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Woolly Mammoth Tackles Race, Perception

THE AFRO — ’s not very often that by the end of a play, there are empty theatre seats, audience members out of place and no clear curtain call for actors to take their bows. Yet that’s exactly what happened when the house lights came on at Woolly Mammoth’s version of Jackie Sibblies Drury’s 2019 Pulitzer winning play “Fairview.”

Published

5 years ago

October 3, 2019

Oakland Post

The 2019 Pulitzer winning play, “Fairview,” created by Jackie Sibblies Drury and directed by Stevie Walker-Webb, will run at Woolly Mammoth through Oct. 6. (Courtesy Photo)

By Micha Green

It’s not very often that by the end of a play, there are empty theatre seats, audience members out of place and no clear curtain call for actors to take their bows. Yet that’s exactly what happened when the house lights came on at Woolly Mammoth’s version of Jackie Sibblies Drury’s 2019 Pulitzer winning play “Fairview.”

After an hour and 40 minute, those theatrical oddities weren’t the only thing left in a state of inquiry about race and how it is perceived.

Directed by Stevie Walker-Webb, “Fairview,” first seems to be a play inspired by Black sitcoms. Theater goers can expect to be entertained by a medley of intro songs celebrating Black sitcoms including, “Different Strokes,” “Good Times,” “One on One” and “That’s So Raven.”

The production opens to a classic TV sitcom set. The picture-perfect Black family feel is heightened, with a large family photo at the center of the neat home, showcasing a grandmother, mother, father, and young daughter. Beverly (Nikki Crawford), dressed in an ensemble inspired by a 50s housewife (although set in modern-day), prepares food for her mother’s birthday party, and jamming to Aretha Franklin’s “Rock Steady,” on a record player.

Despite the brightly lit, sparkling home, audiences quickly learn that nothing is perfect. “Rock Steady,” begins to skip on the record player, Beverly’s husband, Dayton (Samuel Ray Gates), leaves his beer out, which she is then forced to chug down and hide in a plant. Her pompous sister Jasmine (Shannon Dorsey) has just arrived adding an apparent level of anxiety and tension in the house.

Her high-energy, well-mannered daughter Keisha (Chinna Palmer) is tackling issues of her own.

Director Walker-Webb allowed the actors, even in their exaggerated caricatures to be human with real desires and goals. The actors fully live in their truth, even in this sitcom style of storytelling and express moments of pure joy, disappointment, excitement and love. Yet even in their realities, perception becomes the name of the game.

Jasmine, played by Dorsey, mockingly challenges the idea of a “family drama.” With the character written somewhat hyperbolic, Dorsey commands the stage when she compares her family’s life to a Black family drama, with storylines like “Soul Food,” or “Raisin in the Sun,” garnering uncomfortable, but honest laughs from the audience.

Is it a Black show without struggle?

Racial storylines and perceptions are further challenged when a voiceover of all-White actors, debate about which race they’d choose to be. Racist assertions are made about Latinx people, Asian families and African Americans. Offensive accents are heard and generalizations are made.

The stereotypes discussed come to the forefront of the action when the White voiceover actors (Cody Nickell, Kimberly Hilbert, Christopher Dinolfo and Laura C. Harris) implicate themselves into the family action– one of them quite literally destroying the family unit when bursting from the family photo at the center of the set.

These White actors, through costumes, dialects and character choices- that are pretty much everything but direct Blackface- immediately tackle the perception of Black people in media, by embodying these stereotypes. Pretending to be members of the Black family, the White actors sabotage the dinner, ruin the house and create dramatic tales that leaves the family completely broken. In the final moments of this disruption, all the Black actors are left with white foods (cake icing and mashed potatoes) on their faces- quite literally performing in Whiteface and wholly hurt because of the White gaze.

The upsetting crescendo is stopped when Keisha delivers her final monologue about what she’d like to say to White people, and how she’d like her story to be told in a “fair” way. Palmer’s portrayal of Keisha leaves the teen shattered and audiences questioning their role in wrecking the young girl.

There’s no clear end, or happy curtain call where audiences remember, “it’s just a play.” The house lights are on and audiences can leave- but barely anyone leaves comfortably. People leave questioning. People leave re-evaluating.

