Searing and brutally honest, Bold Moves is the umbrella title of new works by author and playwright Tricia Elam Walker. This quartet of contemporary short plays about friendship, race, intimacy, and responsibility contains haunting themes and a kaleidoscope of human stories. The people we meet in Walker’s one-act plays captivate us as they navigate and try to make sense of their complex worlds. Directed by Dillon Bustin. Plays include: Bold Moves, The Widows’ Club, Mani-Pedi, and Maternity Ward.
About each play:
Bold Moves: After going their separate ways post-college, Denali and Zahra spontaneously reconnect one weekend. Although never romantically involved, Denali always carried a special feeling for Zahra. Will his bold offer to treat her like a queen for one weekend backfire?
The Widows’ Club: Four widowed women (in their 40s or 50s) from a predominately black, low income, SE section of Washington, DC (or any urban setting) are gathered together in an apartment drinking, eating and discussing their lives. The play reveals the bonds of their friendship, the difficulty of their lives and most of all, their sense of humor despite the deep pain they have suffered and thought they buried.
Mani-Pedi: Two mother/daughter pairs find themselves in a volatile situation that takes place in a nail salon. Race, ethnicity, language and power all converge as a young Black daughter feels emboldened to verbally assault the Vietnamese mother/salon owner who is providing her manicure/pedicure service. Mani-Pedi is a textured account of what happens when misunderstanding, anger and resentment bubble to the surface.
Maternity Ward: Two teenage girls who attend the same high school happen to give birth the same day and end up sharing a hospital room. Maternity Ward centers around the juxtaposition of this very adult change in their lives yet the very youthful and naive sense through which they view it emphasized through their discussion about sex, their children’s fathers, their own mothers and becoming mothers themselves.
Tickets: $15-$30
Performance dates:
Friday, May 19, 7:00pm
Saturday, May 20, 8:00pm
Sunday, May 21, 3:00pm
About the Playwright:
Tricia Elam Walker, author of the novel Breathing Room and other publications, is an award-winning writer and commentator recently named Hibernian Hall’s 2017 Visiting Playwright. She has written for National Public Radio, The Washington Post, Essence magazine, the Huffington Post and more. Prior to embarking on a writing career, she practiced law for sixteen years prior to teaching writing in Washington, DC and Boston. Proud mom of three and step-mom of two (all brilliant young adults), Tricia is currently an assistant professor of Creative Writing at Howard University. Additionally, she is working on several projects including a children’s book (with renowned Roxbury artist Ekua Holmes), a second novel and more plays. A Roxbury native and daughter of long-time community activists Honorable Harry and Barbara Elam, Tricia lived in Washington DC for 30 years but has “come home” to Boston and now resides in Dorchester with her husband/bae, Charles Walker. In many ways, the Bold Moves production is a full-circle coming home celebration for Tricia. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter at @triciabreathing and check out her blog at blackpumpsnotebook.com.