Looking for the Silver Lining
WNMU's Jack Ellis hopes to find and script the quirky heart of Silver City's last 500 million years.
Take a few cataclysmic events, a volcanic eruption or two, stir in some gunslingers and ne'er-do-wells, the famed mountain man and "varmint-killer" Ben Lilly, add a dash of saucy Mildred Clark Cusey, Silver City's "Madam Millie," and a few other colorful characters—plop them all down at the intersection of Broadway and Bullard Street in downtown Silver City—and you'll have the latest production by Jack Ellis and Western New Mexico University's Expressive Arts Department.
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Griffon Campbell and James McKenna will be part of the cast, playing
figures from local history. |
Come the end of this month, the as-yet-untitled—heck, unscripted!—play will reveal an historical and whimsical view of this colorful mining town. Sitting at the "jigsaw puzzle table" at Rejuvenations coffeeshop, with windows looking out on that very intersection of downtown streets, Ellis, associate professor of drama at WNMU, alternately takes sips from his large cup and fiddles with a puzzle piece or two, talking animatedly about his new production.
"What I'm looking for is the heart of the community," he says. "There's so much here. This town draws some very interesting, wonderful, colorful and downright unusual people."
The play is a "self-constructed" piece, meaning the theater group itself is researching the topic—the last 500 million years of Silver City's history—and writing the script themselves. They're creating the scenes, drafting the action and writing the lines that will be spoken by characters taken from ancient and more current local history. The group is composed of about 15 people—counting actors, writers and set builders—a mix of university students, some earning credits, and community members. "It's a blend of 'town and gown,'" Ellis says.
Ellis says he started researching his fanciful premise just last November. And the theater group started pitching in around January. The play is slated to run March 30-April 7, at which time the troupe will present "whatever we have," Ellis says, throwing up his hands in a dramatic, humorous gesture.
Ellis describes the major elements, what he calls "the big three," that he hopes to capture in the piece: "We're looking for, number one, the heart of the town; number two, for the civic wounds; and number three, to identify what is the healing process," he says. "I've lived in small towns, and I've never come across a place that is so absolutely divided right down the center. There's an economic division. There's a political division. The Anglo/Hispanic division, a language division. I mean, it's amazing."
The Big Ditch, he says, is a geographic symbol for divisions in the town, and perhaps a metaphor for the town's wounds. "Back doors became front doors. It's an amazing phenomenon, what that must have done to the place," he says.
Ellis muses about energy vortices and "lay lines" theories. Silver City, he says, sits on the edge of a "great cosmic vortex" centered in the neighboring town of Cliff. He mentions the Kneeling Nun, a famous rock formation surrounded by legends, and the impact of local mining operations. All these factors, he says, are energetic, being shaped by unique factors and in turn bringing new essences, drawing people and circumstances together.
The provocative and simple set for the play's action will be that intersection of Broadway and Bullard Streets. "It's the first thing I nailed down," Ellis says with a laugh. "It's where it all happens!" He gestures around the coffeehouse. "Look at this place. It's all coming together right here—students, retirees. Sometimes it's kids, sometimes it's the Scrabble club."
He looks across the room. "There's Bob Erman, one of our local poets. You know him? Working on his poetry, I'll bet." He points to a group of about a dozen women, sitting at three tables pushed together. "I wonder what they're up to. I'd love to hear their conversation." In fact it is an ad hoc group of women friends who get together to practice speaking Spanish with each other. "Well, how about that!" Ellis exclaims. "I had no idea. You see what I mean? See what an interesting place this is?"
Ellis says he's not sure yet who the major roles in the piece will be, but that ne'er-do-well Billy the Kid, of course, will come to life on the stage. Madam Millie? A no-brainer. Doubtless the aforementioned mountain man Lilly will show up, along with pioneers, miners, Apaches and folks lured by the Silver Rush.
Casting, too, is wide open. Asked if Tim Evans, the star of WNMU's production of The Epic of Gilgamesh, is on board for this play, Ellis replies enthusiastically in the affirmative.
"He did his first play with me," Ellis recalls. "Silver Whistle. Oh, Tim really throws himself into things. Did you see him in Gilgamesh?" Ellis recalls Evans' first appearance for a dress rehearsal, bare-chested as the mythological hero-king in perhaps the oldest written story on earth. "I had no idea he was so buff of body. He worked out at the gym for the part. He was dedicated. Tim always is."
Ellis gives a rough outline of the play's action. "Well, since we're covering 500 million years of history, the beginning goes by pretty fast," he says with a laugh. "You know, cataclysms, volcanoes, earth changes and such. Then people begin showing up." Things slow and get a bit more specific as the area is settled, and before long, the stage will be populated with recognizable historical characters.
He describes the research process, to uncover historical facts and personages, as "delightful."
"So many people have come forward with wonderful stories and bits of history," Ellis says, and mentions contributions from Susan Berry, director of the Silver City Museum, and author Bob Alexander (Six-Guns and Single-Jacks, Desert Desperadoes). "Patti Unger (a local writer) has published a wonderful book of local history and had another book just sitting in a drawer, and she's generously made all that information available to us." He also has footage of now-deceased Herb McGrath portraying Ben Lilly, which he hopes to make use of in the play.
The play's original working title was Silver Nuggets, Ellis says, referencing both the town's silver-mining history and the colorful "nuggets" culled from individuals' stories. But people pointed out to him that silver is not actually found in nugget form, he says, so now he's trying out other ideas. Silver Linings is one possibility.
He muses about modern-day Silver City residents, members of a community shaped by energy vortices and brothel-keepers, decimated mountains and gunslingers.
"And here we are today," Ellis says brightly. "And what a mixed bag, what an unusual breed we are. Some people want change. Some people don't want anything to change. We spend a lot of time talking about the weather!" he adds with an explosive laugh.
He describes his process of amassing information, talking to locals about their experiences of living in Silver City. "My favorite question has been, 'What is the weirdest thing that has happened to you in Silver City?' You won't believe some of the answers I have gotten!"
And to find out some of those unbelievable answers? Well, you'll just have to see the play.
—Donna Clayton Lawder
The play, still untitled at press time, will be performed at WNMU's Webb Theater March 30, 31 and April 5, 6, 7 at 7:30 p.m., with a 2:30 matinee April 1. A special group of limited tickets for opening night is available through the Silver City Museum as a fundraiser for the museum. Call 538-5921, toll-free (877) 777-7947, or email info@silvercitymuseum.org for info on those tickets. General admission is by donation. Pet foods donated will be given to the High Desert Humane Society and cash and check donations go to the WNMU Herb McGrath Fund, benefiting the drama department. For information, call 538-6614.
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