e u s s I s t r A l a i c Spe Vol. LXXXVII, No. 0.5
Around the Table with Gina Apostol By STEFANI KUO Book Reviewer ABBY INGRASSIA Book Reviewer
Filled with the complexities of memory and acceptance, English teacher Gina Apostol’s new novel, Gun Dealers’ Daughter, follows Sol, a young woman from Manila in search of an identity. Intertwined with her past and future, Sol’s narration is filled with the history of Manila, her parents’ societal role and position, and her own beliefs and desire to rebel against her loved ones. The Scroll’s two book reviewers sat down with Ms. Apostol to talk with her about her novel, due to be published by W.W. Norton in July. Kuo: Congratulations on your book, Ms. Apostol! Apostol: Thank you, Stefani. Kuo: I really enjoyed reading it. Could you tell us about the writing process of the Gun Dealers’ Daughter?
Ashley So
Apostol: I got a fellowship to write a draft of this novel from Phillips Exeter Academy. They have a writer in residence for a year. I finished the first draft but didn’t do anything with it. When my daughter went off to college, I had nothing to do, so I spent every afternoon revising the novel. It took me years to figure out how to revise Gun Dealer. The first draft of the novel was chronological narration, which was very boring. I didn’t like the structure of the [first draft].
DEERFIELD ACADEMY, DEERFIELD, MA 01342
Ingrassia: So you wrote your first draft, left it and then came back to it. What did you do differently when you returned to it? Apostol: I got rid of the chronological. The early draft was around 300-400 pages, but I took out the backstories of a few characters and put in what would fit in terms of what [Sol] would actually think. Kuo: So was your first draft all in Sol’s perspective? Or was it a third-person narrative? Apostol: That’s a very good question. I started off in third person, but I really wanted to hear her voice. So, I moved out of the third-person voice. That ironically pushed me to be more disciplined about what I would include because if you have this kind of person, she can only have this kind of memory. That issue of limiting, narrowing, and creating constraints is really important in writing novels and in fiction. Ingrassia: The book also revolves a lot around memory and how “memory is deception.” How much of Sol’s memory recreates itself rather than portrays the truth? Apostol: I have an idea, but that is such a reader’s question. What do you guys think? Kuo: At first, I assumed she was a little distorted, but I didn’t think she was making up memories. Then I started doubting if she was remembering things for what they really were. Apostol: There’s something deceptive about recall, about memory, and the writing process is part of it. She’s writing everything out, and the deception is really an issue. Even the issue of being literary and how constraining that is when you have to figure out your words and still portray the truth: there is always a gap between writing to portray the truth and recognizing your construction is made up for fiction writers, for novelists. In a sense, that, too, is an interesting theme and a struggle for me as a writer: the paradoxical truth of language. Ingrassia: I was wondering how much of the story or the plot is based on your own experiences? Continued on the back
Ailey II for Academy Event
Google Images Dancers of Ailey II use every muscle, angle, and facial expression to show their passion for the art.
By TARA MURTY Staff Writer Arms and legs intertwine as each dancer’s movement portrays the vivid emotion of the African-American experience. Passion pulses through each gospel melody, pointed toe, and heart-pounding rhythm. There is a story in each dance and a life in each motion. The world-renowned dance company Ailey II will perform next Monday night, April 9, in the spring Academy Event and lead residency activities for the academic dance classes. The performance will include a range of pieces by Alvin Ailey, the founder of the dance company, and emerging contemporary choreographers. Academy Events Coordinator David Howell said, “There will be a wonderful cross-section between some historical works with great significance and choreography, and some exciting new ideas that will inspire our students.” The juxtaposed harmony between pieces
choreographed by Alvin Ailey and those by contemporary dancers will forge a stage bearing the uniqueness of African-American heritage and the modernity of contemporary dance. Most notably among the historical dances, the company will perform Ailey’s signature piece, Revelations. Ailey described it as “a suite of spirituals in three sections.” The first section, Pilgrim of Sorrow, depicts the faith to transcend the heaviness of life’s burden. Take Me to the Water, the second section, recounts Ailey’s own baptismal. The third section, Move Members Move, is set on a Sunday morning in a country church and emphasizes the great faith and joy of the people. Mr. Howell said that, “Revelations contains messages of hope, inspiration, jubilation [and] happiness in the midst of sorrow [where] most of the choreography is steeped in African American tradition.”
These ascending dancers, close in age to Deerfield students, provide a lens through which we may see ourselves. The hearty melodies energize the dancers as they evoke the emotions and unparalleled cultural stories rooted in the symbiotic duet of music and dance. Fine Arts Department Chair and dance teacher Jennifer Whitcomb and Mr. Howell both applauded the professionalism, energy, and youthfulness of the company. Ms. Whitcomb added, “They don’t hold anything back because they are really climbing and clawing into major companies.” These ascending dancers, close in age to Deerfield students,
DA Style
April 3, 2012
Ashley So’s Unique Exemption
provide a lens through which we may see ourselves. Mr. Howell said that the “same kind of drive that characterizes the vast majority of Deerfield students is possessed in these dancers.” He said “that energy, that pride, that joy of being a part of a very long tradition of [Ailey dance]” possessed by Ailey II dancers resonates with the feelings of students about Deerfield tradition. Nina Shevzov-Zebrun ’12 said, “Everyone can benefit from opening his or her mind to new forms of expression.” She added, “It will be interesting to observe the Ailey II dancers’ technique and style and to try to absorb as much as possible.” The Alvin Ailey dance style melds African-American culture and stories with modern dance technique in a form that activates each muscle with emotional energy—an energy that flows smoothly at times and strikes staccato at others. Ailey’s fused style is a product of both his dance background and heritage. Ailey began formal dance training after being exposed to dance when he attended performances of a ballet and the first African-American modern dance company. He trained with the founder of America’s first racially integrated dance company, Lester Horton. Ailey II utilizes Horton’s modern dance technique and welcomes dancers of all ethnicities. Ailey explained, “We are really celebrating human beings and we are trying to make an identification with the black past.” He added, “I am a choreographer. I am a black man whose roots are in the sun and the dirt of the South. My roots are in the gospel churches of the South [with their] anthems to the
Movie Review: The Artist