Jeanne Sakata Celebrates an American Hero by Barry David Horwitz In Jeanne Sakata’s moving “Hold These Truths,” the incomparable Jomar Tagatac takes us into Gordon Hirabayashi’s mind when he stood up against FDR’s racist Executive Order 9066—taking his case to the Supreme Court. At S.F. Playhouse, Tagatac also plays judges, police, family, and friends—each…
Ava Roy’s Spiritual Tour Refreshes Souls, Outdoors by Barry David Horwitz We Players has provided the perfect cure to Pandemic Blues: Take a hike in San Francisco’s McLaren Park; enjoy the magnificent views of ocean and bay. Along the way, you’ll be surprised by actors in full costume who pop out of clearings to…
Lisa Ramirez Thrills with a Hundred Years of Disasters by Barry David Horwitz April is the cruellest month, breeding Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing Memory and desire, stirring Dull roots with spring rain. –T.S. Eliot, “The Waste Land” (1922) In 1922, T.S. Eliot, an American living in exile in…
Alice Childress Spotlights African American Stereotypes by Barry David Horwitz In Alice Childress’s 1957 play, “Trouble in Mind,” two titanic figures confront each other at a rehearsal of an “anti-lynching” script. The fictional script, titled “Chaos in Belleville,” takes place on a southern plantation during slavery, and it parades offensive racial stereotypes. Playing seasoned…