JACQUELINE LAWTON: To begin, why did you decide to get into theater? Was there someone or a particular show that inspired you? DAVID LAMONT WILSON: I always tell people, “I didn’t choose theatre, it chose me” … I can’t ever remember wanting to do anything else but be an actor. Of course there are other things that I excel at, but acting is my first passion. The show that made it official for me was seeing the 1986 TV adaptation of the staged version of “All My Sons” with Aiden Quinn and Joan Allen. JL: Set in Hampton, Virginia in the 1940s, THE HAMPTON YEARS examines the impact of World War II on Jewish immigrants living in the United States and their role in shaping the lives and careers of African American students in the segregated south. This play investigates the various ways in which racism and bigotry negatively impact the arts, academia and military. Where do you feel we are in terms of race relations in the U.S.? DLW: I feel we’re in this odd place right now … where it’s obvious that a super amount of progress has been made as evidenced by our first black president, or such stats as currently there are 35,000 millionaires in the US, and 1.9 million black owned business, etc. But I still feel there is still a very subtle undercurrent of racism that still exists especially between African Americans and Caucasians that sometimes feels like it will never go away. JL: THE HAMPTON YEARS also celebrates and honors such extraordinary artists as John Biggers, Elizabeth Catlett, Samella Lewis, Viktor Lowenfeld and Charles White for their bold and courageous ability to overcome these challenges and create beautiful, powerful and lasting works of art. Why do you feel this play is relevant to today audiences? DLW: The Hampton Years is relevant today, because no matter your race, profession, or socio-economic status, CHALLENGES are universal. Everyone has them. And because we all have them, there is always going to be a need to see shining examples of how to overcome them. JL: Which character are you playing? What, if anything, do you have in common with this character’s passions, values, intentions or belief system? DLW: I have the honor of playing Charles White, who was not only a gifted artist but also an educator with a passion for passing on his love of his people to others. I don’t have an ounce of his talent in visual art, but we do share a love of using the struggle of the African race as catalyst for our work … and a desire to inspire and touch people’s lives through that work. JL: What’s next for you as an actor? Where can we follow your work? DLW: Hopefully, I’m waiting to find out about two independent film projects happening in the fall, since I’m hoping to expand into more film and television work. You can reach me at davidwilson5235 at gmail dot com.  DAVID LAMONT WILSON (Charles White, Dying Soldier and Kuba Dancer) is thrilled to have the privilege of working on this exciting new work by Jacqueline Lawton. Mr. Wilson was last seen performing Factory 449’s Washington premier of “The Saint Plays” and “All That Glitters” for Restoration Stage. Favorite productions include roles in the critically acclaimed Charter Theatre production of “Am I Black Enough Yet?”, “The Oedipus Plays” at The Shakespeare Theatre, “Heaven” and “Big Love” for the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, “American Buffalo”, “Inns & Outs” and “Edmond” at Source Theatre; “Invisible Disability” and “The Boy Who Walked Backwards” at the Kennedy Center; and the European Tours of “The Cutting Edge” for Imagination Stage and “Julie” for Scena Theatre. His resume also includes productions at Arena Stage, Olney Theatre, and the Folger Shakespeare Theatre, as well as a featured role on NBC's award winning Homicide: Life On the Streets and HBO's The Wire. He is currently shooting the new independent film “Flesh To Flesh” by Lee Hayes, and can be seen later this season in “The Saint Plays” for Factory 449. David would like to thank Daniel Wallace for bringing additional sunshine into his existence! 
