Letters Aloud’s Edmonds show speaks volumes about perseverance

EDMONDS — Letters Aloud is taking its 2020 production to the stage for the first time since COVID-19 hit.

Letters Aloud’s production of “All Our Best: Perseverance in Times of Struggle” is showing July 15 at the Edmonds Center for the Arts and via Livestream — which means you get to decide if you want to watch “All Our Best” in the theater or at home.

Formed in 2013, the Seattle troupe connects audiences to famous (and infamous) historical figures through their intimate correspondence. The letter writers featured in “All Our Best” share their experiences in times of pandemics and civil rights activism.

The letters in “All Our Best” — including ones written by Kurt Vonnegut, Frederick Douglass, Tina Fey, Jackie Robinson, Clyde Barrow, Gertrude Stein and Sidney Poitier — tell us how to find hope, meaning and humor when times are tough. The letters were written from 1868 to 2020.

The diary of Violet Harris, who was 15 years old when 1918’s Spanish flu hit her hometown of Seattle, ties the show all together.

“You’re not really playing characters; you’re just giving voice to real people who have lived and who have shared their words with another person for whatever reason,” said actor Claudine Mboligikpelani Nako, who has been touring with Letters Aloud since 2019.

“Letters are generally an intimate correspondence — a handwritten letter is generally sent to one person — so there’s something special about reading something that was intended for a certain set of eyes.”

Paul Stetler, founder of Letters Aloud, has a hobby of reading the letters written by his literary heroes.

“I geek out on it,” he said. “Just getting to read their personal correspondence and finding a sense of who these people were — the curtain is pulled back a bit. It’s something I’ve always loved.”

The National Archives has a wealth of records of our nation’s history, including 1,200 documents, photographs, drawings and maps digitized within the last 10 years. Around 2012, Stetler collected as many letters as he could find at archive.gov.

“I just went on a tear of reading them, falling in love even more,” said Stetler, who also serves as director and host of Letters Aloud productions. “I couldn’t believe all the information that was being posted.”

Stetler, of Shoreline, was inspired by Town Hall Seattle’s “Short Stories Live” and Garrison Keillor’s “A Prairie Home Companion” to produce shows featuring these letters read aloud. He selects a theme for each production, such as love, fame or, as with this Edmonds show, perseverance.

“I found letters from the past that dealt with current situations that we’re dealing with,” he said of “All Our Best.” “It deals with the theme of struggle and how to continue your life even though things may not be going the way you want.”

Each actor will read a number of letters for the July 15 show, including Jen Taylor, who has been reading with Letters Aloud since its founding.

“It’s surprising to me how often we have people come up to us and say, ‘Huh, I wasn’t really expecting much from this night — and I was blown away,’” Taylor said. “’I laughed, I cried, I was deeply moved.’ It’s really interesting what we are learning from these letters from the past.”

Letters Aloud’s “All Our Best” was presented via Zoom at ACT Theatre last year. Since then, Stetler has revised the show so that it still is relevant to us in 2021.

Seattle accordionist Jamie Maschler will accompany the production, which includes a backdrop of photographs of the letters and/or the letter writers.

“This will be our first live performance in over a year,” Stetler said. “Actually on a stage, in front of a live audience. I’m super excited.”

Sara Bruestle: 425-339-3046; sbruestle@heraldnet.com; @sarabruestle.

If you go

Letters Aloud’s production of “All Our Best: Perseverance in Times of Struggle” is showing 7:30 p.m. July 15 at the Edmonds Center for the Arts, 410 Fourth Ave. N., Edmonds. Still playing it safe? You can watch the show virtually via Livestream. Tickets are $35-$45. More at www.edmondscenterforthearts.org.