{"id":9640,"date":"2015-01-06T15:32:59","date_gmt":"2015-01-06T20:32:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/college.unc.edu\/?p=9640"},"modified":"2024-07-02T16:07:04","modified_gmt":"2024-07-02T16:07:04","slug":"troubleinmind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/collegearchive.unc.edu\/?p=9640","title":{"rendered":"PlayMakers presents \u2018Trouble in Mind\u2019 starting Jan. 21"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Kathryn<\/a>
Kathryn Hunter-Williams as Wiletta Mayer in “Trouble in Mind.” (photo by Jon Gardiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

PlayMakers Repertory Company continues its main-stage season Jan. 21-Feb. 8 with a scathingly funny backstage drama, \u201cTrouble in Mind,\u201d by Alice Childress. PlayMakers is the professional theater in residence at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.<\/p>\n

Special events associated with the show begin Jan. 12.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrouble in Mind\u201d is set behind the scenes of a Broadway play in 1957. In rehearsals for a potentially landmark, racially integrated production, the leading actress must wrestle with a choice between the role of a lifetime or compromising her values.<\/p>\n

The Washington Post called \u201cTrouble in Mind\u201d \u201cwise and extraordinarily winning\u201d and \u201cone of the best plays about racism ever written.\u201d<\/p>\n

The play is a bitingly satiric modern classic penned by a real-life groundbreaker, playwright\/actress Alice Childress, who was the first African-American woman to have her work professionally produced on the New York stage (\u201cGold Through the Trees,\u201d 1952).<\/p>\n

\"From<\/a>
From left to right, Kathryn Hunter-Williams as Wiletta Mayer, Roger Robinson as Sheldon Forrester, Myles Bullock as John Nevins, Carey Cox as Judy Sears and Suzette Azariah Gunn as Millie Davis in “Trouble in Mind.” (photo by Jon Gardiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In a career spanning more than four decades, Childress was an American theater pioneer. She was a member of Harlem\u2019s American Negro Theater (along with Sidney Poitier and Ruby Dee, among others), and received a Tony Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress (\u201cAnna Lucasta,\u201d 1944). In 1972, she became one of the first African-American women to direct Off-Broadway, co-directing with Joseph Papp for the New York Shakespeare Festival. Her accomplishments opened doors for many African-American artists.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrouble in Mind\u201d was Childress\u2019 breakthrough play, running Off-Broadway in 1955. It was on track to be the first work by an African-American woman to be seen on Broadway, and many believe it is Childress who paved the way for Lorraine Hansberry\u2019s \u201cA Raisin in the Sun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kathryn Hunter-Williams will play Wiletta Mayer, the lead actress. Among many roles at PlayMakers, she has appeared as Mama in \u201cA Raisin in the Sun\u201d and the Angel in \u201cAngels in America.\u201d She entertained audiences and garnered critical acclaim as Cassandra in this season\u2019s opener \u201cVanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Myles<\/a>
Myles Bullock, left, as John Nevins and Carey Cox as Judy Sears in “Trouble in Mind.” (photo by Jon Gardiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tony Award-winning Broadway actor Roger Robinson appears as Sheldon Forrester. Robinson received the honor as Best Actor in a Featured Role for August Wilson\u2019s \u201cJoe Turner\u2019s Come and Gone\u201d and was Tony-nominated for another Wilson play, \u201cSeven Guitars.\u201d He has appeared in many film and television parts and was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for \u201cBrother to Brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

Performances of \u201cTrouble in Mind\u201d will be in the Paul Green Theatre in UNC\u2019s Center for Dramatic Art on Country Club Road. Show times will be 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays and Saturday, Jan. 31.<\/p>\n

For more information and to purchase tickets, call (919) 962-PLAY (7529) or visit www.playmakersrep.org<\/a>. Individual ticket prices start at $15. Tickets are also available as part of PlayMakers\u2019 2014-2015 subscription packages.<\/p>\n

In conjunction with \u201cTrouble in Mind,\u201d PlayMakers will host \u201cThe Vision Series-Directors in Conversation,\u201d a behind-the-scenes preview with director Jade King Carroll, Jan. 14 at 6:30 p.m. in the Paul Green Theatre. The event is free and open to the public. Participants share coffee and hors d\u2019oeuvres provided by series sponsor Jujube Restaurant, learn about the vision for the show and get a sneak peek at the sets and costumes in progress. Reservations are appreciated. Call PlayMakers\u2019 box office at (919) 962-7529 to RSVP.<\/p>\n

\"Kathyrn<\/a>
Kathyrn Hunter-Williams as Wiletta Mayer and Schuyler Scott Mastain as Al Manners in “Trouble in Mind.” (photo by Jon Gardiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Other special events will include:<\/p>\n