Portland Observar July 17. 1980 Page 6
lack Repertory Theatre presents two plays
f i y Nyewusi As kan
Beginning July 17. and con
tinuing through September 7, Port
land Black Repertory will present its
summer theatre o f two plays in
repertory. The plays, directed by
Rosemary Allen, represents a new
movement within the Black threatre
in the State ol Oregon, as well as,
an introduction to the high degrees
ol Black professionalism that exist
within the Theatre itself.
Play one, " F o r C olored G irls
fFko Have Considered Suicide
When The Rainbow Is E n u ff" w rit
ten by Ntozake Shange, is an o r
chestrated, choreographed present
ation of poems and prose pieces for
eight Black actresses. The show is
designed to “ Sing a Black g ir l’ s
song, and it does with sadness,
pain, humor and hopes. Ntozake
Shange (pronounced “ En-tow-zok-
aye" and "Shawn-gay” ) studied the
m ythology o l women from an
tiquity to the present day, and it
helped her to develop her sense of
the world, her new and liberated
sense o f herself and also her
penetrating insight into what she
calls “ women’ s language.”
Shange w rites, “ sing a Black
girl’ s song...sing a song o f life, she’s
been dead so long.” Women, for
Shange, speak in a kind o f tribal
symbolism; fo r women have been
made into what is most often a cruel
world apart.
Some critics suggest that sister
Shange’ s "F o r Colored G ir ls " is
merely an angry wom en’ s lib
message erasing Black men from
life. Others suggest that it merely
confirm s the doctrine o f racists
who, fo r centuries have tried to
prove that the intimate world o f the
Black man and woman, is a world
of constant pain, sadness and
violent movements. Not true. Sister
Shange’ s message is that Black
women, like other women, ex
periences their joys, pains and is
now able to speak about it, share it
as an act o f love. Her message is ac
tually a description o f "some o f the
things” Black women go through,
on their way to other more beautiful
things.
Called a “ C horeopoem ” by
Shange, the movements capture the
many moods and often the different
kinds o f situations Black women
find themselves in with their men.
However, one must also view the
“ C horeopoem” from a historical
context. Against the brutal whip o f
slavery, the Black man and woman,
has struggled for intimate survival;
survival against death, separation
by slave masters, prisons, wars,
frustration and human nature. Yet,
they have survived, and in many
ways, Shange explains much o f the
madness in the methods.
The cast consist o f eight local and
v isitin g Black actresses, both
professional and amateur. A ll o f
them have personally experienced
many of the triumphs and errors of
the women in "F o r Colored Girls.
The second play, "Red Beans A
R ice" is an original musical produc
tion created by Janice Scroggins,
Thara M em ory, Rosemary Allen
and Ruby Burns. Rosemary Allen
wrote the script.
The play is a trium phant and
powerful story about the roots o f
Jazz in America. The story unravels
in a collage o f dram atic scenes
about the lives o f the people who
made the music, and transports the
audience across the ocean to Africa
where the spirit of gospel, blues and
jazz originated. The title , "R e d
Beans <£ R ic e " symbolizes what
music has meant to black
Americans. Often it was the music,
blues, gospel and jazz that gave
Black Americans the will to keep on
struggling to survive.
P ortland
Black
Repertory
Theatre boasts a talented and ex
perienced
production
s ta ff.
Producer/director Rosemary Allen;
musical director, Thara Memory;
Choreographers, Ruby Burns (Red
American State Bank
The Bank that integration b u ilt'
2737 N.E. Union
282 2216
V
M o r e th a n th e m er e s u p p ly in g o f m o r tg a g e
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m o n e y , L in c o ln a lso p ro v id es th e k n o w le d g e t
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th e o r g a n iz a tio n , a n
d th e c o u r te sy w h ic h
sp e e d s each tra n sa c tio n fr o m a p p lic a tio n t o
c o m p le tio n o f fin an cial a r r a n g e m e n ts.
For colored Girls” cast members.
Lady In Purple" not shown.
(Photo: Judith Rafferty)
Beans <f Rice), and Sagirah Banks
at the Cabell Center for Performing
( " F o r C olored G irls ...")-, Vocal
Arts, located at 8825 S.W. Barnes
directors, Janice Scroggins and
Road. Reservations can be obtained
Willie Binns ("R ed Beans <t Rice” );
by calling 281-5658, 9am to 5pm.
Costume Designers, Chonitia Hen
Ticket outlets are; Budget Tapes
derson ("R ed Beans A Rice” ), and
and Records, House o f Sound and
Fie Wash & Patricia Trice ( " F o r
Stevens & Son Jewelers.
Colored G irls ” ); H air Designer,
M elvia W ilson ( " F o r colored
We congratulate Rosemary Allen
G ir ls ..." ) ;
M ake-up
A rtis t,
and P ortland Black Repertory
Deborah Hicks; Lighting designer,
Theatre for bringing to us, "Its own
Jim dark; Graphic Designer, Issac Rainbow. But this is not unique.
Sham sud-Din; Stage managers,
The threatre has dedicated itself to
Vernon Ambus ( " F o r C olored
the building o f the threatre, into a
G irls..."), and Ricky Dance ("Red
solid cultural/A R T S /theatrical in
Beans & Rice"), Business Manager,
stitution we all w ill be proud of.
