Pag«
January 18.1381
r« y » 8
o Portland
r u i i » , ' U Obaarvar
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Portland Black Repertory Theatre: The begin mng
By Nyewusi Askari
(E d ito r's N ot«: Rosemary Allen,
director o f Portland Black Reper
to ry Theatre, is dedicated to the
development, growth, and stability
o f Black Theatre in Oregon. In part
one o f an interview with the Obser
ver, she speaks openly about the
T he a tre ’ s beginning, its ups and
downs and purpose.)
Observer: Just what is the P ort
land Black Repertory Theatre?
A lle n : The Black R epertory
Theatre was started so there could
be some form o f Black theatre hap
penings in Portland. I t ’ s a group ot
dedicated artists who provide a plat
form fo r actors, w riters, dancers,
visual a rtis ts , m usicians, fro m
which they can work and develop
th eir a rt. It also provides culture
that reflect Black people in Oregon;
something that doesn't happen too
often here in Portland.
Observer: What is the philosophy
o f the Black theatre?
A lle n : The p hilo so p h y o f the
Black theatre here, is kind o f hard
to explain because its been changing
every year.
We started out w ith
the
philosophy that we as artists, were
not only going to develop ourselves,
but that we were going to contribute
as much as possible to what could be
called the "B lack theatre.” We felt
that we could contribute a unique
technique and try to do things for
the Black theatre that had never
been done before, and there were
many things that had not been done
before. I f anything is to be called
the p h ilo so p h y o f the P o rtla n d
Black Repertory Theatre, it is for
whatever we do; whether it be a
comedy, drama or a musical, just as
long as it present a true picture o f
Black life, or the Black experience.
O bserver: W hat developm ents
have occured since the Theatre's in
ception, in term s o f technique.
Also, what have been some o f the
plays produced, since the beginning,
that allowed these techniques to be
used?
Allen: We started out as a group
o f students in 1975. We decided to
do our own production. You see, we
had problem s g ettin g parts. We
either had to play white characters,
or a maid or a butler We got very
few chances to do a n yth in g to
develop ourselves.
So, we decided to do our own
production, and the first production
we did was "F iv e On The Black
Hand Side. ” We had a lot o f op
position from the theatre depart
ment at Portland State University.
As you know, there are times when
theatre people tend to become
snobbish if you haven’t had twenty
or more years o f experience. They
act as if you don’ t exist, or that you
d o n ’ t have the right to be doing
theatre.
Black theatre, to a lo t o f
Europeans or
people doing
European theatre, is non-existent.
Wr
r ilr n d vo» i c o rd iti
To them there is no such thing as
Black theatre, and at that time they
didn’ t feel that we were, legitimate.
So, we didn’ t get very much support
from the theatre departm ent. But
we did "F ive On The Black Hand
Side, "a n d it was a success!
Five On The Black Hand Side, is
a comedy by Charlie Russell. Some
people might have seen it on late
night TV, around 2:30 in the A .M .
Anyway, the play was a success. The
cast was composed o f people from
the Black com m unity; people who
had never acted before, and stu
dents who had some acting ability.
It was a combination o f people with
a thirst to show their talents.
This was the first real, legitimate
production o f the Theatre, and we
performed for three weekends. This
was the first time that had ever hap
pened in the history o f P ortland.
There had been Black productions
before, but they only ran for a day,
or a week at the most. So this was
the very firs t tim e th a t we
legitimately performed as actors; as
Black artists.
Cast and understudies of "W ine In The W ilderness" w ith Director
R o sem ary A lle n (C e n te r). C ast In c lu d e s . (B a c k ) O tto R u te rfo rd .
Vanessa Deborah Hicks. Al Jamison; (Front) Flooney, Cheryl Wilson.
Richard Jones. (M arvin Johnson is not pictured.)
Laverne Springer at rehearsal
as Lady In Red " F o r C o lo red
G irls ..."
Next, we performed "T h e River
Niger. ” It was a real heavy drama.
A g a in , we d id n ’ t get very much
support. It seemed that everyone
loved "F iv e On The Black H and
Side, both Black and white, mainly
because it was a comedy. The River
Niger was a little too heavy; it had a
lot o f blood in it, but it had a lot o f
truth also...a whole lotta truth in it.
People c o u ld n ’ t get to th a t rig h t
then, so we d id n ’ t get a lot o f sup
port.
There were times when we only
had 2 or 3 people in the audience.
B u t...th e actors were com m itted,
especially in the production o f "T he
River Niger. ” It was like we had an
o p p o rtu n ity to do something that
( Welcome
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3725 N Gintenbetn Avewae, Porti tad. Orpcoa 97227
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Rev A Bernard Devers |, A A , B A Pxslot
Sunday School
9: JO A .M
M o rning W orship
10:30 A .M .
Bible Training Union
6:00 P.M.
Evening W orhsip
7:30 P .M .
A ffilia te d w ith the National Hapusi Convention
o f A m lric a and the Southern Baptist Convention
H here all yy-ii/iZcv o f all races are welcomed to worship.
