Monday, March 01, 2010

Auditions for the popular off-Broadway production "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf" will be held at the University of North Carolina Wilmington on Wednesday and Thursday, March 17 and 18. The production is also seeking crew members including co-director, choreographer and music director.

Written by Ntozake Shange in 1975, "For Colored Girls" won an Obie Award for the best off-Broadway play, and was also nominated for Tony, Grammy and Emmy awards. It is a popular production of theatrical companies across the country. The play features seven poems that reveal the everyday realities of black women, all presented as different colors of the rainbow while dancing, moving and singing. The play's fusion of movement and language is referred to as a "choreopoem."

Kimberly McLaughlin-Smith, interim director/coordinator of the UNCW Multicultural Center, said she is excited to be producing the play on campus. She encourages people of all ethnicities and cultural backgrounds to audition for a role. "For my generation, this play was extremely meaningful. Not only did we recognize ourselves in the characters, but it was really our entrée into feminism. I believe it will resonate with today's students as well."

McLaughlin-Smith hopes to spark conversations through "For Colored Girls" and a multicultural book club she created called ROOTS, Reading Our Own Truths Succinctly. She states, "Conversations can lead to a mindset change in terms of how students view each other and how they view themselves."

Auditions will take place from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 17 in King Hall 101 and Thursday, March 18 in Randall Library Auditorium. To apply for a crew position, contact McLaughlin-Smith at 910.962.4274 or smithkm@uncw.edu. All cast and crew positions are voluntary. Rehearsals are scheduled to begin in August when students return for the fall semester, and the play will run in November.

Media Contact:
Dana Fischetti, media relations manager, 910.962.7259 or fischettid@uncw.edu