Powerfully drawn
A Line In The Sand
Written and Performed by Adina
Taubman
Directed by Padraic Lillis
Gemini Productions (www.alineinthesandtheshow.com)
Midtown International Theatre Festival (www.midtownfestival.org)
Workshop Jewel Box Theater,
Non-union (through July 25th)
Review by Michael D. Jackson
Author and solo performer Adina Taubman has put together a
marvelous one person show, A Line In The Sand, exploring the feelings of the Columbine
township after the disastrous 1999 shootings. Two high school students opened
fire, killing 12 classmates and a teacher before killing themselves on that
fateful day one April eight years ago. Taubman, horrified by the news of the incident and wanting to find
some way of doing something about the problem, flew out to Columbine and
conducted interviews with numerous individuals and consulted the journals of
the killers. The results of her research were assembled into her current play
and play well it does.
Taubman is very good at creating her dozens of characters,
but to ensure that audience members know exactly who is speaking, projected
names appear on a screen above her head. There is also the aid of some
multimedia photos, film, and a good supportive sound design which help give the
program variety. The presentation was an engaging hour of material, with a
shocking ending. There was an audible gasp from the audience as the long list
of other schools where copy cat shootings have occurred since Columbine rolled
on the screen. Taubman aims to keep the topic open
for discussion and performances at the festival include a post-show discussion.
Taubman’s modest but effective show should and will be seen by
many future audiences. She should immediately be booked on a high school
lecture tour, because under the guise of entertainment, this writer/actress is
doing something more important than most of us will do in a lifetime and it
would be a waste for her monumental show to only be seen by a handful of
patrons during the limited run of her performance at the Midtown International
Theatre Festival.
A Line in the Sand deserves recognition as one of the best productions of the festival. It
is a well directed, well acted and exceptionally designed production which
overcomes the limits of festival conditions. The play rises up as an example of
how excellence can be achieved simply and that the immediacy of live theatre
carries with it a special power to possibly transform, but to definitely
educate in a most interesting and profound way.
Writing: 2
Directing: 2
Acting: 2
Sets: 2
Costumes: 2
Lighting/Sound: 2
Copyright 2007 Michael D. Jackson
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