The Grafton Correctional Institution is only a 20-minute drive from Oberlin, but most students don’t know the medium-security men’s prison exists. Yet every Wednesday since 2023, a small faculty-led group of Oberlin students drives up to run rehearsals with Grafton residents as part of the Oberlin Grafton Theater Collective. A passionate and driven group, they have been working to make the collective a long-lasting program that connects Oberlin students and faculty with Grafton residents.
The OGTC first emerged to continue the mission of its predecessor, Oberlin Drama at Grafton. Emerita Professor of English Phyllis Gorfain established ODAG after teaching a Shakespeare play with a previous writing program at Grafton. After years of enlisting student volunteers — one of the first being current Visiting Assistant Professor of Theater Katy Early — ODAG ended. The program found a new life in Oberlin’s current theater collective.
The program is now run by Assistant Professor of Theatre Anjanette Hall, who began facilitating theater at Grafton while working at Baldwin Wallace University. Hall’s commitment to providing a space for incarcerated men to engage with student volunteers through performance led her to take on the role of director so that the program could survive.
Gorfain praised Hall as she commented on ODAG’s transition into the OGTC.
“She did take it on over and above her full-time teaching, and her directing and her acting,” Gorfin said. “The big reason it’s happened is because Anjanette Hall is extremely generous and is doing it over and above everything else.”
Grafton residents rehearse twice a week: once on Wednesdays with the Oberlin group and once on their own. They begin each rehearsal with a check-in called “Pass the Ps” which stands for “Power, passion and perspective.” A resident devised this check-in as a means to set intentions for the day before the group launches into a warm-up or game.
The residents have busy schedules; some take classes, some work jobs, and others participate in fellowships. For many, Hall explained, the Collective provides an opportunity to decompress.
“For some of them, they want time to not feel like they’re in prison,” she said. “For us, it’s an ability to get out of our bubble and put things in perspective.”
OGTC holds the same values of social change that Gorfain had envisioned when first starting ODAG.
“Great theater does social critique profoundly,” Gorfain said. “There are ways to use the program to make really powerful statements about how to change our society and how to change ourselves.”
Hall shares similar feelings. She reflected that theater fosters a deep sense of community, even for residents or students who aren’t as interested in acting.
“We’ve developed strong relationships with these men,” she said. “I think that’s the power of theater; it innately does that. We have the ability to take our guard down and be human in the space together.”
Perhaps most significant to the program’s continued success is its capacity for engaged student involvement. College third-year Reyna Berry has worked with the Collective for over a year now. She finds it a rewarding way to connect with the greater Ohio community.
“I think it’s important to develop active relationships between Oberlin and local organizations and even institutions, so that there’s a feeling of mutual support and interest,” Berry said. “Grafton is one of the ways in which students could continue their learning journey, while having a direct impact on people and being directly impacted by people who reside in this area.”
The OGTC put on one show in the spring of 2024. They invited professors, students, and the families of Grafton residents. College fourth-year Jasper Swartz, who has worked with the Collective since its beginning in 2023, looks back on the performance as a reminder of why the group exists.
“That moment clarified the work that we’re doing,” Swartz said. “The Oberlin bubble can seem hard to escape. There’s a lot of talk with the College about getting out and interacting with the community. This program has made me feel like I am more connected to the greater Ohio area. I come back to that moment whenever we’re in the weeds.”
The Collective is continuously evolving and adjusting to the needs of the students and residents. The group constantly faces new challenges, trying to navigate Grafton’s rules while also holding consistent rehearsals.
“It’s been a couple of years of trial and error,” Hall explained. “There’s an underlying focus: why are we doing this work? What’s our mission? I’m still in the process of defining what that is.”
Berry tried to define the mission in one sentence, her attempt demonstrating the complexity of OGTC’s goals.
“We create collaborative theater which is presented annually to an audience of community members, compound people who are incarcerated, and family and friends, in order to spark dialogue around incarcerated individuals’ talents and abilities to create a humanizing narrative and increase access to the arts and cultural environments,” she said.
The mission will likely continue to evolve as the Grafton facility changes and new students join the program. This year, the Collective is working on a production of Twelve Angry Men, which they hope to perform in the spring.
Beyond the production, the Collective’s members have ambitious plans for the future. They spent many hours this summer preparing to work with new students and ensure the longevity of the program, as many members of the Collective are about to graduate. Berry mentioned hopes of helping Grafton residents pursue the arts after their release and aiding them with reintegration.
Starting at the Grafton Reintegration Center and moving to the Grafton Correctional Institution, Oberlin Music at Grafton had a similar mission when it first started. Another key instance of Oberlin’s commitment to student involvement, community is ultimately at the center. OGTC members hope that the program will continue to cultivate relationships with Grafton residents and bring Oberlin students outside of the college bubble.
