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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (May 18, 2011)
arts & entertainment ‘Incognito’: One Man Discovers His African American Father PlayWrite’s WORD.VOICE. Showcases youth Theatre O book review by kam Williams, special to The Skanner News “I grabbed the phone and punched in the number… my heart pounding… My dad… Thirty years later. ‘My name is Michael Sidney Fosberg, and I’m your son!’ I blurt- ed out. ‘Son? Well, first of all, I want you to know that no matter what you were told, or what you thought happened, I have always loved you… There’s one other thing I’m sure your mother never told you.’ ‘What’s that?’ ‘I’m African-American,’ he said. My body went numb. I felt light-headed and my legs began to give way. I braced myself against the bureau… I sat down slowly on the bed in stunned silence, trying to breathe without trembling. My throat was dry I struggled to respond, but all I could say was, ‘Wow!’” The author learning his father was black. (pgs. 71-74) Michael Sidney Fosberg was raised in a lily-white, Chicago suburb at the height of the Civil Rights Movement by his Caucasian mother and stepdad. Consequently, he grew up blissfully unaware of the fact that the real father he’d been separated practically at birth from was black. A Jew-fro and a slightly swarthy com- plexion were all that made Michael stand out in family photos taken with his parents and two younger siblings. His mom explained away the differences in their appearance by saying that he was part Cherokee, an excuse which her emotional- ly-conflicted son bought until he bottomed out in his Thirties while trying to make it as an actor in L.A. It was then, after almost dying of a drug overdose, that he resolved to turn his life around, despite having thus far frittered away his adulthood in rudderless fashion, between substance-abusing and serial wom- anizing. With the help of Alcoholics Anonymous, Michael soon sobered up and came to understand the role that “the loss and absence of my biological father at such an early age” had played in his self-destruc- tive patterns. So, he pressured his mother for info about his paternal roots, and she provided him with a name, John Woods, and a hometown, Detroit, without divulging anything about her ex’s ethnicity. Therefore, it’s easy to imagine Michael’s utter shock upon learn- ing that his long-lost father was African- American. He soon shared the big development with his half-sister, Lora, who took the news in stride, matter-of-factly remarking, “Damn! My brother’s a brother.” And that was only the first of numerous jaw-dropping disclo- sures about to come out of the closet. As it turned out, Michael’s dad had remarried after divorcing his mother but had then another mixed child with a Jewish mistress of many years. Worse, Woods was unemployed, on the run from the law, and doing his best to avoid a stiff prison sentence for bribery. So much for Michael’s dream of an idyllic father-son reunion and making up for lost time. With his dad first evading authorities and then behind bars, Michael instead immersed himself in African-American culture, even becoming engaged briefly to a sister who unfortunately turned out to be a gold digger. Alternately hilarious and heartbreaking, Incognito is a riveting and revealing autobi- ography of self-discovery with a message most reminiscent of that age old maxim, “Be careful what you wish for!” n May 24, join P l a y W r i t e ’ s WORD.VOICE. spring showcase featuring plays acted and written by at-risk youth. The event takes place at 7:30 p.m. at the World Trade Center, 121 SW Salmon St. in Downtown Portland. Tickets are $10. PlayWrite provides work- shops in which theatre profes- sionals and other artists coach at-risk youth to create and direct their own plays. The results are twofold: The young writers discover their voices and learn that art is a form of truth that can help them figure out how to live. And audiences get to see visceral, powerful theatre that offers the satisfac- tion of transformative experi- ence. Twice a year recent plays and songs are chosen for perform- ance at the winter or spring showcase. Professional actors, singers and musicians perform the work under the direction of PlayWrite graduates, giving the young writers a second opportunity to work on their creations. Victor Mack, who is starring in the Portland Playhouse’s production of “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” says it’s very rewarding to be working with kids. “I’ve been involved with helping at-risk kids create theatre since I lived in New York and worked with the 52nd Street Project,” he said. “As an actor I enjoy get- ting direction from the kids and seeing their faces when their plays come to life on stage. You help them open up and see things from a new perspective.” Victor Mack To order a copy of the book Incognito, v i s i t : http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN /B004D5909U/ref=nosim/thslfofire-20 To order a copy of the DVD Incognito, an award-winning, one-man play written and performed by Michael Sidney Fosberg, v i s i t : http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN /B004RCGFGU/ref=nosim/thslfofire-20 Incognito: An American Odyssey of Race and Self-Discovery by Michael Sidney Fosberg Incognito, Inc. Paperback, $20.00 330 pages, Illustrated ISBN: 978-0-615-41396-9 may 18, 2011 The Portland and Seattle Skanner Page 7
