Tag Archives: Gee’s Bend

Creative Class 2016: Yslan Hicks

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cc16-hicksYslan Hicks has dressed hundreds of people in all sorts of clothing.  As a theatrical costume designer and educator, she has worked throughout the United States.  She is currently an Associate Professor and Interim Department Chair for the UALR Theatre and Dance Department.

Yslan has design credits that include productions at UALR, Arkansas Repertory Theatre, Lincoln Center Institute in New York City, the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Portland Center Stage in Oregon, the Old Globe in San Diego and Williamstown Theatre Festival in Williamstown, Mass. As an artistic associate at Lifeline Theatre in Chicago, she has designed a number of literary adaptations including Dracula, Pride and Prejudice and Jane Eyre.

Her work with the Arkansas Rep spans over two decades.  Among her recent productions are The Whipping Man, Clybourne Park, and Gee’s Bend.  In addition to UALR, she has served on the faculties of the University of Tulsa and Tulane University. Yslan is a member of United Scenic Artists, Local 829.

Yslan is also an in-demand speaker.  Most recently, she has given a series of talks for the Central Arkansas Library System on the history of fashion. Among her topics have been Downton Abbey and bridal dresses.

Award winning THE WHIPPING MAN now at Arkansas Rep

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THEREP_THE WHIPPINGMAN (no credits)-page-001As Producing Artistic Director Bob Hupp often says, one of the objectives of the Arkansas Repertory Theatre is to tell a variety of stories.  Following the holiday frolic that was Elf, next on stage is Matthew Lopez’s award-winning play The Whipping Man.

An extraordinary tale of loyalty, deceit and deliverance, The Whipping Man opened off-Broadway in 2011 to critical acclaim, winning the 2011 John Gassner New Play Award from the NY Outer Critics Circle and becoming one of the most produced plays in the country.

On Passover, 1865, the Civil War has just ended and the annual celebration of freedom from bondage is being observed in Jewish homes across the country. One of these homes sits in ruins. As Jewish confederate officer Caleb DeLeon returns from the war, badly wounded, to find his family missing and only two former slaves remaining, Simon and John, the two men are forced to care for him.

As Caleb, Simon and John wait for the family’s return, they wrestle with their shared past as master and slave, digging up long-buried family secrets as well as new ones. With Passover upon them, the three men unite to celebrate the holiday, even as they struggle to comprehend their new relationships at a crossroads of personal and national history and to come to terms with the sordid legacies of slavery and war that threaten each of their future freedoms.

Ryan Barry, who was featured in last season’s Clybourne Park returns to the Rep joined by Michael A. Shepperd and Damian Thompson.  The production is directed by Rep vet Gilbert McCauley (Gee’s Bend, Looking Over the President’s Shoulder, The Piano Lesson, A Soldier’s Play, Fences, Frost/Nixon).  Other members of the creative team are set designer Mike Nichols, costume designer Yslan Hicks, lighting designer Dan Kimble, sound designer Allan Branson and props designer Lynda J. Kwallek.

The production opens Friday, January 23 and runs through Sunday, February 8.

GEE’S BEND at Arkansas Rep

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Quilts are not just coverings for warmth, they often tell a story.  The quilts and quilters of Gee’s Bend, Alabama are the focus of the play Gee’s Bend, which opened on Friday night at the Arkansas Rep and continues through February 1

Gee’s Bend was written by Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder.  It follows a group of women as they turn to quilting to provide comfort and creative expression to their lives. Pieced together from discarded clothes and seasoned with laughter and tears, the women sew a patchwork of inventive abstract designs in rich, blazing colors.

The play opens in 1939, with the beginning of the era of African-American land ownership. The story then advances to 1965, in the midst of the Civil Rights movement and the historic visit to Gee’s Bend by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. The production concludes in 2002, on the eve of the unveiling of “The Quilts of Gee’s Bend” exhibition organized by the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Texas.

Gee’s Bend was commissioned by the Alabama Shakespeare Festival’s Southern Writers Project, where it received a staged reading in 2006 and premiered in January 2007. A graduate of the dramatic writing program at New York University, Wilder received the American Theatre Critics Association’s 2008 Elizabeth Osborn New Play Award for an emerging playwright.

Gee’s Bend is directed by Gilbert McCauley, who has directed several plays previously at the Rep.  The cast features Corey Jones, Nambi E. Kelley, Shannon Lamb and Monica Parks.   The design team includes Mike Nichols (scenery), Yslan Hicks (costumes), John Horner (lighting), Allan Branson (sound) and Lynda J. Kwallek (props). Robert Hupp is the Producing Artistic Director of the Arkansas Rep.

The Rep’s production of Gee’s Bend is supported and sponsored by The Design Group, Philander Smith College, Arora, Delta Airlines and the Little Rock Convention and Visitor’s Bureau.  It is also made possible in part by a grant from the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame Foundation, a component fund of the Arkansas Community Fund.

The Rep’s GEES BEND featured at Clinton School on Thursday January 24

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The Arkansas Repertory Theatre works in partnership with the Clinton School of Public Service to participate in the UACS’s Distinguished Speaker Series, hosting educational panel discussions on various Rep productions. The latest in these takes place on Thursday, January 24 at 12 noon at Sturgis Hall in Clinton Presidential Park.

