A UIOWA Production, directed by Caroline Clay
Curated and Dramaturged by Rebecca Weaver
Other Resources
The following links are to other sources pertaining to the world of In the Red and Brown Water which will help with character and plot analysis, understanding the world and themes that Tarell has given us, as well as the relation this plays has on our own world.
01
"Westernization is not the answer." by Lamide Akintobi
Akintobi looks at the African artist, Àsìkò (Ade Okelarin), as he uses his photography to fuse cultural heritage and imagining a better future, essentially "...drawing connections between various global mythologies, through which, he says, we are all linked in our deep-rooted stories."
02
Offscript: Kendeda at 20 w/Tarell Alvin McCraney, Madhuri Shekar, and a.k. payne
In this interview, Tarell Alvin McCraney is interviewed (along with two other wonderful playwrights) about new play development. In particularly, Tarell talks about his inspiration in writing In the Red and Brown Water, drawing on Yoruba and the Orisha, as well as his writing process.
03
Black Black Theatre in Form and Style by Errol Hill
In this essay, Hill talks about how--and if-- Black theatre exists during his time (1979) as well as how we can move forward, carving out a form and style that is centered on Black theatre--"what we are seeking... is an immersion of their spirits and intellects in authentic forms of black expression. We need an understanding of the essential characteristics of that expression which strike responding chords of recognition and participation on the part of black audiences everywhere."
04
Praise Word by Paul Carter Harrison
In this essay, Harrison talks about the origins of mythology and iconography as it relates to the African diaspora, particularly West African culture and the Yoruba religion. Through this discussion of mythology and stripping the Christian Westernization of these myths and figures, we can "[reflect] on the goal of contemporary Black Theatre artists to identify and retrieve African traditions from the American social landscape."
05
Podcast Episodes on Different Orisha
In this playlist are episodes speaking on both an overview of the Yoruba cosmology as well as episodes that discuss the deities of Ogun, Shango, Oya (and Oshun), and Elegba.
06
Music of this World
This is playlist filled with music and sounds that I feel encompass the world of the play, pertain to one or more of the Orisha, and/or speak on the themes given to us through the text and events.
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If you'd like to be added as a contributor to this playlist, just let me know!
​07
Pinterest Board--Caroline, Bethany, and Becca
This is a link to the Pinterest board that Caroline (director), Bethany (set designer) and myself (dramaturg) have been contributing to since December. It contains images (and some links) to how we are seeing the world of the play.​
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Image: Parnevik, Jasper. "Blue Bottles." Flickr, 9 July 2007, https://www.flickr.com/photos/16044722@N00/759908876/.
08
National Wildlife--"The Gullah Geechee People Hold Their Ground"
This article discusses the historical ties that the Gullah/Geechee People have to the lowlands of the American Southeast. It talks about the lifeways of the people, the history, the hardships they've faced in a changing climate, and how they plan to preserve these lands and their heritage.​
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Image: McIntyre, Gavin. "Spanish Moss around Alligator Pond on Sapelo Island." National Wildlife, 4 July 2023, https://www.nwf.org/Home/Magazines/National-Wildlife/2023/Summer/Conservation/Gullah-Geechee-Climate-Change-Development.
09
"Mother Tongues and Captive Identities" by Kendra Hamilton
In this essay, Hamilton addresses how the abjected status of Gullah/Geechee language and culture in fact create the assimilation pressures that have driven the language to the brink of an extinction. She also looks at the ways in which framing the Gullah/Geechee experience as isolated and immobile has masked both its birth amid a vast, forcible, global migration and its contemporary reality as a dynamically “changing same” characteristic of all living cultures
10
"Lives in the Bayou Tap All the Realism of Dreams" by Ben Brantley
This is a review from the New York Times on the Tarell Alvin McCraney's trilogy "The Brother/Sister Plays." In this trilogy, performed at the Public Theater in New York, are the following plays: In the Red and Brown Water, The Brothers Size, and Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet.
11
The 1619 Project--Podcast
In another post on this site called History of American Slavery, there is a link to the full "1619 Project" from the New York Times which was curated by Nikole Hannah-Jones, aiming to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative. This is a link to the podcast version so that you can listen to it during your spare time.​
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Image: "Children on a sugar cane plantation in Louisiana." Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York Public Library, "The 1619 Projec," New York Times Magazine, Ep. 5, 4 October 2019.
12
Igbo's Landing & the Flying Africans
Below is a link to an article that briefly tells the history of the infamous landing (mass suicide) of the Igbo (Ibo) tribe from African as they were being taken from their home to the coasts of the U.S. Within this article is a link to a YouTube version of the history, so you may listen instead of reading!
13
Audio Recording about Igbo's Landing & the Flying Africans
This is a Spotify podcast episode from Lowcountry Gullah that tells the powerful story of the Igbo tribe and their capture and forced entry into the US slave tade.
15
Beyonce's Music Video, "Love Drought," from the Lemonade Album
This is a link to Beyonce's music video for "Love Drought" from her album Lemonade which draws influence from the Orisha, Olokun (mother of Yemoja). It also references the Landing of Igbo and the Flying Africans as they commit suicide to escape slavery.
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16
Beyonce's Lemonade and African Diaspora
This is a link to an article that talks about how intricately and beautifully Beyonce incorporates African disapora and Afro-Caribbean influences as they relate to Yoruba cosmology.
17
The Virtuosity of Black Storytelling with Tarell Alvin McCraney
This is a link to the podcast that Caroline sent out for us all to listen to. As it says in the title, this podcast is Jordan Ealey and Leticia Ridley speaking with playwright, Tarell Alvin McCraney, about the power of storytelling--how we tell stories, the impact that storytelling can have on us and our sense of community, and the specificity of telling stories through theatre.