A Reflection on SPARK at UCSB
Sat, 12/01/2012 - 19:13
csvich
University of California-Santa Barbara
November 12, 2012
Directed by Kellyn Johnson, producer/dramaturg: Jackie Viskup
by Kane Anderson
Vaughn was one of the more difficult roles I’ve played. He offers a flicker of non-realism in a piece largely grounded in the aesthetic of realism. While the text does not provide an explicit statement of who/what Vaughn is, I conceived the role as the personification of all those soldiers returning from war. Unlike those other characters committed to a singularly personal point of view, Vaughn perceives Lexie’s situation as part of a larger panorama of Americans returning from war (alive or otherwise).
Because we approached the play reading as Story Theatre, I remained onstage throughout the reading, and shared the stage directions with the audience. This provided Vaughn with the appearance of limited omniscience so I played the role as though he knew the answers even before he asked Lexie the questions. He knows what Lexie feels because he’s seen it (lived it?) in many others before this interaction. But at the same time, Vaughn recognizes that each story is precious and personal. Each moment he shares with Lexie is in honorable service to those who no longer have moments to share.
While the play ends with a suggestion that reintegration is possible, the outcomes for Lexie are still uncertain. My objective in her scene with Vaughn concerned helping Lexie make her choice about whether to go on living and fighting and suffering, or end it all in a mighty splash. I spoke with our director Kellyn and our dramaturg Jackie about how we didn’t see the encounter with Vaughn as a “talking cure” for all that ails Lexie; instead, this scene actualizes Lexie’s difficult step on a longer journey. It was important to me that Vaughn be open to either possible outcome from his exchange. Even though he encourages her to go on living and keep fighting, he will honor Lexie no matter what. He does not judge. He’s seen too much.
It’s not lost on me that in the case of Lexie—and many other returning soldiers—a whole new fight begins after the battling ends. I found in Vaughn’s speeches a bit of appreciation for Christian suffering. With the concept of suffering as redemptive and transformative guiding me, I discovered the link in how the boot camp/drill sergeant imagery transitions to a Southern preacher’s spirited rousing. With this, I encountered a spiritual component in military service that felt very special to me, the actor. I confess that I’m embarrassingly out of touch of what a warrior in our armed services faces both at home and away. The realization of this spirituality, and the bond built from the shared experiences that so few can ever understand, humbled me.
Playing Vaughn in this Veteran’s Day reading of SPARK at UCSB allowed me in some small way to give back to a community that I’ve regrettably allowed, or even unwittingly encouraged, to become invisible. To those men and women of our armed forces: while I cannot repay what you’ve given, you give us all hope. The least we can do is give some back to you.
Kane Anderson is an actor, teacher, and scholar studying popular culture and performance. He will complete his PhD at UC Santa Barbara this year with his dissertation titled "Truth, Justice and the Performative Way!" Superhero Performance and Anxieties of Cultural Change in 21st Century America. He also holds an MFA in Theatre Performance from Arizona State University and teaches acting, directing, and writing.