Imagine writing yourself into history. This is exactly what Adrian Lee Borden, who now lives in Montgomery but has been making the journey to Tallassee almost daily to assist in the production of her play, “Dear Mama: Letters and Music from World War II,” debut at the Mt. Vernon Theater on Friday, us doing.
The playwright crafted the production after conducting extensive research on the subject, especially through handwritten correspondences that were composed during the World War II era.
“When you’re writing a play based on letters, and it’s dozens and dozens of letters, you have to get the voices in your head and I don’t mean in a mentally ill way,” she said. “I mean in away of capturing each individual perspective.”
Borden researched letters that were sent both to and from the battlefront.
“We have people writing from the Philippines and then we have people writing from the home front,” she said.
There are a variety of characters that both read and write letters in this play. Through these letters, Borden offers a glimpse of daily life during a time when the future was so uncertain.
During her research, the playwright utilized various forms of exploration to ensure historical accuracy in the production.
“I went to museums, and I listened to podcasts, and I interviewed veterans and I talked to my family,” she said. “I gathered pictures and letters, and read books and tried to get all of the historical information. Then I would sit and pen the letters and have them be historically accurate.”
Some of Borden’s resources were hometown typescripts, which depict life here in the once bustling city during the World War II period.
“There are Tallassee plot lines in this play,” she said. “There are letters from a young girl who gets a job at Tallassee Mill because she wants to do something, anything, to help.”
Borden says she is excited about the upcoming debut and, after months of preparation, she is excited to she the finished product.
“I get emotional when I think about opening night,” she said.
Borden is no stranger to the world of entertainment. She has been singing, dancing and acting professionally since she made her move to California in 2005. She earned a BFA from Niagara University in Lewiston, New York. Borden is also a talented songwriter and plays the ukelele. Other than an accomplished playwright, she is also one of the Satin Dollz, a1940’s pinup group and she stays active with Above the Curve, a theatre company she co-founded.