two plays in as many days!

Before you get too excited, you should bear in mind that neither was live.

"Oh, that's too bad. It seems like forever since that there was anything live in the theatrical world."

Well, hold on, g'friend. You had "A Charlie Brown Christmas" in December from the SavChTh, and they recently did "Elephant And Piggie's We Are In A Play". Remember? Danielle was in that remake. You saw it several years ago and liked it.

"Oh, yes, that was fun!"

That's right. And just last month, the folks at SavStageCo gave you a live one, too, "Alice In Wonderland", streaming in from fb.

"Yes, but that 'venue' sucks long green ones. I always get dropped audio and missed video segments there. Even with the Odd Lot shows on fb, I'd have to leave the page and log back in, missing part of the comedy. Ack."

Heard. I've tried to make sure folks know that 'venue' is problematic. YouTube is much smoother for streaming video.

"For real. I never have to leave the church service and log back in on that site. "

That's correct... but we seem to have wandered off topic. We were talking of live theatre and I was trying to remind you of what you've seen of that form of entertainment since the pandemic took over. As you will recall, the SSU Players By The Sea gave you "Oedipus" in the fall. That was totally live!

"It was very well done, too! I hope they will bring more live theatre soon."

Well, I have good news! They did!!! Yesterday, as part of the SBHF32. They put one what is termed a Reader's Theatre, in which everyone has the script before them and are reading it aloud. You know, much like you do when you're reading a book to a child - they liven it up, but each person only reads their part, not all of them.

"Oh, but it's more fun to read for all of the characters! LOL!"

Yes, I'm sure it is, dear, for both you and the children you're reading to, but that's not how it was done for this production. You see, the actors were actually doing a play, one called "Color Struck", written by Zora Neale Hurston when she was about 34 years old. I think you would have liked her. Here's a quote from a letter she wrote. "I have the nerve to walk my own way, however hard, in my search for reality, rather than climb upon the rattling wagon of wishful illusions."

"Good for her! And that was back in the 1920's? Yes, I think I would have liked to meet her. She sounds like she was a woman like me, a woman like Nichelle Nichols, a woman who did not see her options as limited by gender or race."

That's my take, too. This play tackles the subject of racism within the black community. That's actually what the title refers to: the mistaken belief that the color of one's skin limits what one is allowed to do and to have.

"Wow, that's a bit of a different tack, isn't it? To look at how folks of color can have prejudice views toward other folks of color, just because of skin tone?"

I thought it a very admirable tack. Most groups only look outside their own ethnicity when they talk of racial bias. I found it refreshing to have this glance within a single ethnic group.

"Is this the play? I didn't expect them to be in costume for a reader's theatre."

I had not either, but I'm sure the actors jumped at the chance to dress up. The play is set two time periods, with this first one in 1904. These folks are all traveling by train to a cake walk where John and Emma - the couple in the red coat and blue dress - are to compete. The others in the scene, from the left, are Ada, Effie, and Dinkey. Off to the far right is a woman with a typewriter, representing the author, and narrating the expository.

"How marvelous! Did you get to see them dance?"

Well, no, because Emma refused to enter the contest, thinking that John preferred Effie's light color to her dark color. Even though he tried to convince her, Emma remained color struck and did not budge from her erroneous belief. Eventually, she and John parted ways, though he would continue to love her.

"And is that romantic conjecture on your part?"

No, that is what becomes obvious in Act Two, which is set 20 years later. John, now a widower, has tracked her down, hoping for a joyful reunion. He finds her alone, tending to her very ill daughter, a mulatto daughter born to her out of wedlock. John still wants to marry Emma, but when she finds him giving water to the dying daughter, all Emma sees is John choosing a light skin over her dark skin. John leaves after her tirade and the daughter dies, making Emma all alone now.

"Oh, my, how very sad. Even though Emma brought all that heartache onto herself, it's still very sad. Plus, I thought you said this was a 'live' play."

Nope, I did not say that. In fact, I had cautioned you against thinking that.

"What?! Wait just a minute... oh. Yes, you did alert me, at the very start. Good thing you wrote it down as proof."

Hahaha! Yes, dear. And you just gave me proof positive that people hear what they want to hear and read what they want to read, regardless of the words actually in place.

"Yeah, yeah. You also said there were TWO plays. So, do tell, please."

You betcha. By the way, the first play was roughly an hour long. Feel free to mosey on over to the site and watch it. It's free! Well, not really, as the City of Savannah, as well as Savannah State University, footed the bill for it. This second play, however, is not free, nor is it funded by anyone, but the cost of admission is just $20. Contact SavRepTh and get set up with them.

"So, this is not part of the Savannah Black Heritage Festival?"

No, it is not, though it is certainly appropriate for winter viewing. It reminded me strongly of "Land", which I saw just last weekend. As in that movie, grief figures prominently in "Brilliant Traces". Of course, we don't know that right away. What we do know is this: a stranger in a dirty wedding gown has burst into a man's cabin during a terrible snowstorm, awakening him not only by her action but her nonstop talking. After downing several shots of whiskey, she passes out and the man emerges from where he has been silently standing since her arrival.

"Oh, my! With nary a greeting or anything?"

He didn't even have an opening to speak until she passed out. Then, he did the right thing: made sure she was alive, transferred her to the one bed, cleaned her up, covered her with blankets, and waited for her to wake up. That she didn't do for two days. TWO DAYS. Can you imagine having a stranger in your house for two days and knowing next to nothing about them?

"Well, he knew she was a runaway bride who had been walking in the snow in satin slippers. She could well have been a mental patient."

Exactly. As I said, next to nothing. So, she finally wakes up and they start this awkward conversation, with her knowing she has imposed and him trying to be gracious about it, sharing names, struggling for bits of real information. And we find out that she has driven from Arizona, living on candy and cola, not even stopping for the night anywhere, probably not wanting to think of the groom she left at the altar and aware that a stop would bring him to mind and her actions into question. She might well have continued driving if her car had not died in the snow. She didn't even know she was in Alaska!

"I see. So, she could very well be mental."

In a way, she was. Her father had failed to recognize her at the wedding, just as he was to escort her down the aisle, and she was overcome with the grief of having been erased from his diseased memory. As for why the man was living alone in a remote cabin, well grief was playing a role in that, too.

"I am so blessed to not have dementia or Alzheimer's in my family. I have several friends who have had parents with the diseases and the effect on them is heartbreaking."

Yes. That's all I'm going to say about this one, as I don't want to give away all of the play. What I appreciated was that this was a husband and wife in real life, who took on Cindy Lou Johnson's play and had it staged in their garage. I don't know how long it took to get it all done, but considering that they are both professors at a local university, with all the extra effort that entails during a pandemic, they must have tremendous grace. I certainly hope to see them in future works here in town, hopefully in person.

"Well, thanks for introducing them to me, and for telling me of this theatrical work still being done locally. Kudos to all involved in both plays!"