Steve Martin will pay for the production of banned high school play

[eagertolearn]

Steve Martin has responded to the stories about our high schools ban of his play "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" and has responded with a letter to our newspaper and an offer to pay for the plays production. Articles below:

http://www.lagrandeobserver.com/News/Local-News/PLAY-FRAY

http://www.lagrandeobserver.com/Opinion/Editorials/Play-does-have-redeeming-qualities

Steve Martins letter:
http://www.lagrandeobserver.com/Opinion/Guest-Columns/Of-arts-and-sciences

Our local directors (Kevin Cahill) blog about the difficulties with the play:

http://www.afreehand.blogspot.com/

[MorningGlow]

1. I love that man

He catches a lot of shit for things like his Pink Panther movies, but he's brilliant and a great writer. Just finished reading his autobiography, Born Standing Up, and it gave me a renewed appreciation for his genius.

[burythehatchet]

15. When I was 18 I went to the record store and traded five rock albums for his first

album Lets Get Small (I think).

[rhett o rick]

62. Yes I have that "Album". nm

[RoyGBiv]

30. He's a bit like Jeff Daniels ...

Daniels does things like Dumb and Dumber in order to fund things like community theater projects and the like.

Like Daniels, Martin actually shows the vast range of his talent in being able to pull off something as absurd as Inspector Clouseau one minute and do something like A Simple Twist of Fate the next. I have a lot of respect for him.

[BlooInBloo]

34. I think Daniels might be a bit like *him*.

[RoyGBiv]

40. Good point n/t

[Ken Burch]

38. I always thought "Roxanne" was Martin's best film

funny and quite touching. And the "nose joke" competition scene is a cinematic classic.

[RoyGBiv]

41. That is excellent ...

The nose joke scene is one of my all-time favorite scenes in any movie I've ever seen.

I don't think of it immediately because I don't like Daryl Hannah for rather convoluted, completely irrational reasons.

A Simple Twist of Fate sticks with me because it shocked me at how good it was. It was not at all what I expected when I sat down to watch it the first time, and I immediately re-watched it.

In all, Martin has a very good catalog.

[Frisbee]

44. How could anyone not love...

Elle Driver (or Steve Martin)? :)

[RoyGBiv]

48. It's irrational ...

If you knew the person she reminds me of, right down to her looks, you'd understand. :)

[jeff30997]

54. Wild guess:

Ann Coulter ? If not please give a clue or PM me.I'm dying to know.:)

[RoyGBiv]

56. Oh, sorry ...

Don't mean to tease. It's totally a personal thing.

Funny thing is, there is a chance you'd know her since she is a notable person in her field, and if you're in her field you'd know who she is. I went to high school with her. Brilliant. Also insane. She damn near killed her boyfriend in high school.

Double funny thing is I'm at this very moment transcoding a video from a VHS tape I found not long ago with her in it. She's being her normal insane self. Good thing she's not truly famous. I'd be rich. :)

[Baikonour]

51. The shit he catches for it is entirely deserved.

It's nothing less than the rape of Peter Sellers for a buck.

I used to like Martin, but everything he's done since the mid-90's has been, at best, very mediocre.

[RoyGBiv]

52. I'm sure Peter Sellars feels raped ...

Sellars, if anyone, would understand Martin and what he does, and if he felt raped, he'd be happy about it.

[CreekDog]

61. He wrote and starred in Bowfinger in 1999 and it was brilliant

one of the best satires of Hollywood ever made.

oh no, don't think he is off his game.

and at the same time, he published a book (Pure Drivel was a wonderful set of essays) and was published in the New Yorker.

[rhett o rick]

63. I agree with you. nm

[Solly Mack]

2. That's great!

[leftyclimber]

3. Hooray for Steve Martin!

That was a wonderful letter, and his offer will stay with those kids for the rest of their lives.

Martin's the real deal. (And wrote one helluva play with Picasso.)

[Dappleganger]

4. Awesome!

I love it when actors give back at the community level.

[yellerpup]

5. Steve Martin and student Democrats at EOU rule!

The university students stood up first, gave the high school kids a venue to perform their play then Steve (King Tut) Martin kicked in to make sure it happened. Love it that the funds the kids are raising above and beyond the cost of production are going to a scholarship fund. Win, win, win, win, win! K&R!

[eagertolearn]

6. Yes the EOU student democrats came to our rescue 1st.

We were so sad when both the high school and then the college (and the armory wouldn't let us rent their space) said no to the production but the EOU student Dems came forward and said they would rent the theatre and help the high school students put on the play! Steve Martins letter and support was the frosting on the cake! Now the other donations can go torwards a scholarship for a La Grande High School student to study drama at Eastern Oregon University!

