by Brian Keaney

Dedham High School played host to I Am Dirt, a one man show by John Morello described by the New York Times as “mordantly funny.”  Mixing humor with a serious message, Morello portrays a number of interconnected high school students dealing with issues such as substance abuse, date rape, depression, and suicide.

The show comes from a very personal place for Morello, who said he lost his brother to a drunk driver when he was 12 years old.  His family turned to substances to cope with the loss, and Morello said he picked up his first joint in the 7^th grade.  A second brother became involved with more serious drugs and eventually overdosed on heroin.

Morello began the show by telling students he wasn’t there to “teach, preach, or lecture” at them.  After the show he said that many times speakers will try and scare students with a message of, “If you use drugs, you will die.”  Then, when they try a drug and don’t die from it, they discount the entire message.

Morello came to Dedham High after Marge Bohan, the head of the Health and Physical Education Department, and five students saw him perform at a peer leadership conference in Norwood last October.

“This is one of the best performances we’ve ever had,” Bohan said.  “You can tell he really puts it all out there.

Bohan also said it was important to remember that substance abuse is a problem in our society, including our schools, and that “it isn’t going away.”  She said she appreciated the way Morello used humor to engage the students and not lose many of them.  There was more of an audible reaction from the Dedham audience than during his performance to strictly the peer leaders, she said.

For his part, Morello said he enjoys it when kids come into the show and are somewhat rowdy.  His goal is to pull them and make them laugh during the humorous moments so he has their attention during the more serious ones.  Both he and some of the students who watched it think he accomplished just that.

“I think it was really good,” said Lindsey Kelley, a senior at the High School.  “I think people are going to be talking about this for a long time.”

Fellow seniors Meredith O’Connor and Andrea Hage agreed.  O’Connor was one of the five who saw it in Norwood, and said they have been quoting from the play since then.  Students will discuss the performance during their Advisory periods this afternoon, according to Principal Jake Santamaria.  Advisories are classes where small groups of students are paired with a faculty member for a focused discussion on a given topic.

After the play Morello, who does between 75 and 100 shows a year, stayed in the auditorium and spoke to every student who wished to speak to him.  Many thanked him for the performance, and told him that they could relate to many of the issues the characters were facing.  This is just what Morello was aiming for, he said.

“Kids don’t need flashing lights, clichés, and a circus production to connect with them,” Morello said.  “Like all of us they want honesty, respect, and someone who is real.”

The show was funded by a grant from the Dedham Education Foundation written by Bohan and supported by testimonials by the students who saw it in Norwood.