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JACQUELINE LAWTON: To begin, why did you decide to get into theater? Was there someone or a particular show that inspired you? EDWARD CHRISTIAN: As a young man in Houston I was cast as Francis Flute in our high school version of Midsummer Night's Dream. I was in ninth grade and the leads were seniors, so it was pretty cool that I was up there on stage with them. I still remember the curtain going up and my trepidation as I stood there in my Thisby dress with foam boobies and a silly wig. (The director assured me that in Shakespeare's day the women were played by men, but this was Texas in the 1960's after all.) We slayed, everyone was laughing including the senior football player playing Pyramus - in that moment it became clear to me that I could play comedy and that l wasn't the sort to break character. For weeks after the teachers in my school imitated me in class - the sincerest form of flattery. I was hooked. JL: Set in Hampton, Virginia in the 1940s, THE HAMPTON YEARS examines the impact of World War II on Jewish immigrants living in the United States and their role in shaping the lives and careers of African American students in the segregated south. This play investigates the various ways in which racism and bigotry negatively impact the arts, academia and military. Where do you feel we are in terms of race relations in the U.S.? EC: I think the fact that Barack Obama and Tiger Woods are considered to be black says a lot about race attitudes in this country. Both had parents of different races. President Obama is no more black than white, Woods just as Asian as African. To me it speaks to a special place we reserve for "blackness" and it hearkens back to the days of quantifying percentages of African blood in order to apportion rights under law. It makes me think we have a long way to go before race is no longer a factor in this country. I have noticed a strain of right-wing thought that claims that racism no longer exists in the US, usually accompanied by more claims that end up, upon examination, to simply be racism in disguise. We hear scathing opinions about the effects of affirmative action that seem to imply that there is economic advantage in being African American, an idea that is belied by appalling rates of black unemployment in DC and elsewhere. Black comedians make interesting and appallingly hilarious points about the difference in police treatment of blacks and whites; as a white male I have little fear of an encounter with police officers, an attitude that I suspect is not shared by most black males in this country. This is a particular area of concern, policing of communities. Municipalities grant draconian police privileges in high crime areas, "stop and frisk" for example - and we see in DC that eight blacks are arrested for marijuana possession for every one white, resulting in further classification of minority communities as high crime areas, resulting in further erosion of constitutional rights. Racism permeates our attitudes on so many levels. Trayvon Martin's hoody says "scary black man" - Mark Zuckerberg's hoody says "brilliant entrepreneur." So where are we? I would say that we have made some progress, but we have a long way to go before we can harness the talents and brilliance of our entire population. JL: THE HAMPTON YEARS also celebrates and honors such extraordinary artists as John Biggers, Elizabeth Catlett, Samella Lewis, Viktor Lowenfeld and Charles White for their bold and courageous ability to overcome these challenges and create beautiful, powerful and lasting works of art. Why do you feel this play is relevant to today audiences? EC: Art is an essential expression of culture. In Hampton Years we see African American artists coming to terms with their own artistic expression and with the art of some of their ancestors in Africa. Most Americans of European descent can trace something about their backgrounds in a more or less coherent track from quite a ways back. My family can be traced to England, Ireland and Germany, and I feel a kinship with my forbears and in terms of attitudes and culture I owe a great debt to my ancestry. Although I am somewhat of an American mutt, European cultural values exist within me and my family in many obvious ways, and when I see artwork of European masters I see myself and my family in it. The experience of slavery deprived the US African American population of a similarly coherent cultural tradition by ripping Africans out of their native lands and then, after transplanting them to this country, continually separating them from their families, ripping apart husbands and wives, mothers and children. I can only begin to imagine the difficulties in maintaining a cultural tradition that sustains under hundreds of years of such treatment. In the Hampton Years we see part of the struggle of African Americans reclaiming cultural heritage, and it is a useful reminder to European Americans what a great advantage we have in our own coherent cultural memory and traditions. JL: Which character are you playing? What, if anything, do you have in common with this character’s passions, values, intentions or belief system? EC: I play the Anonymous Art Critic and President Ralph Bridgman. The Anonymous Art