If you don't fall in love with the Delaney sisters in the first 60 seconds of "Having Our Say," it's a long two and a half hours. Luckily, though, the sweet Sadie and the spicy Bess are wonderfully loveable characters, played perfectly by Lizan Mithcell and Yvette Freeman. The two centenarian African-American - though Bess hates the term - sisters sit, cook and reminisce on the Berlind Theatre stage, talking the audience through their history, from their grandparents to their present.
"Having Our Say" is not a traditional three-act play by any means. The only action that is accomplished over the two-and-a-half hours is the cooking of a meal, commemorating the anniversary of the death of the sisters' father, and the characters speak directly to the audience, treating us as if we've come over for tea. In many ways, though, this form fits the content perfectly. Too often the stories of the elderly sound scripted, even being spoken to directly makes one feel related to the women. Of course, few are willing to listen to their grandmothers muse for more than two hours, even with two 10-minute bathroom breaks.
My father once told me that, if two people agree on everything, only one of them is thinking. For the most part, Bess and Sadie agree on everything. But in the moments when they don't - in the rare points of sibling conflict - there is a spark on stage. Halfway through, Bess tells a story of how she stood up to a drunk white man and was almost lynched for it. Sadie asks Bess why she would risk her life for this, and in her voice, you can hear the love she has for her sister and the pain it would cause to lose her best friend. Unfortunately, this dramatic spark is cut short, and the kindling never quite catches fire.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Marsha Norman has suggested that "some of the greatest qualities often seen in real women - endurance, intelligence, compassion, tolerance and strength - are very hard to dramatize." Emily Mann's "Having Our Say" tries to dramatize the bestselling memoir of the Delaney sisters, but it stays too close to the page. The value of adapting the written memoir into a staged play should lie in seeing the sisters' relationship come alive. Most of the play, however, feels like a monologue delivered to the audience by two women playing the same character. The most powerful moments come when the characters make eye contact and relate to each other - not to the audience. So while hearing the two sisters tell the same story is certainly a well-choreographed delight, we rarely hear the women speak of their most powerful story: their relationship.
Since the characters spend most of the play addressing the audience, let's turn our focus toward these audience members. As a young, white male, I came in with three categories of separation from the protagonists of "Having Our Say." Naturally, I feared that I might not be able to relate to them, or, worse, that I would be so distanced that I would perceive them as others. Further, I feared that the mostly white audience - no anomaly to the McCarter Theatre Center - would also see the women as others and laugh at their stories, as was the case with the all-black cast in McCarter's "Stick Fly" two falls ago. Instead, the mostly white audience at last Thursday's "Having Our Say" appeared to be laughing with the sisters.
In the end, for this audience, the label that best defines the two 100-year-old black women is not old, black or female, but rather, American. The crowd responded most strongly to the sisters' discussions of American matters: economic hard times, paying taxes and the "clowns in Congress." This connection between the audience and the characters, forged by their common experience, is further strengthened by the set. A series of projected photographs frame the acting area and situate the hyperspecific story of the Delaneys into a more general history of 20th century America. On the screen, images from the sisters' photo album exist alongside a montage of segregated shops and buildings from the 1960s. It is this transformation of the Delaney sisters' story into a quintessentially American tale that allows the audience to relate.
In all, the production is impeccable - the set is breathtaking, the actresses are phenomenal, and the stories are rich. We learn how the sisters feel about "rebbies" (rebel white supremacists), Jimmy Carter, civil rights and women's rights. Sadly, though, we rarely hear how the sisters feel about each other. The two characters are so concerned with having their say to the audience that they barely speak to one other.
Pros: Superb production: set, lights, projection, acting, direction.
Cons: Characters rarely relate to each other.
Read More
Princeton Zoning Board of Adjustment approves renovations to Tower and Charter Clubs
Sena Chang and Isaac BernsteinOn March 27, the Municipality of Princeton’s Zoning Board of Adjustment approved construction developments for Tower Club and Charter Club. Renovations for both clubs are aimed towards improving accessibility.
On March 27, the Municipality of Princeton’s Zoning Board of Adjustment approved construction developments for Tower Club and Charter Club. Renovations for both clubs are aimed towards improving accessibility.
Students support local businesses with new platform Zage
Jack AllenAfter hearing about the struggles faced by a number of these restaurants after students left campus in mid-March, Dilbagi created Zage, an online platform that allows community members to send money to local businesses now to redeem as credits on their purchases in the future.
This fall, go beyond the 'Bubble'
Dora ZhaoEven though classes are picking up, weekends are the perfect time for students to escape the Orange Bubble. While going out to eat on Nassau is enjoyable, there is so much to see beyond Princeton. For those looking for a day trip or a chance to explore the area outside of Princeton, here is a list of ideas to do this fall.