Fairview exposes “the societal racism that divides us in hopes of bringing us closer together, and galvanizing us to take action against it,” Woolly Mammoth Maria Manuela Goyanes wrote in the play’s program.

With potentially wounding experiences for audience members, either White and people of color, Woolly Mammoth allows for healing dialogue after the play. Separating audience members by White and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) folks, audiences are afforded a moment to debrief the play and their feelings around it. Some leave empowered and tasked with the job of continuing important race conversations. On Friday, Sept. 20, some left still broken.

The cast and crew of Woolly Mammoth’s “Fairview,” do a simultaneously beautiful and distressing job of tackling racial perception. The acting, while clearly directed to be exaggerated in performance, allows for honest moments of examination that can lead to clarity. The lights (Colin K. Bliss), sound (Roc Lee) and costumes (Ivania Stack) strikingly set the tone of the practical and elaborate set (Misha Kachman). Extreme moments were heightened by fun and grandiose choreography (Ashleigh King) and the production team perfectly executed technical moments (Rachael Danielle Albert, production stage manager) overall enriching the theatrical experience.

Kicking off Woolly Mammoth’s 40th season, “Farview,” will run until Oct. 6. For tickets and information visit https://www.woollymammoth.net/event/fairview.

This article originally appeared in The Afro.

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IN MEMORIAM: Ramona Edelin, Influential Activist and Education Advocate, Dies at 78

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Born on September 4, 1945, in Los Angeles, California, activist Ramona Edelin’s early years were marked by a commitment to education and social justice. According to her HistoryMakers biography, after graduating from Fisk University with a Bachelor’s degree in 1967, she pursued further studies at the University of East Anglia in England. She earned her master’s degree before completing her Ph.D. at Boston University in 1981.
The post IN MEMORIAM: Ramona Edelin, Influential Activist and Education Advocate, Dies at 78 first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

4 weeks ago

April 3, 2024

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

Once upon a time, Black Americans were simply known as colored people, or Negroes. That is until Ramona Edelin came along. The activist, renowned for her pivotal roles in advancing civil rights, education reform, and community empowerment, died at her D.C. residence last month at the age of 78. Her death, finally confirmed this week by Barnaby Towns, a communications strategist who collaborated with Dr. Edelin, was attributed to cancer.

Born on September 4, 1945, in Los Angeles, California, Edelin’s early years were marked by a commitment to education and social justice. According to her HistoryMakers biography, after graduating from Fisk University with a Bachelor’s degree in 1967, she pursued further studies at the University of East Anglia in England. She earned her master’s degree before completing her Ph.D. at Boston University in 1981.

Edelin’s contributions to academia and activism were manifold. She was pivotal in popularizing the term “African American” alongside Rev. Jesse L. Jackson in the late 1980s.

Jackson had announced the preference for “African American,” speaking for summit organizers that included Dr. Edelin. “Just as we were called Colored, but were not that, and then Negro, but not that, to be called Black is just as baseless,” he said, adding that “African American” “has cultural integrity” and “puts us in our proper historical context.”

Later, Edelin told Ebony magazine, “Calling ourselves African Americans is the first step in the cultural offensive,” while linking the name change to a “cultural renaissance” in which Black Americans reconnected with their history and heritage.

“Who are we if we don’t acknowledge our motherland?” she asked later. “When a child in a ghetto calls himself African American, immediately he’s international. You’ve taken him from the ghetto and put him on the globe.”

The HistoryMakers bio noted that Edelin’s academic pursuits led her to found and chair the Department of African American Studies at Northeastern University, where she established herself as a leading voice.

Transitioning from academia to advocacy, Edelin joined the National Urban Coalition in 1977, eventually ascending to president and CEO. During her tenure, she spearheaded initiatives such as the “Say Yes to a Youngster’s Future” program, which provided crucial support in math, science, and technology to youth and teachers of color in urban areas. Her biography noted that Edelin’s efforts extended nationwide through partnerships with organizations like the National Science Foundation and the United States Department of Education.

