Staged Reading: Words from the Front

Listen to a powerful and thought-provoking staged reading based on a collection of actual text messages, Facebook messages, and emails that have been exchanged in real time from the U.S., Ukraine, and Russia from March 2022 through today. The war in Ukraine began on February 24, 2022. 

Former Darien High School English teachers Nancy Herman and Lynda Sorensen have collaborated on this moving piece that bears witness to the war in Ukraine. As both Nancy and Lynda watched the war escalate and listened to reports of shocking human rights violations, they felt the need to respond somehow - and do something. With language as the only means they had to express their alarm, they created Words from the Front, continuously writing and revising it from March 2022 through today. 

About the Presenters

Nancy Herman has a B.F.A in Acting from the University of Connecticut and an M.A. in Educational Theatre from New York University. She is a former teacher at Darien High School where she taught English and Theatre, and was director of its award-winning theatre program, Theatre 308, directing over seventy productions, many of which went on to win awards from the Connecticut Drama Association and the New England Drama Association. She also created and directed the Theatre 308/Moscow Class Centre International Theatre Exchange Program. In addition, for 10 years she served as the Artistic Director of the Musical Theatre Workshop, a summer program for children ages 8 - 18.  She was the President and Vice President of the Connecticut Drama Association, earned the CEMA/SIRS Award for Intellectual Freedom, and received the Connecticut Arts Administrators Association Award for Outstanding Contributions in Arts Advocacy. She has been honored with a National Outstanding Teacher Award and with the Young Connecticut Playwrights Association “Dedicated Teacher” Award. In her retirement she chairs the MAC’s Eastbound Theatre in Milford, works part-time as a simulated patient for the Yale School of Medicine, and writes with her friend and co-author Lynda Sorensen. 

Lynda Sorensen is a former English teacher at Darien High School where she taught literature and creative writing. While at DHS she co-directed the Darien-China Exchange for a decade from its inception in 2001. The Darien-China Exchange is a joint effort to foster understanding and friendship among young people from both nations. Awarded a grant from the U.S. State Department, it originally began as a partnership between Darien High School and the Shanghai #3 Girls’ School. During her last two years in the Darien Public School system, Lynda was the Teacher Leader of Fitch Academy, which was housed, initially, at Darien Library.  Coming back to Darien Library for this reading is a homecoming for her.  In her retirement, Lynda is a board member at GraceWorks, a non-profit foundation that supports the education of children in India, Kenya, and Tanzania. She also serves on the State of Connecticut Judicial Review Council and values her collaboration with Nancy Herman on writing projects.

If you're interested in learning more about this topic, join Olena Lennon, Ph.D for "A Look at the War in Ukraine: One Year Later" on Wednesday, March 15th at 7 p.m. in the Conference Room.