Critic insists that he won't lie about his reaction to the student artwork, and I agree with the need to avoid pulling punches in our artistic judgment, but he is also completely beholden to his own expectations about what African American artists can be or should be expected to produce. He cannot see past his own racial prejudice. He also seems calcified in his opinion of what constitutes the parameters of legitimate art; I think this is a potential trap for anyone invested in an artistic tradition no matter what the discipline. President Bridgman, the last white president of Hampton Institute, has less overt racial prejudice and by the standards of his time might be considered racially liberal, but he subscribes to the "world won't accept them" school of thought like the liberal lion father in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner who objects to his daughter's marriage to a black doctor on the grounds that they will never make it because the world won't let them succeed. I'm old enough to remember this as a common point of view among southern liberals in the 1960's, along with the fear that mixed race children will not be accepted by anyone; these fears have proven to be misguided. The problem is that Bridgman, and even his predecessor McLean ended up accepting lesser outcomes. The other thing about Bridgman is that he cannot see the forest for the trees. He is so trapped by the details of the monthly or yearly budget or the institute's reputation that he loses sight of the overall mission of Hampton. I think we are all subject to such traps. JL: What’s next for you as an actor? Where can we follow your work? EC: In September I will be playing Shipkov in Forum Theatre's production of Agnes Under the Big Top by Aditi Brennan Kapil, directed by Michael Dove. Shipkov is a Bulgarian with a green card, a former ringmaster in a Bulgarian circus who is now working as a subway operator. Any of my career happenings can be followed at www.edwardchristian.com  EDWARD CHRISTIAN (President Bridgman and Anonymous Art Critic) recently appeared in the Folger Theatre's The Taming of the Shrew. Other regional credits include Forum Theatre: The Language Archive. He's also performed extensively with Perseverance Theatre: This Wonderful Life, Doubt, How I Learned To Drive, Hamlet, The Tempest, Macbeth, The Laramie Project, Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing, A Streetcar Named Desire, Hedda Gabler, The Cherry Orchard, The People’s Temple, Equus, The Crucible, The Waiting Room, The Rocky Horror Show, Blithe Spirit, and As You Like It. Upcoming productions include: Henry V at Folger Theatre and The Hampton Years at Theater J. www.edwardchristian.com 
It is a wondrous gift to work with artists who you not only admire, respect and esteem but who you also love and trust. Throughout the new play development and rehearsal process of THE HAMPTON YEARS, I had the rare pleasure of working with two such extraordinary artists: director Shirley Serotsky and dramaturg Otis Ramsey-Zoe. What's lovely and inspiring about a situation like this is that the success is sweeter, the trenches aren't nearly so scary and when things get rough, you can go in deeply, honestly and safely. We have so much to celebrate including the grace granted to one another when beautiful challenges arose. Now, we're moving into week four of the world premier production and I've spend the past few days reflecting on all that we've accomplished in just a year and a half. While I haven't seen the play since we opened, I plan to check out a few performances before we close (and this production is forever gone) on June 30th. It's been great fun to keep up with how everything has been going through production reports and quite lovely to read responses from friends and colleagues who have seen the play. Really and truly, it's all been quite thrilling! I feel rather fortunate to have had this experience and opportunity. It's been amazing to have the support and faith of the Theater J's staff and wonderful to work with the cast, design and production team. In truth, I don't think I'll ever be able to articulate my appreciation for all that this collaboration and this process has taught me. Over the course of this week, I'm going to share interviews from The Hampton Years cast. But first, I have a treat for you. At first rehearsal, Shirley shared her vision and hopes for the production. The words she spoke were so passionate, eloquent and sincere. I was quite moved and wanted to find a way to keep them forever. Generously, she's allowed me to share them here with all of you. Please enjoy...  