'Faith's Affair' to debut as Women's History Month finale
Contact: Christina Chapple
3/22/06
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Women's History Month schedule
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(1) FAITH’S AFFAIR – Southeastern Louisiana University English professor Jayetta Slawson (standing) works with the actors in “Faith’s Affair,” her adaptation of Louise Shivers’ acclaimed novel, “Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail.” Adapted as “staged storytelling,” “Faith’s Affair” will be presented as part of Women’s History Month on Tuesday, March 28, at 7 p.m. in Vonnie Borden Theatre. From left, seated, are Southeastern student actors Lindsey Mayo of Hammond, Garrett Hines and Rusty King, both of Mandeville.
(2) SPECIAL GUEST AT DEBUT -- Louise Shivers, author of the acclaimed novel "Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail," will be the guest of honor at "Faith's Affair," a staged storytelling adaption of her novel by Southeastern English faculty member Jayetta Slawson.
HAMMOND – Long fascinated by Louise Shivers’ critically-acclaimed 1983 novel “Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail,” Southeastern Louisiana University English professor Jayetta Slawson has adapted the work for the stage as a finale for the university’s celebration of Women’s History Month.
Titled “Faith’s Affair,” Slawson’s dramatization will be presented at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 28, in Vonnie Borden Theatre. The performance is free.
Slawson said Shivers, writer-in-residence at Augusta State University in Augusta, Ga., will be the guest of honor at the debut of “Faith’s Affair” and will sign books in the D Vickers Hall lobby during a post-performance reception celebrating Women’s History Month.
A story of loneliness on a North Carolina tobacco farm, “Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail” was named best first novel of the year by “USA Today.” In 1986, it was adapted for a feature film entitled “Summer Heat,” and in 2003 John F. Blair Publishers released a 20th anniversary edition of the novel. Her second novel, “A Whistling Woman,” published in 1993, earned Shivers a Georgia Author of the Year Award presented by the Georgia Council of Authors and Journalists.
Slawson describes “Faith’s Affair” as “staged storytelling.” Three actors – Lindsey Mayo of Hammond, Garrett Hines and Rusty King, both of Mandeville -- will act out the parts, bringin Shivers’ novel alive for the audience.
Set in 1937, “Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail” is told through the voice of the wife of a struggling tobacco farmer. When wanderer Jack Ruffin is sent out to the farm to help her husband, Faith’s life is forever changed.
“Faith’s Affair,” Slawson said, “embodies elements of storytelling, acting, music, and both direct and indirect modes of performance. It is not a ‘polished’ play. It is not the typical Broadway fare. It is storytelling drama. It is a Southern novel, with Southern characters, written by a Southern writer, and adapted as a performance script by a Southern native.”
Slawson said the protagonist of “Here to Get My Baby Out of Jail,” Roxanna (Faith) Walston, has been “haunting” her since she discovered the character in a Baltimore bookstore in 1987.
“The recent publication of the 20th anniversary of the book, and its selection by Southern Scribe as a Literary Classic suggests that I’m not the only one who likes the story,” she said. “Erskine Caldwell once called the book an ‘informal history of human destiny.’”
Slawson said that “Faith’s Affair” is about “embracing and celebrating Southern literature and culture through the medium of performance.”
“I take the position,” she explained, “that it is necessary to produce stories which speak directly to a region. By speaking intimately about, to, and for the communities it reaches, theater can appeal to and attract audiences who seek not only a refuge, but an understanding of who we are as people and as members of cultural communities.”
Mayo, who plays Faith, appeared in the Southeastern Theatre production of “Steel Magnolias.” She was recommended for “Faith’s Affair” by theater faculty member Selisa Hue, who is supervising the production along with Southeastern Theatre Director Steve Schepker. A psychology major minoring in theater, Mayo said she is enjoying the challenges of staged storytelling as opposed to traditional theater.
“I try to keep up a lot of emotion since it has less action that a regular play,” she said. “I love this story. The character of Faith is so complex and such fun to do.”
Her fellow actors Hines and King are both English majors. Hines has performed a one-act monodrama, “Ghosts,” and a scene from his play, “72 Rebecca Lane,” will be presented at the National Popular Culture/American Culture joint conference in Atlanta in April. “Faith’s Affair” marks King’s acting debut.
Shivers’ appearance is co-sponsored by Southeastern’s Center for Faculty Excellence. For additional information about Women’s History Month, contact Carole McAllister of the Southeastern Women’s Coalition, (985) 549-2100.
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