Lois Berry; Program designer,
However, to reach this point, the
Cheryl Wilson and publicity direc Theatre needs people support. And
tor, Rose Washington.
as a dedicated supporter o f the
"F o r Colored G irls... " w ill be theatre, I urge all people to see the
performed for the general public on
Repertory production o f "R e d
Thursdays and Fridays, and "Red
Beans A R ice." and “ For Colored
Beans A Rice” on Saturdays and girls... " You’ll walk away with your
Sundays, both starting at 8:15 p.m.,
own "Rainbow. "
ttcad Office: 12320 S.W. First, Beaverton
Fourteen branch offices for vour convenience
H U G H E S M E M O R IA L U N IT E D M E T H O D IS T C H U R C H
REV. AUSTIN V. RAY, MINISTER
111 N .E . F A IL IN G
Dial A Prayer 284 0684
Worship 11:00am
Church School 9 45am
Office 2 8 1 2332
Specializing In
Individual • Marriage and la m ilv • iir u u p Therapy
The C hurch W here IMO S tranger Feels S trange
Lonnie Harris dies in Reno
■
M arian Anderson medal
Marian Anderson on the gold
W A S H IN G T O N - M arian A n
derson is featured on one o f the first
two gold medallions to be minted by
the U.S. Treasury in 1980, to be av
ailable for public purchase July 15.
The one-half ounce Anderson
m edallion marks the firs t time
American citizens will have the op
portunity to buy American gold in
any size other than the 400-ounce
gold bars sold periodically by the
Treasury at auction.
“ To this day, m illio n s o f
Americans can hear the echo o f
M arian Anderson’ s inspiring ren
d itio n o f ‘ He’ s Got the Whole
World in His Hands.' But in reflect
ing on her lifetime o f contribution
to God, country and the American
people, it is no less true that one can
say o f Marian Anderson: ‘She’s got
the whole world in her hands,’ ’ ’
said Rep. Jim Leach, author o f the
American Arts Gold Medallion Act,
who selected Anderson and nine
other artists to be honored in the
medallion series over the next five
years.
“ The
message
of
her
autobiography, "Oh Lord, What a
Morning, is a message for all time,”
Leach said. “ She w ro te :’ ...M y
mission is to leave behind the kind
o f im pression that w ill make it
easier for those who follow ...In life,
if you have a purpose in which you
can believe, there's no end to the
amount o f things you can accom-
plish.’ ”
In 1939, fifteen years before the
Supreme Court ruled that the Little
Rock schools should be integrated,
M arian Anderson made history
when she mesmerized a crowd o f
75,000 singing on the steps o f the
Lincoln Memorial. The concert was
held outdoors after a controversy
over racial discrim ination flared
when the Daughters o f the
Am erican R evolution banned
Anderson from singing in C on
stitution H all. Eleanor Roosevelt
resigned her membership in the
DAR in protest.
Last year Americans bought ap
proximately $900 m illion worth o f
foreign gold coins and medallions
containing an ounce or less o f gold,
primarily from South Africa.
“ It strikes me as irrational if not
immoral for Americans to subsidize
through gold purchases the
repressive government o f South
Africa when we have the capacity in
our own country to make gold
available to the public in an afford
able form ,” Leach said.
Order forms and instructions will
be available at all post offices, the
daily price o f the medallion will be
based on the previous day’s closing
spot price o f gold on the New York
C om m odity Exchange, plus a
premium to cover production and
d is trib u tio n costs, the to ll free
telephone number to obtain the
daily price is 800/368-5510.
Lonnie Benjamin Harris died July
9th in Reno, Nevada.
Lonnie Harris was born in Hem
phill, Texas July 30, 1927. In early
life he was a member o f Bethel
A M E C hurch. He later joined
Hughes Memorial United Methodist
Church.
H arris attended E llio t Grade
School and Jefferson High School.
He received A ll State recognition in
baseball during his junior and senior
years at Jefferson High School and
was voted into the softball Hall of
Fame. He was the recipient o f Port
land
Baseball
Am ateur
A ssociation’ s Man o f the Year
Award.
Harris attended Vanport College
and Portland State University while
w orking fu ll time at N orthern
Pacific Terminal Co. He worked as
a counselor at the Donald E. Long
home. While employed by Federal
Electric Corporation he established
five new centers in California, Utah,
Oregon and Washington. He also
worked fo r the T im berline Job
Corp Center in Estacada, Oregon.
He was senior counselor at Clear
field Job Corp Center in Utah, as
well as Assistant D irector o f the
C om m unity A ctio n Program in
Vancouver, Washington.
His last jo b was D irector o f
Educational O pportunitie s at
Oregon State University.
Harris was a member o f Corvallis
Rotary C lub; chairm an o f the
Human Relations C om m ittee o f
C o rva llis; was on the Board o f
Directors o f UGN fund; Board o f
Directors o f the Boys Club o f Cor
vallis; was representative o f the
Review Board panel o f the Corvallis
Police Department Review Board of
the ROTC. He was a member o f the
NAACP, Corvallis Branch.
He was married to Mae Francis
W inters on September 28. 1948.
Two daughters were born to this
union, Rita Sharon Harris and Bar
bara Jean H a rris. There is one
grand daughter, La Shonda
Elizabeth Marie Harris. Other sur
vivors include sister, Mrs. Christine
Wilson, Portland; Mrs. Jeannette
Newman, Seattle; M rs. Bessie
Leacock, Los Angeles; brothers
Loomis Harris, Jr., and B. Leonard
Harris both o f Los Angeles; and
Lawrence H arris o f Chicopee,
Massachusetts, and many neices and
nephews, great neices and nephews,
uncles and aunts.
Services were held on July 14th at
Vann’ s Mortuary, with interment at
Rose City Moseleum.
SAFEW AY
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Black Am erican Lem uel Haynes, w ho later became a
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The Honorable Bishop U.V. Peterson, D.D.
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