The 52nd Street Project mourns the loss of Project Member Carlos Dume. He joined us in 2004, at the age of 10, with the production of his play “The Miracle of Music,” and went on to act and sing, to write and recite poetry, and to make the most of all the opportunities that he was given. He subsequently attended the University of Michigan as a recipient of the Henry and Gloria Jacobs Scholarship, offered every two years to a Project teen. His death has shocked and saddened all of us, all the more for the great promise his young life held. We grieve not only for the end of that glorious possibility, but for what he gave to us through his prodigious artistry, his constant integrity, his tenacity and fierce appetite, and the sweetness and beauty of his spirit.
All of this found its fullest expression for us in his participation in the Project’s Teen Ensemble, a two year acting program, which culminated in 2011 with the production of “The Two Gentlemen of Verona,” which played Off-Broadway at our home theater, and then spent a week on the road, with stops at the University of Calgary and The Banff Centre. On the last night of the tour, the Ensemble gathered to celebrate their time together and all that they had accomplished. Carlos recited for them the following poem, an exquisite depiction not only of the challenges and triumphs and joys that came from the work of the group, but also of the greatness that radiated out of him. That radiance will be missed.
The Final Chapter
By Carlos Dume (2011)
On top floating it’s incredible Who would have thought the day would come That together we touch the clouds Above the world soaring through its air Progressing all the way to a place above Where in few accepted the challenge And fewer overcame it. No day could have predicted this one A family has developed, With imperfections of course But with more power and genuine care To create beauty than take it away. Oh and there have been those days, With loss after loss Miscalculation after miscalculation Greatness never ceases to stop radiating out of us. Proud, That’s one way to describe us, Attention-deficit, we’ve all had our moments, But geniuses No doubt that’s what it comes down to. For we began with the path they set forth And when we separate onto the many forks that lie ahead of the path They keep the family going Keep it going in the things they do But they’re not the only ones, we can too By always remembering our moments together Old and new.
Carlos in the Mask Unit Presentation of the Teen Ensemble
Carlos in Canada on tour with The Two Gentlemen of Verona
