Dates & Times

Support and Resources

• The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
• Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN)
• Sexual Assault Reporting Options Colorado | You Have the Right CO
• Understanding Sex Offender Treatment and Supervision in Colorado

• Director’s Note from Christy Montour-Larson

GO DEEPER:  DOWNSTATE

Compiled by Christy Montour-Larson

Exploring Downstate: Interviews & Reviews

• Bruce Norris on Downstate – Steppenwolf Theatre
  Insights from Norris on the creation of Downstate, its themes, and the challenges of addressing such a provocative subject.
  steppenwolf.org
• Bruce Norris on the Moral Complexities of Downstate – Observer
  Norris discusses society’s tendency to identify collective villains and the moral ambiguities explored in the play.
  observer.com
• Theatre Review – The New York Times: “A Foulness in the Very Air They Breathe”
  Laura Collins-Hughes examines the play’s emotional intensity, its unflinching engagement with taboos, and the questions it raises about justice and redemption.
  nytimes.com

Justice & Punishment: Ethical and Legal Perspectives

• Life on the Sex Offender Registry: The Human Cost – The Marshall Project
  Personal stories and investigative journalism exploring the real-life impact of sex offender registries.
  themarshallproject.org
• Sex Offender Registries: Balancing Public Safety and Rehabilitation – Tibbs Law
  Explores how registries impact housing, employment, and reintegration, highlighting the tension between safety and rehabilitation.
  tibbslaw.com

Survivor Voices: Advocacy & Trauma

• What Sexual Assault Survivors Want You to Know – Time Magazine
  A first-person narrative piece featuring multiple survivor voices on healing, justice, and public perception.
  time.com
• Effects of Sexual Violence – RAINN
  A comprehensive look at the psychological, emotional, and physical effects of sexual violence.
  rainn.org

Second Chances? Community Attitudes & Reintegration

• Can Sex Offenders Change? A Look at Rehabilitation and Reintegration – NPR
  A discussion featuring experts and formerly incarcerated individuals on the possibilities and challenges of reintegration.
  npr.org
• Ethics and Religion Talk: Should Congregations Welcome Sexual Offenders? – The Rapidian
  A discussion on religious communities’ ethical considerations in accepting offenders.
  therapidian.org
• Who Is Allowed to Write About Difficult Topics? – America Magazine
  Examines the role of theatre in exploring sensitive social issues, sparked by controversy over Downstate’s Washington Post review.
  americamagazine.org

Crime, Consequence & Policy: What Works?

• Evaluating the Effectiveness of Sex Offender Registration and Notification Policies – OJP
  Analyzes whether registration laws actually reduce recidivism.
  ojp.gov
• Moral Panics and Sex Offender Recidivism – Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice
  Explores how fear-driven policies often lead to ineffective legislation.
  cjcj.org

Questions to Consider: Engaging with Downstate

• Downstate challenges audiences to consider the humanity of individuals who have How does Downstate complicate the idea of redemption?
• Do the characters in Downstate serve their time, or does society impose ongoing punishment?
• How does the play balance justice for survivors with the treatment of those who have served their sentences?
• Does the play ask us to empathize with characters we might otherwise reject? If so, how?
• How do power dynamics play out between the parolees and their parole officer, Ivy?
• How does Bruce Norris use humor in the play? Does it challenge or complicate the subject matter?
• How does the play’s setting (a group home) influence the story?

Denver Public Library Resources

The Denver Public Library recommends these library resources to enhance your theatre experience of Downstate.

READ 

One in Six: A Man’s Guide to Overcoming Childhood Sexual Abuse by Russell Stagg

At least one in six men has experienced childhood sexual abuse, including author and licensed psychotherapist Russell Stagg. He explains that most survivors struggle with post-traumatic stress (PTSD) and a need for therapeutic support, even if they don’t know it. With empathy and compassion, he tackles a long list of trauma-related problems, including addiction and abusive relationships. Stagg also teaches anger management, assertiveness, and suicide prevention. 

WATCH 

Untouchable, dir. Rebecca Richman Cohen and David Feige (2016) 

While never losing sight of the pain that sex crimes cause, this award-winning documentary challenges our perceptions of sex offender laws and if they even make a dent in rehab or prevention. Stream it on Kanopy, free to all Denver residents with your library card.

LISTEN 

A Survivor’s Education: Women, Violence, and the Stories We Don’t Tell by Joy Neumeyer

In this poignant self-investigation, historian and journalist Joy Neumeyer explores how violence against women is portrayed, perceived, and adjudicated today. Interweaving the harrowing account of the abuse she experienced as a graduate student at Berkeley with those of others who faced violence on campus and beyond, Neumeyer offers a startling look at how the hotly-debated Title IX system has altered university politics and culture, and uncovers the willful misremembrance that enables misconduct on scales large and small.

DOWNLOAD

The Actor Retires by Bruce Norris 

Written and performed by playwright Bruce Norris, The Actor Retires is a radio play about an actor who decides to end his career and become a furniture maker. This recording took place in front of a live audience and is available for download.