[yellerpup]

16. This is the coolest story!

This illustrates the real change that is taking place in the USA, and it is so inspiring that the student activists are leading the way. Bless Steve Martin for the frosting, but without the student activism keeping the story (and the production hopes) alive, we may only ever have read about the cancellation. Not one false move! Bravo!!! :dem: :dem: :dem:

[TahitiNut]

7. It's too bad more in La Grande don't appreciate Kevin Cahill ... a 'Profile in Courage.'

We often get better than we deserve as a result of the passion and conviction of everyday 'heroes' in our midst.

Sadly, no good deed goes unpunished.

[dmr]

20. 'Profile in Courage' - I agree. His blog ought to be required reading

The question is asked in the local newspaper:
http://www.lagrandeobserver.com/
Did the school board make the right decision concerning the play "Picasso at the Lapin Agile"?
No
704 74.7%

Yes
239 25.3%
------------------------

I wanted to take a look at his blog, and ended up reading it all. The students at his high school have a true treasure here and I can understand why Steve Martin spoke so highly of him in his Letter to the Editor.

Here is a March 4th blog excerpt on censorship.

http://afreehand.blogspot.com/2009/03/banning-picasso-at-lapin-agile-is-it.html
- snip -
Controversy is a perfectly legitimate vehicle for learning; indeed it could be argued that controversy is an essential ingredient to certain essential kinds of learning. Controversy is nothing more or less than the presence of rival claims. As such it is a prerequisite and a catalyst to informed discourse and debate. Without controversy there is literally nothing to discuss, there are only facts to assimilate and formulas to commit to memory.

Theater thrives on the tension between characters and ideas. One could argue that controversy is its engine. Calling a play uncontroversial is akin to saying that it has no heart. If what is enacted onstage does not make rival claims upon our hearts and minds, if it does not occasionally perplex and provoke us, it is not doing the job it has had ever since its inception in ancient Greece.

Yet some people want to domesticate theater; they want to rewrite its job description. They want theater to simply amuse us, to allow us to merely while away the hours. The is no earthly reason why theater cannot do this too, but to suggest that this is the primary function of theater is tantamount to high jacking an entire art form for the narrow and selfish pleasures of one specific group of people. Consider the following analogy. Imagine a high school football player being asked by squeamish members of the public to merely play at half speed, to not hit with full contact, to not reach deep down and find that little extra to make a difference at a critical moment. People who don't know what it means to compete between the lines may not understand how deep the desire runs inside an athlete to discover the limits of his potential on the playing field. The same is true of student actors.

My role as a director is to furnish my student actors with creative challenges that allow them to discover their potential. People who want to question my play selection are entitled to do so, but they ought to consider the ramifications of second guessing a serious and well founded theatrical project. When a teacher and a principal with 50 combined years of educational experience between them, with proven track records of high standards and unquestioned commitment to students, when they commit to a project such as this and are passionate in advocating its benefits to students, one would hope that would count for something. Where is the presumption of good faith? Where is the conservative temperament that patiently observes and reserves judgment until the results are in evidence?

Instead, what we witnessed in this case was a rush to judgment, a impulse to censor something because it seemed controversial. It was, to my mind, a response ruled by fear as opposed to one ruled by curiosity. This is a brand of censorship that eats away at our innate capacity to learn because it tends to foreclose opportunities for new and interesting experiences. I would be the last person to suggest that we as parents and educators don't have an obligation to protect our young people from influences and experiences that they are ill equipped to face. And here is where we get to the heart of the matter. What are they equipped to face? And do we want to encourage or discourage them from facing controversy?

While reasonable people can disagree about such things, the most distressing thing to me about this whole affair (the Picasso Affair)has been the almost total lack of willingness on the part of the complainants and their supporters to acknowledge any potential merit in this theatrical project. No mention of the cultural and historical context of the play specifically it's being set at the beginning of the Age of Modernity, the allusions to artistic and philosophical movements, to famous artists like Picasso and Matisse, to scientists like Einstein, the wit and intelligence of the humor, and to the absurdest techniques employed by Martin in his play. Instead the rhetoric of the complaint conveyed complete and utter disdain for the project on absolutely every level. It is impossible to have a dialogue with someone who has cast your motives and your objectives into the gutter, even while protesting that they don't mean to impugn your teaching talents.

It's censorship pure and simple, but it is a censorship that emanates as much from the bottom up as from the top down. My position here is not play the censorship card like some kind of shibboleth, nor is it to insist upon some absolute right of free speech; rather, it is to simply confront the thing and call it by its real name.
- snip -

[TahitiNut]

24. Yup. That entry impressed me too ... and it's apparent that it's representative of his thought ...

... processes. This is NOT a superficial person. He understands the social dialectic and the necessity of engagement. His students are very fortunate. At the same time, he's not unique. While not the 'average' he's representative of thousands of engaged, motivated, and thoughtful teachers in communities everywhere.