ALLEN TEMPLE CME CHURCH
Corner of 8th and Skidm ore
Sunday School 9.30am
Sunday Worship 11:00am
Christian Youth Fellowship 6:00pm
(second and fourth Sundays)
Reverend Thomas L. Stravhand, Minister
You are Welcome to Worship at
THE ARK OF SAFETY CHURCH OF GOD IN CHRIST
"A warm spirit o f Jellowship alw ays"
Sunday School
Morning Worship
9:15am
11:15am
Showers o* Blessings Broadcast
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Evangelistic Worship
8 00pm
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Tuesday Friday
Tuesday
Bible Band Jr Church
Wednesday
Choir Rehearsal
Friday
"The Pastor Speaks
94 NE Killings worth
281 0499
These agencies were m asters at
d ou ble ta lk ; I'm ta lk in g about
agencies th a t have the fu n d s but
would rather make it as d iffic u lt as
possible fo r Black artists to recieve
any type o f public funding. Its very
sad. 1 know for a fact, that i f just a
few o f the Black artists o f our com
m u n ity received any typ e o f real
support fo r the art they a rf doing,
there w ould be a drastic change in
b o th the Black and w h ite com
munity.
Black art a ffects everybody, its
not just something for Black people,
i t ’ s something created out o f Black
p e o p le ...it’ s som e thin g th a t has
helped to shape and m old what has
become A m erican c u ltu re . So, we
made it our business to start doing
some o f the things that would make
us become legitim ate in the eyes o f
the public. We incorporated under
the name o f Portland Black Reper
tory Theatre. A t the tim e there was
just a handful o f us; Richad Jones,
Debbie Hicks. Bobby Fouther, Pat
Steward and Kolleh Dura Suma.
A ll o f us were artists in our own
right and had something unique to
contribute to Portland Black Reper
to ry Theatre. A fte r "W in e In The
W ild e rn e s s " came " F o r C o lo re d
G i r ls . . . " and w ith " C o lo r e d
G irls ... ’ ’ came the re c o g n itio n we
were seeking. W ith that recognition
came money! And w ith the money,
came a lot o f problems.
A t th is p o in t, we declared a
m oratorium on art agencies and on
going through the motions o f Filling
o ut a p p lic a tio n s , and answ ering
questions th a t had no re la tio n to
Black a rt. We decided to tr y and
gain more support fro m o u r com
m unity; to ju m p in w ith both feet;
m ake th ing s w o rk ; and c rea ting
situations where Black people could
produce w ith o u t the fu n d s o f a
public agency.
If you care about your
city and neighborhood,
and your right to voice
your opinion —
Get government back
in the hands of
THE PEOPLE!
Vote
WILLIE
BROWN
City Commissioner h
HOUSING FOR ELDERLY OR
S te ve Lee p layed G id e o n and
R osem ary A llen played S to rm y
M onday in "Five."
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Community •r Calendar
The B enson H o te l D in n e r T h e a te r presents the M ark Allen Players in
Neil Sim on's comedy, "L a s t O f The Red H o t Lovers, ” weekends through
March, l-or inform ation and reservations call the Benson Hotel -- 228-9611.
E X H IB IT : Through Sunday, February 15, recent collages and inflatable
sculpture by H arold Jacobs, form er Museum A rt School visiting professor
from 1964 through 1966, w ill be exhibited in the N orth gallery o f the P ort
land Center for the Visual Arts, 117 NE F ifth. The PCVA galleries are open
to the public free o f charge Tuesday through Sunday, 12:00 to 5:00 p.m.
W o rk s h o p s : Beginning February 7 through February 28, Pacific N o rth
west Labor College w ill present a series o f Saturday workshops especially
pointed to new union members. Sessions w ill be from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m ., at
the Musicians H all, 325 N.E. 20th.
"The A rt of Scientific Illu stratio n ," an exhibition o f works o f art that
conform to the rig id standards o f scienfitic realism, w ill be on view at the
Museum A rt School’ s Wentz Gallery from January 19 through February 14.
For more inform ation call the Museum A rt School at 226-4391.
The Portland W om en's Health C enter is o ffe rin g a self-help fe rtility
awareness group on January 7 and February 10, from 7-9 at the Health Cen
ter. The cost is $10 and pre-registration is required. For more inform a tion
call 777-7044.
1 & 2 bedroom units
Available April 1981
Convenient to all city services.
HUD rental assistance program
Rent & utilities maximum 25%
of your determined income.
EQUAL HOUSING
OPPORTUNITY
An Equal Housing Opportunity
All interested persons
are encouraged to apply.
CAM 661-3001 for application
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• Towing Service «
Monthly Parking
Available February 1, 1981. Price - $12.50 per month.
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ST. ANDREWS CATHOLIC CHURCH
The Honorable Bishop U V. Peterson, D D.
"The Holiners Preacher," Pastor
Sunday
It was very successful and had a
large cast. A t the tim e , we s till
did n ’ t have a theatre. We weren’ t
even th in k in g to w a rd a th ea tre,
because our biggest problem was
just to do it...W e had no backup.
