Twenty-five years ago, two teens committed one of the nation's deadliest mass school shootings at a Colorado high school, killing 12 students, one teacher and injuring dozens more.
That same year the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began to track the mortality rate of gun violence in those under 18. While those numbers fluctuated around 1,500 for the first two decades of tracking, it soared to 2,281 deaths in 2020 and 2,590 deaths in 2021, according to the most recent available data from the CDC.
Since the Columbine High School massacre in 1999, many of these deaths were a result of more than 500 school shootings across the U.S. This ongoing danger is partly what inspired Spokane Children's Theatre to stage #Enough: Plays To End Gun Violence. The program features winning scripts from a national playwriting competition that asked teens to write short plays about how they've been affected by the ever-present threat of gun violence.
"When I was a kid, school shootings hadn't happened," says Craig Hirt, #Enough's director. "It just wasn't part of our idea that someone would walk into a school with a gun and start blowing people away."
Spokane Children's Theatre isn't usually known for performing shows with a somber, mature tone like #Enough. For example, one of the plays focuses on a kid who witnessed her friend being shot — she continually replays the scenario searching for any other possible outcome she can imagine. Another story follows a mom in a state of shock after losing her child.
"The teens just really wanted to dive deep because we do a lot of family-friendly shows typically," says Tanya Brownlee, the theater's executive director. "But what I don't think we anticipated was the effect it was actually going to have on our teens."
Not all of the plays are as emotionally heavy. One in particular takes a meta approach by following a group of young playwrights as they reckon with writing a script in response to a school shooting.
Brownlee's goal in producing #Enough is to give young local actors a platform to inform their community about the mental pressure of school gun violence.
"I had no idea the anxiety they were facing every day, and they don't feel like it's being seen," Brownlee says while tearing up. "It's so numbing."
Since these plays are written by teens, she says, the scripts are more raw than what an experienced playwright may create.
"Adult writers tend to fluff things or make them more dramatic than they need to be, but these are legitimate experiences and stories that these kids have written," Brownlee explains.
Considering the show's seriousness, it was important for Spokane Children's Theatre to ensure attendees could easily access resources to help address the subject matter. The theater is partnering with Spokane-based LGBTQ+ nonprofit Odyssey Youth Movement, and Brownlee says a school resource officer will also be present to talk to attendees after the show.
After rehearsing the production, Brownlee and Hirt sat down with the young actors to talk about how the show affected them. There were few dry eyes in the room as tears flowed among both the cast and the adults.
"The biggest positive of this whole experience is that the teens are feeling heard," Brownlee says. "They're feeling supported, and they know they have a voice in this."
Another positive experience of the production is that it allowed Hirt to focus on creating an educational environment for the performers. He intentionally put some teens in roles he otherwise might not have cast them as a learning experience.
"It's been challenging, but fun, pushing the kids to go a lot deeper in character development than they typically do," Hirt says. "Watching them all grow has been amazing."
The local community's responses to the staging of #Enough have been varied so far, with some assuming the production is anti-gun. But Brownlee says that's simply not the case.
"It has nothing to do with our stance on guns," she says. "We can all agree we want our kids safe."
"If we're ever going to make change, it's going to come from our young people," Hirt adds. "My hope is that this [production] empowers them to feel like they can do something to make things better. We don't have to continue to live like this." ♦
#Enough: Plays to End Gun Violence • Thu, April 25 and Sat, April 27 at 7 pm • Donations accepted • Spokane Children's Theatre • 2727 N. Madelia St. • spokanechildrenstheatre.org