Elizabeth Catlett said: "Combining realism and abstract art is very interesting to me. People are always trying to separate them out and say that you are either abstract or you are realistic; either you are abstract or you are figurative. And I don’t believe it. I think any good figurative artist relies strongly on abstractions." I think this quote—and its recognition of duality--speaks to THE HAMPTON YEARS in many ways. Abstract or realistic. Black or white. American or refugee. Teacher or student. Visual or Haptic. Military or civilian. Artist or Educator. The story of the play itself which is both realistic--based on very real histories; and abstracted – utilizing inspired fictions created from the mind and imagination of our playwright. And there’s the challenge of each character to convince the world around them to allow a human to hold multiple truths: so that someone like Samella Lewis can be an artist, a writer, a visionary, an African-American, a woman, a teacher…all of those identities at once, and still all of those identities wholly and fully. And the ideas we are pursuing with design—combining realism and theatrical gesture. It is easy when we can decide that something is all one thing, or all another. But it opens us up to real creativity, to deep exploration--when we allow for something to hold many truths. Elizabeth Catlett was, unsurprisingly, speaking astutely of both art, and the world. It is hard to believe that the world in which the Hampton Years takes place--with segregated schools, neighborhoods, busses, bathrooms, lunch counters—was one of such a recent past. And then sometimes, it’s not hard to believe at all. Hampton Institute was founded as a place to develop “the head, heart, and hand” so it seems wholly appropriate to be telling this story here at the DCJCC, which aims to feed “the head, heart, and hand” (and of course, the stomach, but we have that in the play as well.) And now--to be honest--when I read that Hampton motto, my brain jumped to the Friday Night Lights mantra. I’ve recently started watching the show, and fully admit that I am moved each time they repeat their rallying cry of “clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose.” And when I watch that show, I think of my friend Jacqueline Lawton, who was raised in Tennessee County, Texas—which it turns out, is only about two hours away from Hopkins County Texas, where the show takes place, and I wonder—is that like where Jackie grew up? This also speaks of duality—as I think of me and Jackie growing up almost as far North and as far South as you can be in this country, and now having the opportunity to work together to tell this remarkable story of dual histories, dual backgrounds, unified by the desire to create art and tell stories. It feels very apt, and it’s an honor and a delight. But that’s all fodder for another play, and this is all to say—I am pleased to enter this rehearsal process with head, heart and hand--full AND clear, and to do so with all of you!  SHIRLEY SEROTSKY is the Director of Literary and Public Programs at Theater J, where she directed the 2010 production of Mikveh, the 2009 production of The Rise and Fall of Annie Hall (which received a 2009 Helen Hayes Nomination for Best New Play), and the 2011 production of The History of Invulnerability. She began her theater education as a performance major in the musical theater program at the University of Michigan, but soon detoured into directing which she studied at the North Carolina School of the Arts. After graduation she moved to New York, where she worked at the Women’s Project and Productions; interned for the Cherry Lane Theater; and was employed as an editorial assistant for a Jewish organization. In August 2001 she moved to Washington, DC to fulfill a nine-month Kenan Fellowship at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Arts. There she worked as an assistant director and dramaturg on several productions. Since 2002 she has worked as a freelance director and dramaturg in the Washington, DC area and beyond, directing for the Source Festival, Theater Alliance, Catalyst Theater, Rorschach Theater, Catholic University, the National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts, Journeymen Theater, and on several out-of-town productions, including at the Humana Festival of New Plays at Actors Theater of Louisville. She has taught young people and adults at The Actor’s Center, the Musical Theater Center, and Theater Lab. She co-founded Bouncing Ball Theatrical Productions with Shawn Northrip (which aims to develop and produce new and innovative musical theater works). Training: BFA, North Carolina School of the Arts. Member of The 2002 Designer/Director Workshop with Ming Cho Lee and the 2003 Lincoln Center Director's Lab. Hampton Years promo from Theater J on Vimeo.
 On Tuesday, June 18, The Hampton Years will be featured as part of Operation Understanding DC's Benefit Fundraiser: Blacks and Jews: Refugee Scholars at Black Colleges. Enjoy an evening of film and theatrical presentations as well as discussions to learn about how refugee Jewish professors and their Black students forged profound connections from their shared, firsthand experience with brutal oppression and came together both to learn and to fight prejudice, a connection and a goal that OUDC continues to advance and support today. ABOUT THE PROGRAM In the 1930s, Jewish intellectuals fled Nazi Germany for refuge in the United States, where they hoped to resume their teaching careers. At the hallowed universities of the East, they were met with anti-Semitism and anti-German hostility. Without a home and unable to further their scholarship, they finally found a welcoming community: the Black colleges and universities of the Jim Crow South. While they were welcomed and valued within these institutions, the refugee scholars experienced anti-Semitism and ostracism in the white communities in the South where they lived.
