I met Lesley Chapman years ago, but now it seems I hardly knew her, and I regret that to my soul. This much I can say: Lesley directed the Theater Cooperative in Somerville at a time when I was writing grant proposals for at Elizabeth Peabody House, where the theater was housed. She thought clearly and felt deeply about the ways that participating in theater could transform teenagers' lives. She staged plays for adult audiences that no one would have expected in a neighborhood better known for the Winter Hill Gang. She was passionate and funny, sometimes in the same sentence. Lesley also taught many adult ed offerings at Temple B'nai Brith, just up the hill from Peabody House, most recently on Erev Shavuot 2008. For anyone who was willing to follow her into the intricacies of the text, it was a fabulous journey. She should have lived to produce many more plays, teach many more students. It is a deep, deep loss for all of us.
Dennis Fischman
97 Yorktown Street
Somerville, MA 02144
(617) 776-4701
No comments:
Post a Comment