The panel discussions are led by Producing Artistic Director Bob Hupp and include insights from guest directors, actors and Bob himself on bringing compelling stories to The Rep stage.  Join Rep Producing Artistic Director Bob Hupp and Gee’s Bend Director Gilbert McCauley and cast for a panel discussion on this true story.  Call the Clinton School at (501) 683-5239 for reservations.

Gee’s Bend follows Sadie Pettway and her family as they turn to quilting to provide comfort and creative expression to their lives. What begins as a labor of love soon turns into a spiritual and artistic awakening. Pieced together from discarded clothes and seasoned with laughter and tears, the women sew a patchwork of inventive abstract designs in rich, blazing colors.

The play is based on the true story of the women of Gee’s Bend, whose quilts have been on a national exhibition tour including the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among others.

The production, written by Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder, starts tonight and runs through February 10.  Opening night is Friday, January 25.  Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday evening performances are at 7 p.m., Friday, Saturday evening performances are at 8 p.m. Sunday Matinees performances are at 2 p.m.

 

Reel Classics with Rep: The Quilts of Gee’s Bend

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quiltsofgeesbendIn conjunction with the upcoming play Gee’s Bend, the Arkansas Repertory Theatre’s monthly film series tonight will feature The Quilts of Gee’s Bend.  Reel Classics with the Rep starts at 6:00pm.

Set in the quiltmaker’s homes and yard, and told through the women’s voices, this music-filled, documentary takes viewers inside the art and fascinating living history of a uniquely American community and art form.

Prior to the film, members of The Rep’s creative team will discuss Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder’s play Gee’s Bend.  Reel Classics with the Rep takes place at the Laman Library in North Little Rock.

Gee’s Bend runs from Janury 23 through February 10.  Opening night if January 25.

The story of the women of Gee’s Bend has already touched millions who viewed their stunning work through a national exhibition tour and features on National Public Radio, Newsweek  and O Magazine.  “The Quilts of Gee’s Bend” have been exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among others.

The Arkansas Rep’s production is made possible in part by a grant from the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame Foundation, a component fund of the Arkansas Community Fund.

Arkansas Rep 2012-2013 season

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It is Spring Break throughout Arkansas. So this is a good time to take a break from the current arts season and look ahead to next year.

Rich stories and rewarding shows are the bounty that awaits Arkansas Repertory Theatre audiences during the 2012-2013 season, the Rep’s 37th year. Robert Hupp, the Rep’s producing artistic director, recently announced the lineup.

The season kicks off on September 7 with William Shakespeare’s Henry V.  This will be the first of Shakespeare’s “History” plays to be staged at the Rep in its history.  Following the overwhelming success of Hamlet last season, it is pleasing to see the Bard return to the Rep’s lineup.  It will run through September 23, 2012.

Next up is the annual Young Artists’ production.  This edition of the revue is entitled Singin’ on a Star.  It will run from October 24 through November 3, 2012. Though the show is still being written, it promises to feature Arkansas’ best and brightest students in songs and dances which will enchant audiences of all ages.

It is guaranteed that Little Rock will see a White Christmas in December 2012 because the Rep will be producing the stage version of the Irving Berlin classic White Christmas from November 30 through December 30, 2012.  In addition to the classic Berlin tunes from the film, a treasure trove of other Berlin classics is also included.

As 2013 kicks off, the Rep presents the play Gee’s Bend.  Set in the eponymously named Alabama town, it tells the story of the women who make quilts there. The play is not about the quilts themselves (though they are works of art which have been displayed in many top art museums), it is instead about the remarkable lives of the women who make them.  Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder’s play will run from January 25 through February 10, 2013.

As the Rep marches into the third month of 2013, it will present the world premiere of a new musical version of Treasure Island.  This production, which emphasizes the adventure and mystery of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic tale, features a book by Brett Smock (who will also direct) and Carla Vitale with songs by Corinne Aquilina (who served as musical director/conductor for last season’s Hairspray at the Rep).  It runs from March 8 through March 31, 2013. (This world premiere is the reason the title of this entry is written in “Pirate.”)

Arthur Miller’s prize winning Death of a Salesman is up next at the Rep.  This classic tale explores the American Dream in the middle of the 20th Century as the Loman family copes with hope and despair.  During its original Broadway run, it received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Best Play recognition from the Tony Awards and the New York Drama Critics Circle.  “Attention must be paid” from April 26 through May 12, 2013.

Avenue Q is one of the smartest, funniest, and bawdiest musicals over the last decade. Written by Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez, it irreverently tells the story of a group of 20 and 30somethings in New York City as they cope with the onset of adulthood. Some of the characters are played by humans while others are portrayed by puppets — but this is not for the kids; it is definitely an adult show (it includes full puppet nudity).  This 2004 Tony winner for Best Musical, Best Book and Best Score, ran for over 1000 performances on Broadway and is now enjoying a healthy Off Broadway run.  The Rep’s brand new production will run from June 7 – 30, 2013.