This program will include: Introduction by Jim Loewen, an historian and sociologist who taught at historically Black Tougaloo College, the University of Vermont and now Catholic University. He is the author of Lies My Teacher Told Me. Presentation by Stephen Fischler of Pacific Street Films who will share clips from the fascinating documentaryFrom Swastika to Jim Crow, highlighting the saga of the Jewish scholars through revealing interviews with their Black students. Staged Reading of a scene from The Hampton Years, Jacqueline Lawton’s powerful new play that explores the relationship between art professor Viktor Lowenfeld and two of his students. Ms. Lawton, whose play will be staged at Theatre J in June, will introduce the reading. These presentations will be followed by a panel discussion featuring Steve Fischler, Jacqueline Lawton and Jim Loewen with Q&A from the audience. Please enjoy these wonderful photos by Lloyd Wolf! Make A Donation Operation Understanding DC does not charge students for their participation in our year-long, cross-cultural education program. Their experiences are made possible entirely by the generous support of individuals, foundations, corporations and congregations. Thank you for your investment in our young leaders. Click here to make a donation.  Operation Understanding DC's mission is to build a generation of African American and Jewish community leaders who promote respect, understanding and cooperation while working to eradicate racism, anti-Semitism and all forms of discrimination.Our students are dedicated to stamping out racism and anti-Semitism wherever they encounter it. They build bridges between the Black and Jewish communities. But, they do not stop there. They use their skills, vision and passion to bring together people of all different ethnicities, races, religions, socio-economic backgrounds and sexual orientations. Our young leaders are changing the world, one person at a time. 
  On Monday, June 17 at 6:30pm, Shirley Serotsky and I will be participating in a Footlights Discussion on The Hampton Years. Each month, 35-50 Footlights members meet over dinner with playwrights, directors, and scholars to discuss modern drama. I first spoke with them back in February of 2009, when I was dramaturg for the Round House Theatre's production of Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice. Later, many of them attended the workshop production of Anna K, which was also directed by Shirley Serotsky and presented as part of Round House's Silver Spring Series.
Department. It tells him his entire family back in Europe is dead, murdered in the Holocaust. One of his colleagues, Charles White, an African-American painter, expresses his horror and sorrow and asks, “Is there anything I can do?” “No,” Viktor replies. “You all, you deal with so much, but you can’t know what this means. You’re forced to live in a segregated world. You have to ride in separate train cars and sit at the back of the bus. But with all this, they’re not burning you in ovens.” The mass organized killing of the Holocaust and the mass organized segregation of the U.S. shape the attitudes and the characters of The Hampton Years, which is set at Hampton Institute just before and during World War II, a time when the U.S., even the North, was still shackled with segregation. It tells of two groups – African-Americans and Jews – trying to adjust to and learn from each others’ pain. But it also raises other fascinating questions:
The Footlights discussion of these topics and more will take place Monday, June 17 at Alfio’s, 4515 Willard Avenue, Chevy Chase, MD, on the ground floor of the Willoughby Apartments in Friendship Heights, a short walk from the north entrance of the Friendship Heights Metro station. Street parking is limited but valet parking is free at Alfio’s, if you drive. Dinner is at 6:30 and the discussion begins at 7:30 and ends at 9. Cost for dinner is just $13, and that includes tax and tip. You will get a salad, bread, choice among six entrees, ice cream, and tea or coffee. Cash or check – no credit cards, please. Beer, wine, and cocktails are available from the bar. You may come for the discussion only if you wish. We appreciate a $5 contribution to Footlights. Make your reservations with Phyllis Bodin 301-986-1768 or [email protected]. Reservations and cancellations will be accepted until noon of the day of the discussion. Read The Hampton Years: For those reserving for the dinner-discussion, electronic copies of the draft script are available. Copyright restrictions apply. The document is for distribution only to those attending the discussion. Contact Robin Larkin,[email protected] or 240-669-6300. See The Hampton Years: In performance through June 30 at Theater J. Footlights members may receive a 20% discount off the ticket price for any performance by using the code FOOTLIGHTS. For more information, visit www.theaterj.org or call (800) 494-TIXS.
