What do you imagine this moment is for Alice Childress’ legacy?
She actually would have been the first Black female playwright on Broadway, because so this play was off Broadway 1955. When she wrote this and was successful, off Broadway producers came calling as they do, and wanted to move it to Broadway. They demanded changes as they also do. Alice refused. She writes about how for a year, she worked and worked and tried to change it and tried to make it what they wanted it to be, but finally realized she could not do that. That’s such a testament to what we all must do as artists because we have to do what’s true to us. And here’s this woman who never received her dues because she stayed true to herself.
How did the production come to Broadway?
it took me 15 years to get this to Broadway. And here we are. The ultimate story of this for all your young and older viewers is to not give up. You have to keep pursuing your dream. And it’s frustrating because of what they tell us we should be or what we should do. Alice is that prime example of refusing to do what they demanded and she’s such an icon, such a hero to me. To be able now to bring her story to Broadway at this time is extraordinary.
