REVIEW: “HAVING OUR SAY” AT THE THEATER PROJECT

The power of theater to move and educate us is nowhere more evident than in The Theater Project's breathtaking production of Having Our Say now onstage at the Burgdorff Center in Maplewood. That this is accomplished through only dialogue and the remarkable performances of Diaamah Talley (right) and Gail Lou (left), with no physical action other than cutting vegetables, makes this an unforgettable, moving experience.

Subtitled The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years, the play—adapted from a best-selling memoir by Emily Mann—recounts the lives of Sadie, 103, and Bessie, 101, as told to an unnamed (and unseen) person who has come to interview them. While many in the audience are familiar with the racial intolerance in the South, albeit mostly from history class, it is eye-opening to consider these events from the point of view of those on the receiving end.

From the slave origins and subsequent ordination of their father and the mixed-race heritage of their mother through Reconstruction and their childhoods at St. Augustine school in Raleigh, NC; to encounters with Rebby Boys, Southern white racists given to lynching Negroes for no reason other than the color of their skin; through Jim Crow South to Harlem in the 1940s and the Civil Rights era, Bessie and Sadie have lived full, exciting lives. They have been "good citizens of a country that has not always been good to" them. The backbone of their family has been their religious faith, and education was always the number one priority of their parents and the 10 children in the Delany family. The two women certainly fulfilled the latter goal: Bessie graduated from the Columbia University School of Dentistry and practiced for over 50 years in New York City while Sadie studied Domestic Science (more familiarly known as Home Economics) at Pratt Institute and became the first "colored" teacher of the subject in a New York City high school (she went on to earn a Master's Degree at Columbia University)! And although each had many beaus, the sisters never married; they'd rather be called "maiden ladies" than "old maids," indicating that they alone chose their single state.

The two women are only too pleased to talk to someone new: "Everyone we know is either dead or boring us to death!" exclaims Sadie. As they tell their stories, feisty Bessie (sharp as "vinegar" and a "naughty darky," as her sister dubs her) keeps on interrupting her more docile sister Sadie (a Mamma's child, sweet like "molasses," according to Bessie) or one finishes the other's sentences so that there is never a lull in the conversation. In fact, the two women talk while they work preparing dinner in the kitchen or setting the dining room table with their mama's china and crystal.

Mark Spina has directed Talley and Lou with a steady hand and a light touch, letting the actors' talent convey the essence of these two forceful personalities. The two even walk like old women, moving slowly and stiffly like one would expect of someone a century old. They laugh at each other's jokes and spar as most siblings do, which makes the sisters all the more endearing and universal. Talley's low voice and slow delivery marks Sadie as a deliberate person, weighing her options before acting, while Lou's quicker delivery and sprightly toss of her head mark her as more impulsive and easily excited. The prodigious task of memorizing huge chunks of dialogue never interferes with Talley and Lou's ability to make us feel that the sisters have taken us into their confidence; they call us "child," just as they would address the young white woman who has come to interview them for her book. They even manage the difficult task of cutting vegetables while delivering dialogue, without missing a beat (or cutting a finger).

The sisters' love for their parents and siblings is communicated by the reverential way they talk about the pictures projected on the back of the stage, photographs of the real Delany family, all of whom were accomplished individuals. It was a treat to see these people as flesh-and-blood men and women—especially the photos of the real Sadie and Bessie (above).

Mark Reilly's lighting directs our attention to the action without being intrusive. Greg Scalera's sound includes music of the period, and Madelyn Morrison Lichtman's props make us feel as though we are visiting the Delany sister's Mt. Vernon home in 1992.

Having Our Say is a wonderful testament to the strength of the human spirit to overcome obstacles and triumph in the end—regardless of race, skin color or creed. The Theater Project has once again presented theater lovers with a polished production that not only educates us but moves us. Don't miss this production.

Having Our Say will be performed at the Burgdorff Center, 10 Durand Road, Maplewood, through April 21. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 2 PM. For information and tickets, call 973.763.4029 or visit www.TheTheaterProject.org.