Curt Tofteland Guest Lecture for the UO Humanities Program
By Kirsten Williams
EUGENE, Oregon- Curt Tofteland spoke about the redemptive power of art in the prison system as a guest lecturer for the Oregon Humanities Center on January 19th.
The OHC hosted Tofteland, founder of Shakespeare Behind Bars, as apart of this year’s justice themed lecture series. Tofteland, who has 20 years of experience producing Shakespearian plays in Kentucky’s Luther Luckett Correctional Complex, said, “Clearly, our American justice system is broken.”
The speaker and acclaimed actor, director, producer and playwright describes his work as teaching art that is therapeutic, rather than a therapist that uses art. His lecture and the preceding film screening of the documentary Shakespeare Behind Bars, were free and open to the public.
Tofteland’s speech included a questions and answer session which focused on his personal feelings regarding the SBB.
“There is no justice in the world. You will not find it in any court. You will not find it in any religion. The only place justice exists is in you and if you want justice, you must be a just person and you can’t expect it in return and you have to be just anyway,” said Tofteland.
The event was cosponsored by the OHC’s Endowment for Public Outreach in the Arts Sciences and Humanities. Melissa Gustafson, Program Coordinator at the OHC, said she hopes that the audience sees the “value and restorative nature of [his] work,” as Tofteland’s speech highlighted the themes of redemption and empathy.
The documentary screening was followed by a talk-back with three faculty members who have worked with prison inmates. Shaul Cohen and Steven Shankman, who run the University’s Inside-Out prison exchange program, and Belvilsky, who worked with inmate-actors at a correctional facility in rural Illinois, answered questions.
Tofteland’s visit was planned to coincide with the Folger Library’s traveling show, First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare. Professor Lara Belvilski of the University’s english department won the bid for the folio to be on display January 6th through February 7th at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, its only stop in Oregon.
The OHC said they “selected Justice as [their] theme this year out of a conviction that questions of justice have always been urgently at the center of what it means to be human and of what the humanities mean.” They have a series of keynote speakers and demonstrations planned throughout the year, all of which are sponsored by public donations. “We’re always searching for people who are interested in supporting the work that we do with the humanities,” said Gustafson.
Tofteland continues to speak about the prison arts program as he is writing the novel, “Behind the Barb-Wire: Reflection, Responsibility, Redemption, and Forgiveness…The Transformative Power of Art, Theatre and Shakespeare.”