  Theater J's Beyond the Stage community engagement events offer an array of innovative public discussion forums and outreach programs which explore the theatrical, psychological and social elements of each production. Partnering with civic leaders and members of other faiths, organizations and communities, each discussion stresses the importance of interchange among a great variety of people wishing to take part in frank, humane conversations about conflict and culture.
Having attended quite a few in my seven years here, I can tell you they are lively, enriching and powerful. They have quite an impressive line-up for The Hampton Years that you'll want to be sure to check out. Sunday, June 2 at 9:45pm- A Conversation with John and David Lowenfeld: The Lowenfeld Legacy
Sunday, June 9 at 5:15pm – The Rosenwald Schools/The Julius Rosenwald Legacy
Wednesday, June 12 at 9:45pm - The Art and Artists of Pre-War Vienna
Sunday, June 16 at 5:15pm - Race and Representation: The African-American Artist in the World
Tuesday, June 18 at 6:30pm - Blacks and Jews: Refugee Scholars at Black Colleges: An Evening to Benefit Operation Understanding DC at the Maret School
Thursday, June 20 at 9:45pm – Conversation with the Cast of The Hampton Years
Saturday, June 22 at 10:15pm - The Creative Process: A conversation with Dramaturg Otis Cortez Ramsey-Zöe and Artistic Director Ari Roth
Sunday, June 23 at 5:15pm - A Lasting Legacy: The Past, Present and Future of HBCUs
Wednesday, June 26 at 9:45pm - A Conversation with Filmmaker Aviva Kempner and Artistic Director Ari Roth
Sunday, June 30 – Blacks and Jews in the 1940s/Swastika to Jim Crow
"After one of my plays came out, I had mixed reviews, some bad and some good. One day, it dawned on me. I thought, "I wrote a play and he wrote a review, and that's the difference between him and me." ~~Steve Martin
I love this quote by Steve Martin. He might have meant something entirely different by it, but to me it reads that each writer made an equal contribution to the American Theatre. The difference in their art is one of form. It gave me such peace when I read it. There is a scene in THE HAMPTON YEARS when an art critic admonishes a mural painted by John Biggers. The mural is the Dying Soldier, pictured above. The review is scathing, racially charged and reflective of the prejudicial standards of the time period. John Biggers paints a mural. This art critic writes a review. However, the difference between them is vast. Remember, it's the 1940’s. Jim Crow laws dictate every aspect of race relations and the world is not yet ready for Black Artists to paint their experiences or reflect society in a critical way. The critic upholds the status quo and I believe he’s doing so in an attempt to save the future of art. It was a thrilling scene to write. Because, however much I agree or disagree with the critic, this is a scene about honor, integrity, a desire to uphold a standard and a great love for art. On Wednesday, my play THE HAMPTONS YEARS will open to previews at Theater J. Set at Virginia’s Hampton University during World War II, my play follows the growth and development of African American artists John Biggers and Samella Lewis under the tutelage of Austrian Jewish refugee painter and educator Viktor Lowenfeld. The process of getting this script from page-to-stage has been nothing short of extraordinary. My values and writing skills have been tested, honed and defined. What’s more, I’ve found myself living the plot of my play when UDC announced that it was discontinuing the Theater Arts Program. And working with Shirley Serotsky (Theater J’s Associate Artistic Director) and Otis Ramsey-Zoe (Dramaturg) has been … well, every playwright on this planet should be so fortunate. As with every play I’ve ever written, I have such great hopes for it. I hope that the lives and experiences of these artists inspire everyone who has ever had a dream and faced great challenges to see them realized. I hope that writers of color feel empowered to tell the stories of their people. I hope that theatres feel encouraged not only to program plays written by women, but also plays written by Black playwrights that explore Black history and culture. We have four preview performances before opening night. Four performances to work out any last minute kinks in the production or the script before press is invited. Each night, audiences will have two hours to experience and evaluate what it took me a year and seven months, but really my entire life, to write. I plan to watch it Wednesday and Thursday before working through additional rewrites. I’ll repeat this process on Saturday and Sunday into Monday. This way, I’m not writing on impulse. And this way, I can meet opening night with equal amounts of joy, fear, and confidence. Joy, because this will be my first regional production. Fear, because this will be my first regional production. Confidence, because I’ve worked my ass off and so has everyone else on this artistic and production team. Three months after the play closes, I will read what the critics have said about it. Now, don’t get me wrong, I enjoy critical analysis. I believe the role of the critic is essential. I believe that artists and critics should be conscious of the work we create and know how to frame it within a contemporary, historical, socio-economic, political, racial/ethnic and geographical context. However, because art is inextricably linked to commerce, the relationship between the artist and the critics is a troubled one. The weight of a review is measured in dollar signs and its merit is based on how well or poorly a playwright can trade their efforts on audience attendance, grants and donations. And just as problematic, for a woman playwright of color, is America's longstanding issues with race and gender. Especially, if a reviewer lacks social awareness and race consciousness. But I believe our very best theatre critics write from a place of honor, integrity, a desire to uphold a standard and a great love for theatre. And this is why I've been so excited to connect with the Women Theatre Critics of D.C. and present this series. In my next post, I'll introduce you to the women being featured and share their stories with you over the course of the next few days. I hope you'll enjoy learning about their lives, careers and ambitions as much as I have. 