We had to get funds from wherever
we could fo r customs, the set, and
all that kind o f struggle. None o f us
were g e ttin g p a id , but we were
getting free time to develop, so it
was successful. We trave led the
state. We went to P o rtla n d A rt
Museum, Lewis & C lark College,
and all around the city perform ing
the play.
We got a lot o f good feedback.
We turned out A rt Quake in its first
year, and our production was one o f
the best received by the audience. So
that started a tradition.
R om an C a th o lic S ister Sandra Price w ill speak on the current political
situation in El Salvador on Sunday, January 18 at 1:30 p.m ., at St. Patrick
Catholic Church, 1623 N .W . 19th Avenue in Portland.
N o rth e a s t C o a litio n o f N eig h b o rh o o d s: 7:30 p.m .. King Neighborhood
Facility, 4815 N.E. Seventh Avenue, January 20, 1981.
P o rtla n d S c h o o l B o a rd : Budget deliberations, January 20, 1981,4:30
p.m ., Adm inistration Building, 501 N. Dixon.
M e tro p o lita n H u m a n R ela tion s C o m m is s io n : January 20, 1981,7:30
p.m ., Beaumont School, 5736 N.E. 33rd.
P o rtla n d S c h o o l B o a rd : Budget deliberations, 4:30 p.m ., January 21,
1981, Adm inistration Building, 501 N. Dixon.
D e m o n s tra tio n : U.S. out o f El Salvador, Saturday, January 24, 1981,
I pm, W aterfront Park with speakers and music.
/irto feour jiltsstonarp Baptist £ hurt I)
“ T H S T IT H IN G CHVHCH
we might never get another chance
to do in our life time. We all respec
ted the w riter o f the play, Joseph
Walker. The parts were real heavy.
It was about a Black father who was
a poet and a painter. It reflected the
trials he went through while trying
to keep his fam ily together. We just
pul so much into the play, and we
look out into the audience and see
2 or 3 people. At no one time did we
ever have more than IIX) people in
the audience. But everyone who
came to see it, appreciated it.
I don’ t know ...it sort o f gave me
a signal that Portland wasn’ t really
ready fo r the realism that some
Black plays had to offer.
So, we started to go in a different
direction. At that time, I left and
went to the U niversity o f Iowa. I
was gone for about a year, and came
back in 1977. Upon my return, we
did a m usicial called "S ta rd u s t"
which I adapted. It was about Black
Broadway musicals; the trials and
tribulations that Black people went
through and how much they con
tributed to musicals which was the
only real American form o f theatre.
Black people built the musicals, but
d id n ’ t get very m uch cre d it fo r
doing so. Stardust dealt w ith that
and had a lot o f dance and song and
th a t’ s where we got our spark for
d ealing w ith m usic and dance,
rather than with straight drama by
itself.
A t this p oint we decided that the
only thing we had to do was get our
act together as an organization, and
continue to pursue our dream. But
we d id n ’ t know what a ll o f the re
quirements were, in order to become
a legitimate Theatre. So, we started
a p p ro a c h in g the v a rio u s fu n d in g
agencies; The M e tro p o lita n A rts
C o m m issio n ; The O regon C o m
m unity Foundation.' We found that
these agencies were o nly interested
in offe ring m ainly lip service. They
w eren’ t interested in p u ttin g any
m oney beh in d Black a rt, the
Theatre, dance or Black music. We
w ent in a lo t o f circle s ta lk in g to
those people. One m in u te it was
“ yes, there is a p ossibility that you
can get some funds...that we’ ll sup
port you on this p ro je c t.” The next
minute we were hearing things like,
“ It looks like there is going to be a
cut in our b u d g e t...it looks like we
are not going to be able to get the
funds together after all. But you go
ahead, f ill out the a pplication, and
possibly we may be able to fin d the
funds somewhere.”
Perhaps the most distressing thing
o f a ll was to hear w ords lik e ,
“ yeah., we have $500 here fo r you.
F ill o ut the a p p lic a tio n , and we
want to m onitor your program, and
e v e ry th in g you d o, we w ant our
name put on a ll o f y o u r p u b lic ly ,
and we w ant to know how m any
Black people come to see yo u r
show, how many white people come
to see y o u r show , and how m uch
money you m ade.” It became very
clear that these people did not un
derstand or know where Black a r
tists were coming from .
You see, we have a very unique
s itu a tio n in P o rtla n d . There was
very little g o in g on in o u r co m
m un ity, that w o u ld ’ ve allowed our
Black artists to receive recognition
fo r their skills and professionalism.
7 30pm
7 00pm
7 30pm
806 NE ALBERTA STREET
Reverend Bertram Griffin, Pastor
Masses
281 4429
BRAD DAVIS
5 00pm Vigil Saturday
10 00am Choir Sunday
12 00pm Folk - Sunday
ST. ANDREW COMMUNITY SCHOOL
4919 NE 9th Ave
8r Kathleen Stupfer. Principal
Phone 284 1620
Grades 1 thru 8
Station Manager
Portland, Oregon 97213
Phone: 284 5050