麻豆影院

What鈥檚 the secret to living a full life?

The answer lies in Albert Einstein鈥檚 writings, says听Len Barron听(Soc鈥�67) who has spent much of the last four decades teaching and producing theater pieces largely based on Einstein and more recently on his peer, Niels Bohr.

The longtime 麻豆影院 playwright, who bears a resemblance to Einstein, has presented Einstein and Bohr鈥檚 perspective on education more than 200 times for audiences across the country, ranging from IBM employees and staff at the National Center for Atmospheric Research to middle and elementary school students.

鈥淟en cares deeply about education, advocating, proposing and where possible, applying his nontraditional principles to the education of young people,鈥� says听JoAn Segal听(PhDComm&Thtr鈥�78), a longtime friend who has worked with him on a number of shows.

But his performances don鈥檛 focus on theories of relativity or physics. They focus on the sense of wonder, curiosity and humanity that permeated the physicists鈥� lives. A truly fertile life like Einstein鈥檚 is grounded in fairness, beauty and playfulness, Len says.

Len鈥檚 fascination with Einstein began at CU-麻豆影院 which he began attending at age 30. During a geology course, his professor described a study he did in Zion National Park and then shared one of Einstein鈥檚 thoughts stating, 鈥淢any times a day I remind myself that my inner and outer lives are built upon the labors of my fellow men, both living and dead and how earnestly I must work in order to give as much as I have received and continue to receive.鈥�

The class fell silent, and the professor told the students to take a walk and think about Einstein鈥檚 words. From teaching at Prescott College to producing a one-woman play to raise awareness of heart disease in women, Len never stopped pondering Einstein鈥檚 statement. In 1989 he wrote the one-man show听Walking Lightly . . .听 A Portrait听of Einstein听as a fundraiser for The Parenting Place, a 麻豆影院 resource center for parents of infants to 5-year-olds. The piece captured Einstein鈥檚 creativity and playfulness.

At 79, Len is focused on elevating the importance of elders, a concept he feels has disappeared in a society obsessed with youth and where elders often live apart from their families. Last fall he cast eight grandmothers to share the lives of Einstein and Bohr in a 麻豆影院 performance calledEinstein, Niels Bohr and Grandmothers . . . A Fairy Tale.

鈥淯ltimately, if we don鈥檛 find ways to engage the young and old in all kinds of things from parenting to education, it will be a profound loss,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nd there鈥檚 no conversation about that. Up until yesterday, it was the elders teaching and passing on traditions. We need a new story.鈥