(L-R): Bakri Mohamad-Nur, Denise Hall, Jacqueline Lawton, Shyia Simmons, Ashley Williams, Bonita Frazier, Lolita Rushing, Margaret Smith, and Imari John.
“It’s dangerous what you’re teaching these students. Self-expression, much good that’s going to do them. They’re Negroes. The world will only give them so much.” This speech appears in a new work of historical fiction by local playwright Jacqueline Lawton. Set in the 1940s, “The Hampton Years” follows artist/educator Viktor Lowenfeld as he struggles to establish an art department, over administrative opposition, at Hampton Institute. Lawton was originally drawn to the story, she says, by the intertwining dramas of Jews struggling to make a new life after the Holocaust and African American students struggling to make their way in the unwelcoming art world. “I knew I was writing about Margaret and Vicktor Lowenfeld rejecting Harvard and settling in Hampton, Virginia – such an isolated spot for Jews,” Lawton recalls. “And I knew I was writing about Viktor's stewarding the lives of these young artists,” muralist John Biggers (1924-2001) and sculptor Samella Sanders (now Lewis, b. 1924). “What I didn't know was how much of the story was about fighting for the arts,” Lawton continues. “I began to realize how hard Viktor had to work – he had to develop a curriculum and hire teachers and do everything a department chair has to do, but he also had to fight, every day, to prove that the arts are necessary.” Now, as a visiting professor in the midst of the University of the District of Columbia's reorganization, Lawton finds “life paralleling art.” Theatre Arts at UDC has two faculty members: Assistant Professor Lennie Smith, whose position was recently terminated, and Lawton, whose year-to-year position is now more tenuous than usual. Theatre majors find this “heartbreaking” and a “big disappointment.” They fear losing faculty they counted on for advice, recommendations, and networking; some say their tie to UDC “is severed,” and one notes “they pulled the rug out from under us.” Excerpted from "1940s Arts Drama Replays in 2013" by Virginia A. Spatz, originally published in East of the River Magazine. Click here to read the rest of the interview.  Virginia Avniel Spatz is a writer and activist in Washington, DC. She is feature reporter on the Education Town Hall and helps produce The Politics of Health, both on We Act Radio (WPWC 1480 AM), and often contributes to East of the River magazine. She blogs on Jewish topics at Song Every Day.
