Minstrel Show: The Lynching of William Brown (Manbites Dog Theater, Aug. 22-Sept. 13 at 703 Foster St., Durham, NC) is an encore presentation of an award-winning docudrama written by Max Sparber, directed by Natalie Sowell, and starring Lakeetha Blakeney and Dalmar Montgomery. According to preshow publicity, “With humor and tears, Minstrel Show tells the true story of a 1919 lynching in Omaha, Nebraska, through the testimony of two fictional African-American minstrels who witnessed it all. Called back to testify before an investigative committee, the minstrels at first refuse to describe the details of the lynching, instead performing scenes from their act, including comic vignettes and prison songs. Eventually, they come to realize their importance as witnesses to history, and tell the chilling story of the night-long siege on the Douglas County Courthouse that ended with the terrible murder of William Brown.” For more information, visit http://www.manbitesdogtheater.org/2/. For tickets, call 919/682-3343.
About The Author
Robert McDowell
Robert W. McDowell is a Raleigh, NC, freelance writer, editor, and theater critic who served as CVNC's theatre editor from September 2002 to May 2010. Since 1973, the Columbia, SC, native and 1970 graduate of East Carolina University in Greenville, NC, has written theater, book, and music previews and reviews for the Raleigh News & Observer, The Raleigh Times, North Carolina Magazine of Raleigh, and Spectator Magazine of Raleigh. In April 2001, Robert McDowell established Robert's Reviews, an e-mail theatrical newsletter, to help fill a growing void in Triangle theater coverage. Triangle Theater Review is an expanded version of the original newsletter, circulated by e-mail. He also co-edited and supervised the production of Jim Valvano's Guide to Great Eating (JTV Enterprises, 1984), a 224-page celebrity cookbook; and he served as a fact checker for Valvano: They Gave Me a Lifetime Contract, and Then They Declared Me Dead (Pocket Books, 1991).