Phylicia Rashad, who is best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on “The Cosby Show,” directed a reading of the play Four Little Girls: Birmingham 1963 at the Kennedy Center on Sunday, Sept. 16 to mark the 50th anniversary of the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala. Four girls were killed in the explosion, which was set by white supremacists and helped spur passage of landmark civil rights legislation.
The play was written by Christina Ham. Students from Howard University and the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, D.C., starred in the production.
Rashad, who is an alumna of Howard University, said acting and directing are both challenging but rewarding. In her role as director, Rashad says she works to keep the creative energy in line with the writer’s vision, “while leaving room for people to add to the vision in a collaborative effort.”