[AlbertCat]

35. He's a smart guy

The analogy to football is brilliant....because not only will student athletes and jocks understand what he's talking about even if they don't "do" theatre, it's a good and true comparison. Way to go!

[Bluenorthwest]

8. Gosh, that Steve can write a letter!

First saw Steve open for John Denver many years ago. My young nephew had to be removed from the auditorium to regain his breath, laughing so hard we feard he'd pass out cold. Now that's comedy!
I'd also like to point out that the raised voices of Mr Cahill, his students and good citizens like yourself, eagertolearn, that brought this production to the attention of Steve Martin. Silence would not have gotten his ear. So yes, Steve is doing the right thing, and should be praised, but along with him each local activist or artist who spoke up and spoke out should also get kudos, and even flowers in the mail, if only metaphorically.
If this production gets to run, please post the info as soon as it is available. I for one would try to come from Eugene to see and to support and to thank the cast and crew for their courage.

[eagertolearn]

13. Yes, Kevin Cahill and the students have stood their ground.

We are lucky to have a teacher like Kevin who is teaching our students how to critically think and how to participate in this ever changing world. It is hard to speak up on this side of Oregon. I was misquoted by a local radio station. But the play will go on and I'm hoping "both sides" will show up to see that there's more to it than what was originally protested and portrayed.

[Marr]

9. I thought this comment from Cahill was interesting:

"The arguments presented thus far against the play have all had one thing in common. They are extreme; they are blanket condemnations; they concede nothing meritorious to the other side..."

I've noticed this many times from Conservatives (I suspect the people banning the play are Conservatives). They refuse to acknowledge even a ounce of legitimacy to their opponent's position. They're always 100% right, their opposition is always 100% wrong.

Years ago I read a few quotes from big movement Conservatives like Newt Gingrich and Rush Limbaugh. They had both consciously recommended this tack as a means of stirring people up. Both Gingrich and Limbaugh had expressed the sentiment that you should always condemn your opponent as being completely wrong, blame everything that goes wrong on them, and accept nothing they say. I thought it was disgusting.

Anyway, I wonder if people like these picked this up from their Conservative leaders over time, or if they're just naturally inclined to such childish thinking.

[Lost in CT]

11. This time it was the conservatives... as it is when Rent is banned...

but to often our side also gets involved in this silliness (banning Romeo and Juliet as well as Annie get your Gun.)

[Marr]

18. Why would anyone want to ban either of those?

[Lost in CT]

21. Romeo and Juliet has teen suicide and swords...

Annie Get your Gun has well guns....

Both sides of the p[olitical debate need to get out of the think of the children business...

[AlbertCat]

37. Romeo and Juliet has teen suicide and swords...

Banning it....Oh the irony....and the whole figgin' play is about how being fanatical and unyielding can only lead, and be broken, by extreme loss. It's not ABOUT teen suicide and swords.

One problem is what people expect from their "drama" today is merely a plot. Ideas need not be present.

[Lost in CT]

65. Swords and guns in plays violate the zero tolerance policies...

And if the play has smoking... well the vapors can be felt one county over...

[GoneOffShore]

58. I can see excoriating a production of "Rent" - but only because it sucks on so many levels.

Music, book, characterization.

[Cha]

28. Very interesting! I know

this takes place but I didn't know it came straight from the Grand ol' Perverts' mouths.

[Bluenorthwest]

10. Read the other pieces

May 16-18...going to try to make it...

[havocmom]

12. BRAVO!

It is a fantastic play, and should go on! How cool for the kids that the author would do this.

[MindMatter]

43. Turn the tables on them

If the community takes him up on the offer, Martin would probably make an appearance at the opening if his schedule permitted. Imagine how much news that would make. It would guarantee a sellout, and force the local media to cover the event, including the fact that no good Christian souls slipped into the evil clutches of the Antichrist on that evening.

[The Backlash Cometh]

14. Good man.

[barbtries]

17. oregon

i read all the articles and the teacher's blog and still don't know what state! now i have to go read the play...

[dickthegrouch]

19. I'm impressed

That doesn't happen often in regard to Mr Martin's work :-).
This time I am fully in agreement with his analysis and resolution.

[yorgatron]

22. why don't they do "High School Musical" instead?

no controversy there,just good clean fun!

:eyes:


:popcorn:


:puke:

[spanone]

23. well alriiiiiiiigt!

[4lbs]

25. Someone's looking like a jerk and it's not Steve Martin.

:+

[windoe]

26. K & R Facing controversy

and encouraging critical thinking is what great theatre is all about, and why the arts cannot be cut out of education. Thank you Steve Martin, the ripple that this controversy caused may open many more avenues of free expression.

