Photo by Leah Ingram Eagle.
Lesli Johnson, who lives off Valleydale Road in Shelby County, has spent more than a decade portraying historical characters at American Village in Montevallo.
When Lesli Johnson was in school, she hated history. Simply learning facts and figures during a specific point of time was not interesting to her. But for over 10 years, she has been teaching history to others, just in a different way.
“We’re not just telling you facts but telling a story. We are historical interpreters and have an opportunity to present facts and figures in a story,” she said.
Johnson, who lives off Valleydale Road in Shelby County, has spent more than a decade portraying historical characters at American Village in Montevallo.
“I was in college (at Samford) studying performing arts at the time and had just completed working on a play, and the head of the theater department told me there was this place that does history and they were looking for someone and I should go and interview,” Johnson said.
She got the job and began her first role at American Village in a vignette called Follow the Drinking Gourd, portraying Harriet Tubman in January 2007.
In August 2009, she moved to California. Several years later, she received an email from her former boss at American Village that a fulltime position was open and asked if she was interested. She was, indeed, and moved back to Alabama in January 2012 to play the role of Phillis Wheatley.
Her character was an African slave, and one of the best-known poets in pre-19th century America. To portray the role of Wheatley, Johnson said it comes down to what she has learned about her as recorded in history and how she perceives her nature and spirit.
“I have a wonderful script at my disposal that the multitalented Noel Stewart created,” Johnson said. “There is so much eloquence, intelligence and wisdom in that script, and I believe the story it has to tell strikes definitive chords within a listener’s being. You are hearing a sometimes neglected perspective of history that you most likely have never heard before.”
Johnson tries to encapsulate Wheatley’s qualities each time she has an audience.
“She was an amazing person and ahead of her time,” Johnson said. “She was learning Latin and Greek by age 9 and translating it to English as well. She was something else.”
Wheatley is part of the cast at American Village and performs in their main program called Liberty. It takes students through the American Revolution to the early years of forming a republic. Visitors go through five different vignettes and participate in specific times in history.
When she is not portraying Wheatley, Johnson can be found elsewhere in the village, including an encampment where she teaches about Continental Army medicine and the varying things soldiers have to deal with on a day to day basis and what matrons [nurses] do, including treating illnesses, surgery and amputation.
“One of the best parts about working here is telling a story and learning about different aspects of history,” she said. “I like that there are different mediums and forms for how people can learn about it and enjoy it.”
What Johnson loves about her job is the opportunity that American Village gives people to come and see their work, which is unique unto itself.
“I love the look on people’s faces when I walk into the room,” she said. “They start smiling, even though they don’t even know what I’m going to say. They are seeing history walk in front of them, and I like seeing them get lost in the illusion we create.”
Johnson also enjoys seeing the faces of children when they see history come alive.
“When someone leaves with a different outlook than they had before, that means something,” she said. “If one child leaves with a different appreciation for history, it can leave an impact they will remember for the rest of their life. Affecting people means something, and that privilege shouldn’t be something that is taken for granted.”
One of her favorite events of the year is the annual Fourth of July celebration at American Village. Programs take place throughout the day, and the day ends with a firework display with the backdrop of Washington Hall.
“Everything comes alive that day,” she said. “It’s almost like Christmas for us.”
Johnson said she will continue to enjoy her role at American Village and will do what she does to the best of her ability.
“Anything I can do to make American Village better with my own part, I will continue to do that,” she said. “For today, it’s waiting for the next person to come in and show them something they haven’t seen before. No matter how I am feeling, even if I’m not having a good day, all that disappears when I get into my zone and into the character. Sometimes I forget that I have this great opportunity. There are a lot of things I could be doing that are not as fun and enjoyable as this. I try to stay in gratitude and humility and I can’t really go wrong.”
American Village is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. To find out more about its programs, visit americanvillage.org.