The Shades of Black Theatre Festival presents two more amazing theatrical experiences this weekend at the Darkhorse Theatre, 4610 Charlotte Ave. The Meeting and Do Over will be playing Fri., Sat. and Sun. (see schedule below). Here’s a brief summary of these two shows:
Do Over was written and directed by Mary McCallum and presented by Sista Style Productions.
At her 20-year reunion, a woman wonders if she chose the right guy for her senior prom. When she wakes to find herself back at the prom, will she make the right decisions given her opportunity to do it all over?
The Meeting was written by Jeff Stetson and directed by Chuck Smith.
Fascinating and dramatically compelling, this eloquent play depicts the supposed meeting of two of the most important men of modern times: Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Differing in their philosophies, but alike in their mutual respect, the two men debate their varying approaches to the same grave social problems with both prepared to die for their beliefs.
However, neither is aware of how soon their assassins’ bullets would await them. The story takes place in a suite high up in a Harlem Hotel room where Malcolm X and his bodyguard Rashad are resting before Malcolm X’s fateful speech at the Audubon Ballroom. Malcolm X has requested a secret meeting with Dr. King who is also in New York. Cautious at first, the two quickly fall into a spirited debate about their different approaches to improving the lot of Blacks in a predominantly White society.
Dr. King (the lamb) hopes to find racial harmony through love and peaceful resistance, while Malcolm X (the lion) is reconciled to violence and revenge if Blacks are to win out over oppression. The Meeting received a Louis B. Mayer Award, eight NAACP Theatre Awards, and six New York AUDELCO nominations. The cast includes: Kenny Dozier, Willie Robbins, and Michael McClendon.
Shades of Black Theatre Festival schedule:
Friday, Sept. 19 — Do Over (Sista Style Productions), 7:30 pm
Saturday, Sept. 20 — The Meeting (Kennie Playhouse Theatre), 7:30 pm
Sunday, Sept. 21 — The Meeting (Kennie Playhouse Theatre), 3 pm
Friday, Sept. 26 — Black Knight Society, written and directed by Michael L. Walker (Dream 7 Theatre Productions), 7:30 pm
Saturday, Sept. 27 — Black Knight Society (Dream 7 Theatre Productions), 7:30 pm
Sunday, Sept. 28 — Black Knight Society (Dream 7 Theatre Productions), 3 pm
