Trees and Trains

With corona virus changing the world I once knew, it has also reshaped my understanding of narratives we read in class. Sonny’s Blues is a prime example of a story that corona virus changed my perspective on. Specifically it has changed my perception of inner cities. I have always had a complicated relationship with neighborhoo ds, as when I was young I was aware I was fortunate. However it wasn’t until I saw the dilapidated neighborhoods of Chicago, NYC, Compton, my home city of Detroit, Watts, and north Champaign in person. After seeing the conditions people live through in the urban “trenches”, as they were called”, I came to realize the scale to which I was blessed. I was sure to not let my position go to my head and always check my privilege on a regular basis. I feel very sympathetic to Sonny’s brother as I fear for those who I left behind in middle school and hope they achieve great things succeed in life when I know life is cruel and unfair. In Sonny’s Blues the na...

A set design of a theater adaptation of “BarbieQ” by Sandra Cisneros would require two different sets for the two different scenes. First there would be a living room where the two characters play with their Barbie’s. There would be typical living room items such as: a coffee table, places to sit, and an array of Barbie outfits strewn across the center of the stage. Here they would play and the narrating character would proceed to stand up and speak to the audience in a soliloquy. This would be executed with the excitement and energy of a child talking about their favorite toys. Second would be the scene where the two go to the flea market. To transition between the sets the light would go out and the curtain, painted to appear as the living room, would be pulled back to reveal a sky line of Chicago. The skyline would be painted on panels of wood depicting the Chicago skyline one would see if they looked to the north east from Maxwell Street. There would be several stalls on stag...