President Bill Clinton recognized Edelin’s expertise by appointing her to the Presidential Board on Historically Black Colleges and Universities in 1998. She also co-founded and served as treasurer of the Black Leadership Forum, solidifying her standing as a respected leader in African American communities.

Beyond her professional achievements, Edelin dedicated herself to numerous boards and committees, including chairing the District of Columbia Educational Goals 2000 Panel and contributing to the Federal Advisory Committee for the Black Community Crusade for Children.

Throughout her life, Edelin received widespread recognition for her contributions. Ebony magazine honored her as one of the 100 Most Influential Black Americans, and she received prestigious awards such as the Southern Christian Leadership Award for Progressive Leadership and the IBM Community Executive Program Award.

The post IN MEMORIAM: Ramona Edelin, Influential Activist and Education Advocate, Dies at 78 first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Tennessee State University Board Disbanded by MAGA Loyalists as Assault on DE&I Continues

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Recent legislative actions in Tennessee, such as repealing police reform measures enacted after the killing of Tyre Nichols, underscore a troubling trend of undermining local control and perpetuating racist agendas. The new law preventing local governments from restricting police officers’ authority disregards community efforts to address systemic issues of police violence and racial profiling.
The post Tennessee State University Board Disbanded by MAGA Loyalists as Assault on DE&I Continues first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

4 weeks ago

April 3, 2024

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

Tennessee State University (TSU), the state’s only public historically Black college and university (HBCU), faces a tumultuous future as Gov. Bill Lee dissolved its board, a move supported by racist conservatives and MAGA Republicans in the Tennessee General Assembly, who follow the lead of the twice-impeached, four-times indicted, alleged sexual predator former President Donald Trump. Educators and others have denounced the move as an attack on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) and a grave setback for higher education.

Critics argue that TSU’s purported financial mismanagement is a manufactured crisis rooted in decades of underinvestment by the state government. They’ve noted that it continues a trend by conservatives and the racist MAGA movement to eliminate opportunities for Blacks in education, corporate America, and the public sector.

Gevin Reynolds, a former speechwriter for Vice President Kamala Harris, emphasizes in an op-ed that TSU’s financial difficulties are not the result of university leadership because a recent audit found no evidence of fraud or malfeasance.

Reynolds noted that the disbanding of TSU’s board is not an isolated incident but part of a broader assault on DE&I initiatives nationwide. Ten states, including Tennessee, have enacted laws banning DE&I policies on college campuses, while governors appointing MAGA loyalists to university trustee positions further undermine efforts to promote inclusivity and equality.

Moreover, recent legislative actions in Tennessee, such as repealing police reform measures enacted after the killing of Tyre Nichols, underscore a troubling trend of undermining local control and perpetuating racist agendas. The new law preventing local governments from restricting police officers’ authority disregards community efforts to address systemic issues of police violence and racial profiling.

The actions echo historical efforts to suppress Black progress, reminiscent of the violent backlash against gains made during the Reconstruction era. President Joe Biden warned during an appearance in New York last month that Trump desires to bring the nation back to the 18th and 19th centuries – in other words, to see, among other things, African Americans back in the chains of slavery, women subservient to men without any say over their bodies, and all voting rights restricted to white men.

The parallels are stark, with white supremacist ideologies used to justify attacks on Black institutions and disenfranchise marginalized communities, Reynolds argued.

In response to these challenges, advocates stress the urgency of collective action to defend democracy and combat systemic racism. Understanding that attacks on institutions like TSU are symptomatic of broader threats to democratic norms, they call for increased civic engagement and voting at all levels of government.

The actions of people dedicated to upholding the principles of inclusivity, equity, and justice for all will determine the outcome of the ongoing fight for democracy, Reynolds noted. “We are in a war for our democracy, one whose outcome will be determined by every line on every ballot at every precinct,” he stated.

The post Tennessee State University Board Disbanded by MAGA Loyalists as Assault on DE&I Continues first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Stacy M. Brown

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Braxton Haulcy and the Expansion of Walker|West Music Academy

May 24, 2023 – Walker West Music Academy gets an early start on expansion. Join us for a Wednesday episode of The …
The post Braxton Haulcy and the Expansion of Walker|West Music Academy first appeared on BlackPressUSA.