The Bard Goes To Prison To Change Inmates' Lives

Luke Padgett dreams of the day he'll walk out of the gates of San Quentin a free man. Until then, he's found a degree of freedom within the prison walls by returning to his roots.

Padgett and several other inmates recently joined members of the Marin Shakespeare Company in a production of the Bard's Twelfth Night, staged at the San Quentin Protestant Chapel.

"Really, this is about social change. It gives us a chance to see art as a method of change. It's put upon ourselves to (change). This is the type of program that makes us able to do that. … I've learned from them. when we get out, and we will, we will be better citizens," said Padgett, who isn't eligible for parole until 2032. He was convicted of burglary, arson, car theft and first degree murder, although his lawyer is searching for DNA evidence to overturn the conviction.

"We live vicariously through (Marin Shakespeare's) Lesley Currier and all the other people who come in here. It's about transforming ourselves into better men."

The production, adapted by Robert and Lesley Currier, incorporated popular music from the '60s into the classic staging, including the Beatles and Sonny and Cher. Watching a group of prisoners, most of whom are serving life sentences, singing Stand By Me, I Got You Babe, All My Loving, All You Need Is Love and other classics might seem like an odd and hilarious situation, but it's also completely humanizing.

Finding a way to get the men interested and involved in the play is the primary challenge, according to Lesley Currier, who also played the role of Viola in Twelfth Night. Once the inmates start rehearsals, they bring a certain excitement to their roles and often recruit other inmates to join the play.

"The thing you would think would be a big obstacle is the men not understanding Shakespeare or not liking the stories, really isn't obstacle," said Currier, who has helped stage five full-length plays with the prison inmates. "They say what anyone says about Shakespeare — the language is so rich and there is so much humor to be found in it."

Padgett, who immersed himself in the role of Malvolio, knows the play well.

"I've read the play before and seen it before when I was a kid. My mother took me to see this play when I was 6 or 7 years old," said Padgett, who recalled studying Shakespeare at El Camino High School in Sacramento and at the School for Creative & Performing Arts in Cincinnati. "My mother was big on summer stock shows, Shakesepeare and musicals; she was a school teacher. Her name was Ruby Padgett. She passed away in 2005, about the same time as my sister, so it was a rough year.

"(My mother) stressed learning the arts, reading, writing, arithmetic. As I grew older, the spirit of what she taught me kept growing. She taught me a lot."

Returning to those acting roots has been good therapy for his soul, according to Padgett.

"It was a rough time in my life (when my mom died). I made some wrong decisions," Padgett said. "I was brought (to rehearsals) by a friend of mine who's no longer here. I love this program. I want to make my mom proud."

Director Suraya Keating, a trained drama therapist with the group, sees the stage work's effect on the actors.

"They have the opportunity to look someone in the eye and talk to them. Normally, that would get you in trouble in prison," Lesley Currier said. "They do improv and tell someone they love them. There's a vulnerability they achieve in rehearsals that's something you don't see normally. The play crosses races and religions and brings together groups that wouldn't normally socialize together. They bond quite a bit. One thing they say is it teaches them different conflict resolution methods.

"It gives the men something to look forward to, something to feel proud about. The warden and the guards like it. It's a good thing for the prison. It has a positive impact on the social life at the prison."

Many of the actors are finding outlets in other areas, such as poetry, music and painting. 

"We see a huge transformation in the men. They become advocates for other men. They gain confidence," Lesley Currier said. "I wish this could happen in more prisons. San Quentin is one of the few prisons left in California with art programs."

Like Padgett, most of the actors are serving lengthy sentences for violent crimes. There's no guarantee for some of them that they'll ever get out of prison, but they say if they do, they'd like to work with at-risk teens.

"I hope some of these guys get out. I'd like to see them start a program like this out there," Lesley Currier said.

"I'm not promised tomorrow and I don't know when I'll get out of here, so it's nice to share something positive with my family," said Joey Mason, a Marin native whose sister still lives in Terra Linda.