[blogslut]

27. kick

I love this post.

[LuckyLib]

29. The students have learned huge lessons about censorship and hypocrisy.

As well as how few grown-ups trust them to be critical thinkers, to engage with literature, drama, and the arts.

The play should be performed multiple times as a fund-raiser for future arts projects directed by Mr. Cahill.

[Bucky]

31. What's really bizarre about this is how harmless the play itself is.

It's a humorous analysis of how art, entertainment, science, & business helped shape the 20th century. It's funny & accessible but very brainy & academic--the sort of play that might turn a high school kid's head onto learning. There's a few naughty jokes in the play and Picasso's character has a young lover (one of his models). Apparently the mom who started the petition objected to these slight few naughty puns and the fact that the play takes place in a bar. Only it's a real, historical bar where many such intellectual conversations took place at the turn of the last century. Her complaint makes about as much sense as objecting to students looking at DaVinci's "Last Supper" because they're serving wine.

[Ken Burch]

32. Thanks, Steve!

And La Grande is just the sort of place that NEEDS to see a play like this.

[BlooInBloo]

33. A class act.

[rcrush]

36. Rock me Rock me Sexy Jesus!

I guess theres a reason Steve Martin is still doing Pink Panther movies. So he can still affoard to do stuff like this?

[Quantess]

42. OMG I loved Hamlet 2!

:rofl:

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

39. How long before some "enlightened" member of the community rants....

......about Martin being a typical member of the "Hollywood elite" not understanding "small town values"?

[The Wizard]

60. These are the same hand wringing lunatics

who would burn witches at the stake.
"When a true genius appears in this world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him."
(Jonathan Swift)

[chollybocker]

45. I was lucky enough to see this play about, what, 10 years ago?

and it's very thought-provoking and well-written; of course the jokes are very high wit. One of the best American plays I've seen in the last 10 years. High school theatre students should be able to study and perform this play for those reasons alone.

[rucky]

53. I caught it at the Geffen.

that was 10 years ago? day-um.

[knitter4democracy]

46. *sigh* It's "Ten Nights in a Bar Room" all over again.

At our conservative evangelical Christian college, it was really hard for us drama club people. Everything we did was censored and had to meet the approval of the college president. Anyway, after the "Look Homeward, Angel" incident, we student directors and our prof got twitchy. One year, the student director picked an 1800s temperance melodrama, "Ten Nights in a Bar Room."

There were protestors outside the theater on opening night. Even though we put the word "temperance" in the freakin' poster and the church was known as a temperance church, apparently, many in the student body never looked the word up. There was a ltte in the newspaper before opening damning the play as a pro-alcohol play that was entirely inappropriate for our college, and some of the religion/Christian ed./business majors even formed a group that put up flyers and shouted down our promos in chapel. Yeah.

The college president himself had to go to opening night and talk with the dumbasses walking a picket line outside of the chapel building and explain to them what temperance meant, along with our prof. The play was jinxed during its whole run.

I'm just sayin'--if they'll attack their own over a temperance play, I can just imagine the crap that drama teacher's dealing with.

[petronius]

47. That's a really fantastic letter - polite, clear, reasonable

Pretty much a textbook example of how to contribute to public discourse.

(And if I was Cahill, I'd have already have a dozen copies of this laminated and/or framed...)

[Stargazer09]

49. I can't help thinking I know Kevin Cahill somehow

The name seems familiar, and seeing the pictures on his blog tickles my memories, too. I lived in LaGrande for several years (sixth grade through the beginning of ninth grade), then spent several years in another Eastern Oregon town. I wish I could remember why that name seems so familiar!

Anyway, I am really happy about the EOU Democrats and Steve Martin stepping up for this. It's amazing how one parent can ruin everything, isn't it? I wonder if any of the people signing the petition even bothered to read the play, or if they just went along with the complaining parent without doing their homework. People can be so weak-minded sometimes; you'd think adults would be above some of this childishness.

Thanks for posting this! :)

[Swagman]

50. would they rather a Chuck Norris play?

[jeff30997]

55. Of course.

And the tittle would be: The Man Who Could Hide Behind a Cereal Box Standing Up.

[Puppyjive]

57. Watch Big Love this Sunday on HBO

The La Grande school district is unable to separate church from state. Those opposing the play have threatened to remove their children from the public schools. I say, remove them and the staff that cannot keep their religious views to themselves. And if you are wondering what religion we are talking about here, just catch the next episode of Big Love. They don't want you to watch that either.

[Maat]

59. Thank you, Mr. Martin.

He's a class act.

[saltpoint]

64. Nicely done, Mr. Martin.

[Vanje]

66. Keeping it kicked nt