 Yesterday's rehearsal and reading of The Hampton Years was rich, productive and rewarding. It was wonderful to be in the room with Shirley, Otis, Karen and our cast. We had a quick and dirty read through and exploration of the script. What's more, I was inspired to create a few new moments in our brief time together. This is what comes of working with smart and generous actors who make great, bold acting choices. Everyone at The Phillips Collection was warm and welcoming. They strongly believe in this play and were proud to have it as part of the series. Coincidentally, this was actually my second involvement with their theatre series. In 2010, Round House Theatre presented scenes from PERMANENT COLLECTION and as dramaturg, I provided them with research. We had a diverse, intimate and attentive audience. Among them were students from UDC and Howard University as well two graduates from Hampton University. Also, in attendance was George Vrandenburg, who in addition to serving as chairman of the board at The Phillips Collection, also serves on the Board of Trustees at UDC. We were introduced at intermission and immediately discussed the parallels between the events in the THE HAMPTON YEARS and what is happening at UDC. As it happens, this parallel is addressed in detail in a recent interview, 1940s Arts Drama Replays in 2013, that I did with Hill Rag/East of the River reporter Virginia Spatz. In it, Virginia does an excellent job covering what's at stake in the decision to discontinue the Theatre Art program from a variety of perspectives including that of the students, faculty, administration and D.C. council.  The post show discussion, led by the Phillips Collection's Director of Communication Ann Greer, was fun and informative. It was wonderful to hear from Hampton alum about their own experiences and really great to hear from working artists who were inspired by their life, careers and legacies of the artists portrayed in the play. Actors Lolita Marie and David Lamont Wilson also spoke eloquently and passionately about their experiences working on THE HAMPTON YEARS from the very beginning of the play's development. It was really all so great! As for what's next, we're at that exciting place in new play development process where we need to get the play on it's feet to see how it works in the body and on the stage. With rehearsal beginning in two weeks, we're all pretty eager to get started. I'll do another set of rewrites in the next few days and hope to make a visit out to Hampton University next week. More on that soon! For now, please enjoy this photos from our day together. The Hampton Years Family at The Phillips Collection
The Hampton Years Artistic Team Hard at Work
Playwright and Director Enjoying the Student Art Exhibit 
The Hampton Years Reading at The Phillips CollectionThe Hampton Years Post Show Discussion
 The Phillips Collection is an "intimate museum combined with an experiment station."–Duncan Phillips, 1926. The Phillips Collection is an exceptional collection of modern and contemporary art in a dynamic environment for collaboration, innovation, engagement with the world, scholarship, and new forms of public participation.
 African American sculptor and print maker, Elizabeth Catlett was born in Washington, DC on April 15, 1915. She studied design, printmaking and drawing at Howard University and became the first student to receive a Master's degree in sculpture at the University of Iowa in 1940. In 1946 Catlett received a prestigious Rosenwald fellowship that allowed her to travel to Mexico City where she studied painting, sculpture and lithography. Later, she became a Mexican citizen. Most known for her politically charged black expressionist abstract sculpture in bronze and marble as well as prints and paintings, many of her works of art depicted the female figure and were greatly influenced by African American, Native American, and Mexican art. Elizabeth Catlett passed away last year on April 2nd. She was 96 years old and lived a long, full, rich, and complicated life. Having only just learned about her life and her work, my heart was broken when I got the news. I had wanted Elizabeth Catlett to know about the play and perhaps read it as Samella Lewis had. I wanted her to know that her work had resonated so deeply and profoundly with me, and that a play devoted to her life and legacy would be in the works soon. Such are the selfish, but dear wishes of the living. Today's reading of the THE HAMPTON YEARS at the Phillips Collection is dedicated to her memory. I hope to see you there. Earlier this year, my friend D.C. Actor James J. Johnson introduced me to this beautiful poem by Sonia Sanchez, “6 haiku (for Elizabeth Catlett in Cuernavaca),” and I want to offer it here as a blessing for the work we do as artists.
6 haiku (for Elizabeth Catlett in Cuernavaca) 1. La Señora making us remember flesh and wind 2. O how you help us catch each other’s breath 3. a woman’s arms climbing with colored dreams 4. Elizabeth slides into the pool hands kissing the water 5. i pick up your breath and remember me 6. your hands humming hurricanes of beauty. “In loving memory of a great woman. You will be missed. It was an honor to walk on this earth with you.” —Sonia Sanchez Sanchez, Sonia, from her new book Morning Haiku. Boston: Beacon Press, 2010. |
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I'm a playwright, dramaturg, and teaching artist. It is here where you'll find my queries and musings on life, theater and the world. My posts advocate for diversity, inclusion, and equity in the American Theatre and updates on my own work. Please enjoy!
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