By JEFF HANOUILLE
Enfield Press Editor
ENFIELD – The National Coalition Against Censorship on Tuesday sent a letter to Enfield school officials expressing its concern that officials at Enfield High School had decided to cancel a student production of the Green Day rock opera “American Idiot” and instead perform “Little Shop of Horrors.”
The letter was signed by the American Booksellers for Free Expression, the Office of Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association, National Council of Teachers of English, the Arts Integrity Initiative at the New School College of Performing Arts, Dramatists Legal Defense Fund, Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and the Association of American Publishers, and it states:
“If the play was cancelled at this late stage solely as a result of complaints by a few vocal parents, as (the director) stated, there are serious pedagogical and constitutional concerns. Halting the play because some individuals do not approve of its content deprives the rest of the students – whose parents might welcome the play, even in its unedited form – from experiencing the production and violates core free expression principles.”
Last week, Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong took to the social media website Instagram to call out the Enfield school board for canceling the production after fliers were posted at the school announcing auditions for the production, set for early May.
“…(It) would be a shame if these high schoolers were shut down over some of the content that may be challenging for some of the audience,” Armstrong wrote. “(But) the bigger issue is censorship. (This) production tackles issues in a post 9/11 world and I believe the kids should be heard and most of all be creative in telling a story about our history. I hope you reconsider and allow them to create an amazing night of theater!”
Both School Superintendent Dr. Jeffrey Schumann and Enfield School Board Chairman Tom Sirard said the decision to change the musical was the decision of Enfield High School Principal Andrew Longey and Director Nate Ferreira.
“The Board of Education and the Enfield Public Schools Central Office had no role whatsoever in the decision making process to switch the play,” Sirard said last week. “The decision was an administrative decision by the Enfield High School principal and director.”
Schumann agreed, saying: “Our goal with extracurricular activities is to ensure a learning opportunity is provided for as many students as possible, whether that be athletics or performing arts. My understanding is, the principal and the club advisor for the Lamplighters decided that ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ would provide a better opportunity for maximum participation.”
In an email sent by Ferreira on Jan. 17 to the school community, he said he and Longey determined a change was needed, as the Broadway production of “American Idiot” contains swearing, drug use and sex.
“Unfortunately, a very small number of extremely vocal people have complained about our choice of production,” Ferreira wrote in his email. “This led to Mr. Longey and I meeting … to discuss a change in our choice of production. To be clear, Mr. Longey did not force us to change – he and I took a long and careful look at all aspects of the show, and all arguments on either side. At this late stage it is very difficult to switch to a different play, but I do feel that it is best for us to set aside ‘American Idiot’ for the time being. I want ALL of our club members to be able to be a part of our musical, and I want to be absolutely certain that the play happens at all.”
In a separate email to Howard Sherman, director of the Arts and Integrity Initiative at the New School College of Performing Arts in New York and the person who originally broke the news of the show cancellation, Ferreira said: “Due to the fact that some of our club families were not comfortable with their kids being involved in the show, it was my decision to perform a different show,” Ferreira wrote in his email to Sherman. “This was not a decision forced on me by the school administration, it was simply what I felt was best for our club membership. Many of the kids were disappointed by this decision, but others were happy because this would allow them to be involved again. I had also begun to feel that the material itself would be better served if I were to stage American Idiot unedited with another local organization, and encourage the families who still wanted to do the show to become involved with it there.
“My decision to change the show came prior to finalizing the contract and payment, prior to any rehearsal, and prior to casting or auditions,” Ferreira continued. “As with any show that would require edits for a high school group, I had a full list of changes that I felt were necessary to the dialogue, and they would have had to meet approval by the publisher. I made several phone calls to MTI during the past year, and their staff were extremely helpful in explaining the procedures for requesting edits. I stand by my decision to change our choice of production, and I have always felt that the school administration has been supportive of our efforts.”
The full letter from NCAC to Longey, Schumann and Ferreira can be viewed here.
