Anna Deavere Smith Lecture

I had no idea who Anna Deavere Smith was when I went into her lecture on Tuesday, January 27, 2009.

Smith, a MacArthur Fellowship recipient, playwright (Twilight: Los Angeles 1992), actress (Rent, The West Wing) and teacher, took the stage after an informative introduction by Mark Kelly, CCC's Vice President of Student Affairs. My first thought when Smith took the stage? Holy shit, this woman is loud. Really loud. I soon realized she was acting, (a Louis "Studs" Terkel dialogue, playing various characters and seemingly talking to herself throughout this performance--probably a way of drawing us into this lecture and also a requiem for the late Terkel.) I had no expectations going into this lecture and hadn't the slightest idea what Smith was trying to accomplish during this opening routine, but found myself laughing along at the situation, I think.

The presentation seemed sporadic and disorderly, undeniably confusing in what Smith was trying to tell us. There was talk of diversity, education, arts, the future, etc. It seemed that Smith's ultimate question was some form of the following: How will the election of Barack Obama affect diversity in the arts institution? After rambling a bit about God-knows-what in the arts sector, Smith opened the floor up to comments and questions about this unique moment of transformation from the Bush presidency to the Obama presidency and what it will entail for the arts. A few audience members who knew what the hell was going on supplied Smith with various facts and opinion and once these contributors would finish speaking, Smith would make them dig deeper, continually asking them for examples, and eventually playing devil's advocate.

Smith did tell an interesting story of how at the close of the Obama inauguration in January, the grounds were completely trashed. During Barack Obama's speech, each attendee was smiling, quiet, and respectful when he spoke about responsibility and coming together as one people, so then why was there trash everywhere? In essence, Ms. Smith was saying that if we as a people can't even pick up our own trash, how are we going to move forward? It does make you think. (Is all this even worth it, this "moving forward" march? Is it too late?)

Smith undoubtedly has a lot to say and boy, does she say it. Many of her theories and approaches to life are interesting, including her desire for each person to step out of their (self-described) "safe house of identity." She asked one question that hit us all quite hard: "To what extent are you willing to shake things up?" It's a great question, especially in the often tough and corrupt times that we're living in. She also had some words of wisdom for the collegiate crowd: "Take yourself seriously as a leader--value your classmates and professors."

However, as I have implied earlier, there was no overall cohesion in Smith's performance. Sure, she attempted to challenge us and make us think (very, very little), but a few days later, I still haven't the slightest clue what her message was. And coming out of this assembly, neither did many of my classmates. After the speech, my friend Chelsea turned to me and said, "Holy shit, I feel stupid." I wholeheartedly agreed with her. Either we're both extremely stupid and lack listening/comprehension skills, or we just totally missed the point. Or maybe a little bit of both.