Timber Lake Playhouse presents “Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 Years”, by Emily Mann, based on the bestselling memoir by Sadie and Bessie Delany with Amy Hill Hearth. Chuck Smith will direct the production that runs Thursday, June 16, through Saturday, June 25, 2015.
Newsday wrote of the play, “This must be the nicest show and inspirational pep rally in town…what a life these women have led, and how lovely to hear about America’s real history from witnesses who are such good company. The Delany sisters may seem too good to be true, but here they are.”
103-year-old Sadie Delany and 101-year-old Bessie Delany were the daughters of a former slave. While they make dinner to remember their father’s birthday in 1993, the two sisters tell us the story of their American century–growing up in the segregated South, living through the Harlem renaissance, two world wars and the civil rights and women’s rights struggles of the 20th century.
A 1993 New York Times review of the book states, “They were taught to participate in history, not just witness it, and they have had the wit to shape their histories with style.” The book spent 105 weeks on the New York Times bestsellers list. The stage adaptation of “Having Our Say” received three Tony nominations in 1995 and has since been produced internationally to critical acclaim.
Chicago-based director, Chuck Smith, returns to TLP for his 15th consecutive season as a guest artist to direct Having Our Say. He is a member of Goodman Theatre’s Board of Trustees and is Goodman Theatre’s Resident Director. He is also a resident director at the Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe in Sarasota, FL. Goodman credits include the Chicago premieres of “Pullman Porter Blues”, “By the Way”, “Meet Vera Stark”, “Race”, “The Good Negro”, and “Proof and The Story”. Also he has the world premieres of “By the Music of the Spheres and The Gift Horse”, and James Baldwin’s “The Amen Corner”. James Baldwin’s play transferred to Boston’s Huntington Theatre Company, where it won the Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) Award for Best Direction.
The cast of “Having Our Say” includes resident performers Jenia Head of Detroit, MI, (Miss Sadie Delany) and Shayla Brielle G. of Cincinnati, OH, (Dr. Bessie Delany). The creative team includes Tucker Topel (set design), Grayson Cusimano (costumes), Sandra Lopez (props), Riley Wood (lighting), Kevin Johnson (sound), and Gina Guerriere (stage manager).
Tickets run from $17 to $25 and may be purchased at www.timberlakeplayhouse.org or by calling 815-244-2035.
The summer season at Timber Lake will continue June 30th with “Rock of Ages”, “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum”, “Titanic” and “Gaslight”. Subscriptions to see the remaining five productions (including “Having Our Say”) are available for $99 through June 25th. The Magic Owl Children’s Theatre at TLP will present a rock and roll musical version of The Three Little Pigs from the writers of Broadway’s Mary Poppins in July and August.