African and African American Studies Program Presents Annual Spring Play

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Back: Mark Dillard, Tim Reid, Kanesha Day, Jade Novak, Daphne Reid, LaQuita Deans, Prince Duren, Abby MacDonald. Front: Meghan Lewis, Clinnesha Sibley, Courtney Gipson, Margaret Gender.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The African and African American studies program in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences will present its sixth annual spring play at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 6, and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 7, in the Arkansas Union Theater. Waiting to be Invited by S.M. Shephard-Massat follows four African American women in 1964 Atlanta as they test their newly acquired civil rights in an all-white establishment.

LaQuita Deans and Mark Dillard, both majoring in history and African and African American studies, are two of the many students who have found that participating in the annual play is a meaningful way to be involved on campus.

“I don’t consider myself an actor, but enjoy this as a hobby,” said Deans.

Deans is one of the leads in Waiting to be Invited. She was also featured in last year’s production, The Colored Museum. Dillard was inspired to participate this year after seeing The Colored Museum.

“Last year’s production blew me away, so I wanted to get involved with this year’s play,” said Dillard. “I am very happy to be here as the lighting and sound coordinator.”

On Saturday, March 31, actors Tim and Daphne Reid, who have starred in several television shows, spoke with the students and watched their dress rehearsal. Tim played Venus Flytrap on WKRP in Cincinnati and Ray Campbell in Sister, Sister. Daphne is best known for her role as Aunt Viv in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

The Reids encouraged the students to approach acting with a spirit of passion, commitment, training and suffering. Kanesha Day, a biochemistry major with a minor in drama, expressed appreciation for the advice and said she found that opportunities like the African and African American studies play allowed her to practice the craft of acting while focusing on her schoolwork.

The annual spring play is a highlight for the African and African American studies program. Past performances have been delivered to packed houses consisting of both on-campus and off-campus patrons.

The show changes annually, and the excitement and quality grows each year. Each play is carefully selected to compliment the program’s mission. In addition to The Colored Museum, past productions include Twilight: Los Angeles 1922 and College Life: The Deciding Factor, an original play written by African and African American studies student DaLaura Patton.

“Our annual plays educate and engage the audience, which include our students and members of both the university and the Northwest Arkansas community,” said Calvin White, Jr., an assistant professor of history and the program’s director. “All of our dramatic productions enhance the themes of African or African American history and culture discussed in the classroom and show the important role that African Americans and race played in the development of the United States.”

Directed by Clinnesha D. Sibley, assistant professor of drama, the production features a cast and crew of University of Arkansas students. Sibley, an alumna of the George Washington Carver Research Program, holds a master of fine arts in playwriting from the University of Arkansas and a bachelor of arts from Tougaloo College.

Sibley’s works have been featured at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre’s Voices at the River Playwriting Residency, the D.C. Black Theater Festival and the Athena Project’s Plays in Progress in Denver, Colorado. As a playwright, actor and director, Sibley is an integral part of the campus and local theater community as well as the African and African American studies program. Her play Tell Martha Not to Moan was chosen from six new works by female playwrights as the winner of the Athena Project’s 2012 Plays in Progress. Her anthology, King Me: Three One-Act Plays Inspired by the Life and Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will be released this spring by University of Arkansas Press.

The cast of Waiting to be Invited includes Deans as Ms. Louise, Kanesha Day as Ms. Odessa, Meghan Lews as Ms. Delores, Jude Novak as Ms. Ruth, Prince Duren as Palmero Bateman and Margaret Gender as Ms. Grayson. In addition to Sibley and Dillard, other members of the crew include Abby MacDonald, assistant director and stage manager; Kevin Prescott Morris, II, dramaturg; and Courtney P. Gipson, Costume and props coordinator.

A reception will follow the Sunday performance. Both performances are free and open to the public.