Channing Sargent

“Look what thy heart holds dear.
Imagine it
To lie that way thou go’st, not whence thou come’st.”

Quoting from Richard the II in her recent performance of Born Again Through Shakespeare in the WOW Festival, Gwyneth Richards shows how Shakespeare’s words have helped her get through very difficult periods in her life. The Complete Works of W. S. was her Bible and sustained her through ups and downs. From having Julius Caesar as her unfortunate initial introduction to the author, to later more satisfying work like Hamlet, Ms. Richards recounts with humor and fervor how she first saw the light and followed the Bard. She also reveals the trials and cost of that discipleship, and how W. S. has returned the favor. After graduating from college as an English major, Ms. Richards took his best advice, quit her job at a painfully dull trade magazine, and came to California. With persistence, she found work as a Shakespearean actress, teacher and scholar.

While her life journey covers much ground, the most fascinating part of the piece describes a period of depression, out of which emerges one of the most moving of her speeches: Hamlet’s “To Be or Not to Be” monologue. Later, Ms. Richards continues with an aptly chosen quote that reflects the essence of the Festival that encourages women to dare share their voices publicly, and in Ms. Richards’ case to do so with inspired intelligence.

In 51 and Counting, written and performed by Mary Ann Boyd, she begins her journey in a job interview. With an inner diva lurking close to the surface and breaking through periodically, Ms. Boyd reenacts some of the more challenging of her many vocations. From California cuisine server to pre-school teacher to phone-sex responder to real estate agent to cabaret singer, Ms Boyd manages to juggle this multi-faceted routine with spot-on timing, lightning speed and a great singing voice. Light-hearted and entertaining, 51 and Counting makes you realize that even the worst of job opportunities have potential for comic treatment, and if anyone can mine the gold from the dross, Mary Ann Boyd can do it.

And now for something completely and excitingly different: Legacy, written and directed by Channing Sargent. This fantastical, true tale is a complex story of Ms. Sargent’s family tree. She is a fifth-generation granddaughter of Brigham Young, founder of the Church of Latter Day Saints, which means she has the inside dope on secrets of Mormon history, polygamy and Utah, all of which are revealed in this intimate guided tour. Now, just because you are a direct descendent of the Church Head Honcho doesn’t mean you are OF the church, or stodgy or dull. Ms. Sargent’s didn’t go to church as the other children had to do. Instead, she was free to wear shorts and play outside. More importantly, she was free to think for herself. Channing developed a mind of her own outside the confines of her neighborhood. With text, personal narrative, video, and movement, Channing’s active imagination quietly deconstructs that life and steadily rebuilds it as she persistently asks the question, “What does it mean?” to be the descendent of such a personage.

With her assured voice with calm timbre, Ms. Sargent and her cast go through the list of the wives of Brigham Young, accompanied by projected photographs of those women’s faces. As their names and statuses are acknowledged — how they stayed with or escaped the oppression of their marriage to that man — one feels the powerful presence of those long-deceased women giving thanks. If Ms. Sargent has inherited anything, it is an innate sense of the power of the spoken word and the pioneering spirit to use it for just cause. She is definitely a performing artist whose voice we look forward to hearing more of.f.

Produced by Mary Alice Frye, Women on the Way Festival celebrated its eighth year performing in two venues this year, The Garage and Shotwell Studio. Looking forward to more WOW next year.