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Sing Sing
U.S.A. 2023

Opening 27 Feb 2025

Directed by: Greg Kwedar
Writing credits: John H. Richardson, Brent Buell, Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin
Principal actors: Colman Domingo, Clarence Maclin, Sean San Jose, Paul Raci, David Giraudy

Sing Sing is not the typical prison movie. No cruelty or violence, instead it introduces us to the RTA (Rehabilitation Through Arts) program conducted at several prisons in New York. The film focuses on John “Divine G” Whitfield (Colman Domingo), one of the founding members of RTA, and his role in the program and his efforts to bring Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, playing himself, into the program. Many of the actors in the movie are actual participants in the program. We follow them from the initial planning stages of their next performance, from the selection of material through auditions and rehearsals.

While the film did poignantly depict the dehumanization and hopelessness of incarceration and how the program helps to combat those emotions, it also left many questions unanswered. What were the participants stories and how did the program help them cope? It’s as though we were given the little pieces of a play without getting to see the final performance. Although, if the point of the film was to introduce us to the program and seek to explore more information on it, then it was certainly successful. The closing scenes highlighting some of the actual performances were also quite inspirational. (Anne Crocker)

Second Opinion

Along Hudson River’s east bank 30 miles (48 km) north of Midtown Manhattan, squats New York’s maximum-security Sing Sing Corrections Facility, currently housing roughly 1,500 incarcerated people. Established 1865, its anglicized name from the Wappinger Native American tribe’s sinck sinck means “stone upon stone.” A few past “celebrity” inmates are Louis Buchalter, head of Murder, Inc., Charles "Lucky" Luciano, the Genovese crime family head, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, tried for espionage, and actor Tony Sirico, for unlawful weapons possession. Currently, it derives its distinction from this unassuming prison drama that pulsates with humanity, dignity, and an overwhelmingly compassionate, positive perspective that shatters stereotypes and misconceptions. Jon-Adrian Velazquez, pardoned in 2021 of a wrongful murder conviction, co-stars.

Divine G (Colman Domingo’s strong portrayal of the real person is noteworthy), erroneously convicted and determinedly appealing for his freedom, passes time productively. He channels his creative talents, including as a playwright, into Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA), founded in 1996 by Katherine Vockins, whereby theater professionals work with inmates in theater-related workshops. He approaches Clarence "Divine Eye" Maclin, an inmate with a boulder-size chip on his shoulder, about trying-out for a new production. “I been playin’ a role my whole life, Bro.” Nothing is certain when director Brent Buell (Paul Raci) arrives. The group brainstorm, Buell defies expectations and they get everything they want in the comedic play, Breakin' the Mummy's Code. “Dying is easy, comedy is hard.” David "Dap" Giraudy, Patrick "Preme" Griffin, Sean "Dino" Johnson, Mosi Eagle, James “Big E” Williams, Dario Peña, Miguel Valentin, Pedro Cotto, and others try out. Once parts are cast, the next steps is learning/reading lines, blocking thespians onstage action and, at every step, there are spats, challenges, histrionics, and reckonings. The two Divines’ shadowboxing has repercussions none could have imagined. “… [W]e say ‘beloved’ here.”

Esquire’s writer-at-large John H. Richardson’s story, The Sing Sing Follies(A Maximum-Security Comedy) appeared in 2005 (it is available online and worth a read). His description of RTAs Breakin’ the Mummy’s Code’s production gestation 11-years later inspired American filmmaker Greg Kwedars. Seeing Twelfth Night at Sing Sing led to Kwedars incorporating former RTA alumni actors, seconded by Domingo and Sean San Jose who attest to the transformative power of theater. During the next eight years, the Divines’ and others’ significant input enriched the breadth and depth of the film. The real-life Brent Buell, John “Divine G” Whitfield and Katherine Vockins make cameo appearances.

Filming on location in decommissioned prisons Pat Scola’s camera gets into the tight corners and uses natural light. Counselors were available for RTA alumni, if necessary. Parker Laramie acutely edits and is accompanied by Bryce Dessner’s empathetic music. Cast/crew agreed to the same salary in exchange for a percent of equity. Sing Sing accentuates the transformative power of the arts, and the empowerment that comes from “being real with each other and vulnerable.” By exchanging crime for theater, recidivism among the RTA community is three percent. (Marinell Haegelin)

 
 
 
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