Hailed as the most important narrative of its time depicting
the life of a female slave, Harriet Jacobs’ Incidents
in the Life of a Slave Girl comes to life in a groundbreaking performance
by star of stage and screen, Cherita Armstrong, Friday and Saturday, February 27 & 28, 2015 at 8:00 p.m. The
Friday February 27 performance is in The Forum at Diana Wortham Theatre; and
the Saturday February 28 performance has been moved to the main theatre due to
high demand.
Produced by American Place Theatre’s Literature to Life, the
true story of Harriet Jacobs’ experience is illuminated in shocking fashion as
the traumas of slavery — particularly for women and children — are dramatized
verbatim from Jacobs’ book. Jacobs’ story begins when she is born enslaved in
Edenton, North Carolina, and then continues through her powerful and moving
experiences during the seven years she spent hiding in The Loophole, a crawl
space in her grandmother’s attic, as her children grew in the house below her,
unaware of her presence. “At times I was stupefied and listless,” Jacobs
writes. “At other times I became very impatient to know when these dark years
would end, and I should again be allowed to feel the sunshine, and breathe the
pure air.”
Her years in The Loophole were a part of Harriet Jacobs’
ultimate plan for freedom. Jacobs’ story continues through her escape, her
status as a runaway fugitive in the North, and finally her path to freedom and
reunion with her children. Actor Cherita Armstrong brilliantly dramatizes this
astonishing story, bringing to life Jacobs’ astonishing account as a mother and
a survivor. Audiences are invited to stay for a post-performance discussion
with Cherita Armstrong and examine the “peculiar institution” of slavery and
the accompanying themes of resilience and survival.
In addition to its evening performances, productions of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl
are also a part of the 2014/2015 Matinee
Series for Students and Families on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, February
25-27 at 10:00 a.m. These performances are recommended for Grades 7-12.
Individual and group tickets are available by calling the box office at
828-257-4530. Performances in the Matinee Series for
Students and families are open to school groups, homeschoolers, community
groups, and families.
Actor Cherita Armstrong’s film and television credits
include Nowhere to Go But Up, Better Dayz, Law & Order “Special Victims Unit,” Law & Order “Trial By Jury,” All My Children, and various commercials. Armstrong has worked with
the Manhattan Class Company, Ensemble Studio Theatre, American Place Theatre,
New York Theatre Workshop, NY International Film Festival, Yale Repertory
Theatre, St. Louis Black Repertory Theatre, and NY Stage and Film.
This production of Harriet Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is a Literature to Life
original, adapted in 2006, and was commissioned by and premiered at The New
York Historical Society. The American Place Theatre was founded in 1963 by Wynn
Handman, Sidney Lanier, and Michael Tolan at St. Clement’s Church, on 46th
Street in Manhattan, and was incorporated as a not-for-profit theatre in that
year. Tennessee Williams and Myrna Loy were two of the original Board members.
The first full production was Robert Lowell’s theatre trilogy masterpiece, The
Old Glory, in November 1964.
Incidents
in the Life of a Slave Girl’s Asheville performances are made possible by Media Sponsor WCQS
88.1 FM.
The entrance for the Diana Wortham
Theatre at Pack Place is marked by the location of the theatre’s marquee
between 12 and 14 Biltmore Avenue. Patrons enter the theatre through the
breezeway between Marble Slab Creamery and White Duck Taco restaurants, and
into a large interior courtyard with multiple glass doors to the theatre’s main
lobby and box office. The intimate main theatre seats just over 500 and boasts
exceptional acoustics and sightlines, making it the premier performance space
in Western North Carolina. The Forum is a small performance space off the
main lobby of the Diana Wortham Theatre with flexible stage and seating
configurations for 120 patrons.
The Mainstage Series is supported
by a grant from the North Carolina Arts Council, a state agency. The Mainstage
Series 2014/2015 Season Sponsors are the Asheville Scene, Blue Moon Water,
Creative Energy, Laurey’s Catering and Gourmet-to-go, the North Carolina Arts
Council, and the Renaissance Asheville Hotel. To obtain more information on the
Mainstage Series or to purchase tickets, call the theatre’s box office at (828)
257-4530 or visit www.dwtheatre.com.
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