To Kill a Mockingbird

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View books by Christopher Sergel, Harper Lee.

A grand novel adapted to a small stage. - Rated
All the familiar characters, the small town setting, and the major racial themes of Harper Lee's classic novel of To Kill a Mockingbird are compressed in this faithful adaptation of the novel to the stage. Scout is as spunky, warm-hearted, and curious about life here in the stage play as she is in the novel and film, and Atticus Finch is just as passionate an advocate for justice. Tom Robinson is just as Job-like, and the Ewell family is as hate-filled and ignorant as we expect them to be. The supporting cast, with their asides and small town gossip, convey the social setting of the 1950s, as the human tragedy of racial prejudice and unequal justice are brought to life.

The magnificence of the novel and the film, however, depends in large part on atmosphere and the tension that develops slowly and irrevocably, as the townspeople, most of them basically good at heart, reveal the prejudices which they allow to govern their lives. By reducing the scope of this story to the stage (and, unfortunately, also including an intermission halfway through the action), the mood and tension so important to this story, never really develop. Miss Maudie's monologues to the audience throughout the play are an attempt to set the Deep South tone, but they "tell about" what is important, rather than show it dramatically. When Tom Robinson is arrested and jailed for the rape of a white woman and Atticus Finch is assigned to defend him, the message begins to feel didactic, rather than the inevitable, sad outgrowth of time and place. Without the necessary atmosphere and mood, the story feels like a morality play, and the audience does not connect emotionally to the action.

Most disappointing in the play is the relative insignificance of Boo Radley. A mystery throughout the novel and film, Boo, destroyed by real life, acts as a foil for the children and a counterpoint to the Ewells in the novel and film. In the play he is simply the deus ex machina, showing up briefly in the last scene to resolve the action, and Scout's tender reaction to him is too brief to carry much impact. The small stage seems too small for this grand classic. Mary Whipple