It
would be unusual research the cuisine of a place you never mean to
visit, but Kevin Meehan and Dean Ferraro—roommates, artists and amateur
chefs—have actually done quite a lot of research into the meals served
on death row, and want to serve an authentic last meal to you. Last Meals from Death Row,
part of this year’s SoLow Fest, is a dinner party with an intellectual
bent. To learn a bit more about the show, we caught up with Kevin and
Dean and asked them a few questions.
SoLow Fest: What will you be doing to guide the experience, aside from making the food?
Dean
Ferraro: I think the key to doing this is fluidity. We’ll be learning
just as much from the experience as the guests. Our last night may be
something completely different from what we started with.
Kevin
Meehan: There's like a rule that it's not polite to talk politics at
the dinner table or in the presence of company and I'm curious if
that'll be broken.
SF: What weird stuff have you learned about death row and its inmates while doing the research for this project?
DF:
I think it’s just fascinating and a bit ironic that of all the ways to
die, execution is by far the best documented. World leaders, celebrities
and other public figures die everyday in the privacy of hospital beds
and in the presence of family. It’s a strange phenomenon how the penal
system compensates for that with one meal.
SF: What provisions do you make for people with special dietary needs, or even tastes? Do audiences have any choice in food?
DF:
They’re at the mercy of our menu, which we posted as a disclaimer. If
they want a tailor-made last meal, they’ll have to do something terrible
just like everyone else.
SF:
Do you intend this to be more of an intellectual or a gastronomical
experience? For a $5 donation, can people expect to be wowed by their
meal?
KM:
I'm curious to see if there is an intellectual experience as a result
of the gastronomical. I feel that the two will be tied together. For $5?
Are you kidding me? If I made this a potluck and everyone brought their
own dish, you'd probably end up spending more. I think the meal may be
"wow-worthy" for reasons other than solely taste.
DF:
Hopefully, it’ll be a mix of both. Our goal is to have the meal be the
catalyst for discussion. Everyone has a comfort food, something most
death-row inmates choose by default. The whole thing stems from the idea
that one meal can tell a lot about you. Neither Kevin nor I have any
real culinary training, but it’ll definitely be worth the trip.
Last Meals from Death Row takes place at Kevin and Dean’s apartment at 6th and South on June 20, June 21 and June 29th at 7pm. Contact Kevin at kvn.meehan@gmail.com to reserve spot and obtain venue address. PWYC $5-10, BYOB.
Julius Ferraro is a Philly freelancer. He writes regularly for Art Attack and his blog, Notes on Words.