THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 15, 1996 TAG: 9609130267
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 15 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: COVER STORY
SOURCE: BY REBECCA MYERS CUTCHINS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 67 lines
They call themselves the Not Just For February Players.
Their goal? To portray the history of African Americans not only during Black History Month but also throughout the year.
``We've always been real busy in the months of January and February, but then things kind of trail off,'' said Billie Cook, a member of the group.
The Not Just For February Players is a readers' theater formed about five years ago to trace the history of African Americans through slave narratives, songs, hymns, gospels, scripture, poetry, prose and short stories.
The group will get another chance at performing before a live audience on Saturday when it will be one of four groups of re-enactors on the Umoja Festival's new Living History Stage.
The stage is a spin-off of last year's successful African-American Heritage Trolley Tours. During those tours, re-enactors in period costume boarded trolleys to present first-person portrayals of historical African-American citizens. After the re-enactor's five-minute talk, the trolley would continue on its route with more narrated commentary.
``We decided to bring the living history component directly into the festival site area,'' said Voncile Gilbreath of the Portsmouth Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Gilbreath joined the Umoja Festival committee because she ``wanted to do something to attract more African Americans to the history of Portsmouth,'' she said.
So two years ago she started the African-American trolley tours, added re-enactors to the tour last year, then decided to dedicate an entire stage to them this year.
``On that stage, you're going to have a variety of performing arts groups and re-enactors all portraying time periods from the Revolutionary War to the present,'' she said.
Though she was never really a history buff, Gilbreath says she is definitely ``evolving into one.''
``It just happened,'' she said, ``and I really didn't expect it to. . . .
``Before I knew it, I'm walking around with all these little historical notes in my head and writing or assisting in writing scripts in these first-person portrayals. It just kind of happened, but I do enjoy it.''
The stage will be set up in Lafayette Park, adjacent to Signet Bank on Crawford Street, from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday.
Performances include:
2 p.m. - Who Am I
Ranging from the Revolutionary War to the 20th century, re-enactors in period attire will perform first-person portrayals of historical African-American citizens. Historical characters scheduled to appear are James Lafayette, William Flora, Mary Louveste and Martin Luther King Jr. (30 minutes)
2:30 p.m. - Let My People Go
A re-enactment by the Portsmouth Opera Guild that reflects the impact of the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation on African Americans. This drama includes several freed men, slave narratives and Negro spirituals. (90 minutes)
4 p.m. - 38th U.S. Colored Troops
A small unit of African-American re-enactors drill to the music and narration from the movie ``Glory.'' A question-and-answer session with the public follows this tribute. The 38th U.S. Colored Troops also will set up an encampment area depicting the soldiers' lifestyles during the Civil War era. (30 minutes)
4:30 p.m. - Not Just for February Players
An African-American performing arts group offers slave narratives, theatrical renditions of poetic literature and humorous skits. (90 minutes). by CNB