth of it. We need to do something with them."

That said, this is an excellent thing and I'm glad it exists. It's really tough to confront the idea that someone who has done something so horrible deserves a measure of human kindness and light, but I think that's why forgiveness is so valuable. It's not easy. Watching these videos made me confront that thought, so thank you for posting it.
posted by fight or flight at 6:27 AM on May 23, 2014 [1 favorite]

Haggard played at the Chillicothe Correctional Institution because his friend, Johnny Paycheck, was doing time there for shooting a man in an Ohio bar.

An argument over where the job should be shoved got out of hand, apparently.
posted by dr_dank at 6:45 AM on May 23, 2014 [4 favorites]

This sounds more like a play within a play.
posted by pracowity at 7:14 AM on May 23, 2014

This sounds more like a play within a play.

It would make a great movie.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 10:48 AM on May 23, 2014

Check out Lilies sometime, Underpants. Gay love story, play within a play--genius movie.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 7:27 AM on May 24, 2014 [1 favorite]