Selected and edited by the award-winning American playwright Reginald Edmund, who produced Black Lives, Black Words across the US, which premiered in Chicago, July 2015. The international project has explored the black diaspora’s experiences in some of the largest multicultural cities in the world, Chicago, Minneapolis, Cleveland, Toronto and London. Over sixty Black writers from the UK, USA, and Canada have each written a short play to address Black issues today. "I started Black Lives, Black Words because I felt there needed to be an opportunity for me as a playwright to speak out against the sins committed in this world inflicted upon black bodies: Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin, Rekia Boyd, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice, and the countless many others. This in turn caused me to wonder what other artists were out there that possess this overwhelming desire to speak out for the unheard voices. Companies in Minneapolis with Guthrie Theatre, Carlyle Brown and Company, Bedlam Theatre, Freestyle Theatre, the Million Artist Movement, in Maryland – Columbia Arts Festival, Chicago – Polarity Ensemble Theatre, Toronto – Obsidian Theatre, Buddies and Bad Times Theatre, and the National Arts Centre, along with many others joined us and now, two years later we have given voice to over sixty Black Playwrights and over a hundred performers. From city to city, Black Lives, Black Words has remained an event that is accessible and affordable to all. Embraced by a wide range of different theatres that vary in capacity, playing to houses from 70 to 300 audience members. Selling out in every venue. I collected these works showcased at BLBW events from all over in hopes that the narratives that have been placed in here speaks to the Black Struggle, Black Achievement, Black Love, Black Aspirations, Black Hopes, Black Dreams, BLACK EVERYTHING. I hope that the narratives amplify the importance of the Black Lives Matter Movement, that these plays find themselves in theatres both community and regional, in classrooms and libraries, church houses, and communal gathering serving as a rallying cry for those that are artists and even those who are not that OUR BLACK LIVES MATTER, individually, globally, and spiritually." - Reginald Edmund, Managing Curating Producer, Black Lives, Black Words Featured in this collection are: Reginald Edmund, Idris Goodwin, James Austin Williams, Rachel Dubose, Becca C. Browne, Marsha Estell, Aaron Holland, Loy A. Webb, Lisa Langford, Christina Ham, Harrison David Rivers, Dominique Morisseau, Winsome Pinnock, Trish Cooke, Mojisola Adebayo, Rachel De-Lahay, Max Kolaru, Yolanda Mercy, Somalia Seaton, Courttia Newland, Luke Reece, Tawiah BenEben M’Carthy, Jordan Laffrenier, Meghan Swaby, Mary Ann Anane, Allie Woodson, Elliot Sagay, Amira Danan, Cat Davidson, Noelle Fourte, Kori Alston
The first play in Reginald Edmund's The City of the Bayou Collection, THE DAUGHTERS OF THE MOON follows a runaway slave girl and a former plantation mistress wanted for murder as they embark on a perilous journey North towards freedom, guided by an Ancient African Goddess. "THE DAUGHTERS OF THE MOON is a thrilling survival adventure, historical and poetic, with strong themes on race, gender, and empowerment." Cleveland Centennial "In THE DAUGHTERS OF THE MOON by playwright Reginald Edmund, matters of race, gender, politics and history all combine for a thrilling, thoughtful plot." Houston Press
When Franklin Park discovers that the love of his life is dating an ancient African vampire, no one believes him, so he enlists the help a strange vampire-slaying duo to help save the girl... and maybe even the world. This is the world premiere script of Reginald Edmund's horror comedy.
The local weather-prophets—the cape-coated Mennonites and the bearded Amishmen, who came into the town to market—had said, with choral unanimity, that the spring would be brief and sudden, and the summer parching and intense. Already, though April had but dawned, the pink arbutus had bloomed and withered, and the pale first violets were peeping, purple and fragrant, among the lush grass of the front yards on Second Street. The annual oriole was a full fortnight ahead of his time in opening his summer-house in the hickory-tree on the Southwarks' lawn; and up in the droning study-room of the high-school, where all the windows were wide to the lazy sunlight, Miss England had begun, this week, to direct the thoughts of her dwindling senior-class toward the subjects of their graduation essays. Swaying with the easy, languid grace of an unstudied young animal, Mary Denbigh, the morning-session ended, turned from the graveled walk before the school-grounds into the little town's chief thoroughfare. Nobody had ever called her pretty, but her light serge skirt had that day been lengthened to her ankles, and Mary was wholly conscious of the new tokens of her growth. Lithe, strong-limbed and firm-bodied, of peasant stock and peasant vigor, youth and health and the open country air were not factors sufficiently unfamiliar to combine in a charm that would attract admiration in her own community. Only a jaded city-gaze—and a well-trained city-gaze at that—would have seen in the blue eyes, the red mouth, the straight nose, pink cheeks, and abundant russet hair, any promise worthy of fulfillment,—could have detected the flower in the bud; and that such a gaze should, on this day of all days, have been leveled in the girl's direction was, perhaps, only one of those grim jests of a Fate that loves to play upon the harmony between man and nature, and that here observed the coming of a human spring that must be brief and sudden, a human summer parching and intense. The usual group of idle residents and idling commercial drummers were sitting at the plate-glass window of the hotel as she went by, but the girl did not see them. Passing among objects of long familiarity, she saw, in fact, nothing until, in a side-street, she heard a rapid step behind her, was covered by an approaching shadow and, half-turning, found someone, a stranger, at her side.
SOUTHBRIDGE is the second play in Reginald Edmund's The City of the Bayou Collection. A white widow is assaulted; an angry mob is at the jail house door, screaming "Lynch him!". The only way to untangle the truth about the events is for the accused, Christopher C Davis, to look into the events that have lead him to a tree stump in Athens Ohio in the year 1881. "[SOUTHBRIDGE] marks Edmund as a writer of omnivorous intellect and a lover of bold metaphors." Chicago Tribune "Playwright Reginald Edmund demonstrates a keen sensitivity to his characters' psyches, leaving each one multidimensional and morally uncomfortable-some more so than others." Chicago Theatre Review "An intricate and heartfelt theatrical experience." ChicagoCritic
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
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