One woman lost her father, who shot himself. Another can’t get a 30-year-old school killing out of her mind.

Many have never experienced gun violence directly, but in the wake of so much of it, some families worry just a little when they send their kids off to school or take a walk at night.

Right to Carry, Right to Live, an evening conceived and produced by actor/director/educator Julia Glander, offers a variety of responses in different genres to the right to bear arms. Some will tell their own stories. Others will perform songs, scenes, or poems, each no longer than five minutes. There’s also an art installation. After the performances, which should total about an hour, there will be time for discussion. Seating is limited for the free event at Zingerman’s new Greyline space, where the bus station once was on Huron.

Glander decided to “go for potent, not preachy.” She organized the evening into three parts, dealing with the gun culture in America, actual incidents of gun violence, and finally, the aftermath. “Survivors of gun violence are among us,” she says.

After gathering mostly local people, Glander invited a few participants from not too far away, including professional actors John Lepard, executive director of the Williamston theater near Lansing, and Suzi Regan, former artistic director of the Performance Network.

Bob Scon, chief engineer for Michigan Radio, will play guitar and sing; he’s also making sure microphones are where they should be. A recently-retired physician will talk about gunshot wounds.

Three high school students will read their poems: Miela Foster from Huron High and Dylan Gilbert and Kyndall Flowers from Pioneer have participated in poetry slams at their schools and impressed their teachers.

Celeste Kanpurwala will recite a poem she wrote the day she deposited her father’s ashes in the Boardman River; he committed suicide with a shotgun.

April Ryan will speak about a 30-year-old experience that still haunts her -- it involves a school shooting and death, a lockdown, and the disturbing aftermath as experienced by a young girl who attended a nearby school.

Catherine Zudak, an actor/director and playwright who has worked with Theatre Nova and the Ann Arbor Civic Theatre, will perform a monologue, "Concealed Carry." She did it earlier this year in The Know Gun Show, which featured stories interwoven with music, presented by local artists; Zudak did some editing and remounted it again in Washington, D.C. “I don’t know what can be done to bridge the divide,” she reflects. “There is so much passion on both sides.” For her part, it was important to tell the story of a little boy she knew who accidentally shot and killed his father, a man who had sworn he was careful with guns. "His son had to live with that.”

Eva Rosenwald, a performer Ann Arbor audiences have seen at the Performance Network and the Burns Park Players, will perform a few very short scenes with high school teacher Quinn Strassel; one of these is by Zudak. “When Julia asked me if I'd be interested in participating, I didn't think twice," says Rosenwald, who is married to Ann Arbor mayor Christopher Taylor. "The prevention of gun violence is incredibly important. I'm grateful that we live in an active and engaged community where people come together to help make our world a little safer."

Valerie Mann, who has shown her art professionally in the U.S. and abroad, is often featured at WSG, the gallery on Main Street in Ann Arbor. She is loaning a live art installation to the event. Five women wear gowns, each representing a shooting. “I used my sewing machine as a drawing tool, creating a layering of line that describes the weapon(s) used during that shooting," Mann wrote of her work. "I shocked myself when, after many drawings of guns, I admitted how sexy they were.  The lines, the weight, the way they are designed to fit into one’s hand.” Live models, young women at the beginning of their lives, participate.  

Mason Van Gieson, a University of Michigan student who is working on a double degree in acting and anthropology, is a member of the student a cappella group Amazin' Blue. Some members of this group who were in town for the summer decided to keep singing, “in a sort of mismatched ensemble comprised of members from several of the collegiate groups at U of M.” This new ensemble will perform "Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People and "Blood I Bled" by The Staves.

“'Pumped Up Kicks' deals with gun violence directly, from the perspective of a shooter, and that seemed like a story that would be compelling to tell,” says Van Gieson. “'Blood I Bled' is lyrically more vague but deals thematically with the feelings of being fundamentally wronged, violated, and betrayed that come with the aftermath of trauma. There's a brutality in the language that helps to tell a story about the severity and longevity of what comes after an incident of gun violence; it's something that doesn't just heal and go away.”

“For us, it is an opportunity to engage with the Ann Arbor community outside of the university in a meaningful way," Van Gieson says, "in support of a cause many community members are rightfully very passionate about; when Julie asked for our help it was an automatic yes."

Glander thought it was important to include a hunter. Some gun owners, after all, are among those who oppose putting guns into the hands of the emotionally unstable -- or letting any private citizen own an assault weapon. Guy Sanville, artistic director of the Purple Rose Theatre Company in Chelsea, for instance, is a rifle owner who hunts for food, not sport. He’s written an essay for the program in support of gun control.

“It’s such a community event,” says Glander. Although she has organized the pieces into sections and an interesting order within them, she is quick to point out that she hasn’t created any of them. “It’s not my voice, it’s me orchestrating it.” She won’t introduce each piece, allowing the scenes and songs and stories to flow into one another and allowing community members to give voice to their experiences and feelings. “Everyone has been donating time and energy, and Zingerman’s donated the space,” she says. “They’ve been extraordinary to work with.”

Several groups in this country are trying to improve our gun laws. On June 3, they marched in Ann Arbor for gun control. One active group is Wear Orange, launched by students in Chicago five years ago when one of their friends was shot and killed. Another is Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. Theresa Reid, chair of the local branch of Moms, hoped events would continue beyond the march, and says that since Glander was on the committee to think up events, they swiftly enlisted her services. Says Reid, “Julia got to work on this, and she’s done an amazing job. It’s going to be a really exciting event.”

Davi Napoleon is a freelance journalist and theater historian. She writes regularly for national arts magazines and is author of Chelsea on the Edge: The Adventures of an American Theater.

"Right to Carry, Right to Live" will be performed on Wednesday, June 14, at 7 pm at Zingerman’s Greyline, 100 N Ashley, Ann Arbor 48104. Click here for more details and to RSVP.