@dramatistsguil @teresacwash

          The Bishop Arts Theatre Center will never be the same. On October 8, 2015, the Dramatists Guild Fund’s Traveling Masters Program made its way to the Dallas area and Terrence McNally graced our stage. It was a wonderful Dallas audience of thespians, playwrights, writers, reviewers and arts enthusiasts on hand to give Terrence McNally a standing ovation from the moment his foot stepped on stage. He held us all captivated with memories of how his third grade teacher brought Shakespeare to life, the rousing success of his first production and Broadway debut staged in New York, and his five decades as playwright. Terrence talked openly and candidly about his career—the fierce praise and vehement criticism of his work– and we were hanging on every word. He reminded us that theatre used to be a place where people talked about issues that were important to them, and he challenged us to write stories that provide an important bridge to understanding between cultures.

           Sixty years ago, fourteen-year old Emmett Louis Till was abducted, terrorized and brutally beaten for allegedly whistling at a white woman in Money, Mississippi while vacationing with his family. Till lived in Chicago with his mother and grandparents and in August of 1955 he was invited to visit his relatives in Mississippi. On the fateful day he and his cousins stopped at a local convenient store, Till went in to buy bubble gum. The owners of the store were a white couple and the wife was working behind the counter. Emmett had a speech impediment and was taught to whistle to articulate his words. While inside, he began a conversation with the white woman behind the counter and got nervous then started to whistle. His actions were misconstrued and in the middle of the night, Emmett Till was taken at gunpoint from his uncle’s house by two white men who beat him mercilessly, shot him in the head and dumped his body in the Tallahatchie River. His face was disfigured beyond recognition. When her son’s body returned to Chicago, Mamie Till-Mobley decided to have an open casket funeral and invited the media for the entire world to see the magnitude of racism. It was the searing event that changed America and galvanized the civil rights movement. In 1999, Mamie Till-Mobley co-wrote The Face Of Emmett Till with David Barr III to capture all of the circumstances surrounding the death of her only child. It’s a painfully powerful script that reminds us that freedom is not free.

           Today, young black boys are still victims of unspeakable violent crimes at an accelerated alarming rate. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 87% of hate crime victims were targeted because of their race, sexual orientation and religion. History books are being re-written primarily in Texas, and the Emmett Till stories are being left out. Last season, 13.1 million people flocked to New York to see Broadway shows that generated $1.3 billion dollars in sales primarily to be entertained. In a recent interview with best-selling author Ta-Nehisi Coates, he commented, “It’s not the job of literature to make people feel great about themselves. It’s not even the job to inspire people. One of my favorite pieces of art is The Wire. I don’t read Joan Didion to feel better about the world.” (Full disclosure: For thirteen years, we only considered comedies during the submission process for our annual New Play Competition. Terrence McNally’s lecture forever changed the way I will plan our season at the Bishop Arts Theatre). What would happen if we placed high value on playwrights who were willing to hurtle themselves into the abyss and stretch their artistic muscles? What would happen if our elected officials valued the theatre as a catalyst for change? The harvest is ripe. If we do not learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it.  

           [photo caption: Teresa Coleman Wash with Terrence McNally; photo credit: Scott Kirkham and the Dramatists Guild Fund]

twash@dramatistsguild.com