February 20-23
Sixty years ago, A Raisin in the Sun debuted on Broadway, bringing the story of a black family's dreams and obstacles to the stage. Guest artists help make this anniversary production from Muhlenberg College's Theatre Department as complex and compelling as it was in 1959.
When the patriarch of the Younger family dies, a $10,000 life insurance policy has the potential to change his wife and children's lives forever. “Money has been something they've lacked,” says Kiyaana Cox Jones, a veteran actor who plays mother Lena in the play. “Family unity and love was never lacked.” As each member of the family discovers their own idea for how to use the money, what they lacked begins to interfere with what they've always had.
Lena wants to move the family from their small apartment to a better neighborhood, but friction from the all-white neighborhood raises the question of how much power money has to change their position. “It's always been a favorite of mine because it explores so many themes,” Cox Jones says. “Race, family, dreams, gender, spirituality, the generation gap, African American culture.”
Rich material for Muhlenberg's students to work with, they also get the chance to work with Emmy Award nominee Jeffrey Page as director. Taking direction from established professionals gives the students a chance to apply the lessons they've learned from professors in a more formal working relationship and network in their field.
Cox Jones is associate director of multicultural services at Muhlenberg, and the mission of that office is served when students acting in this production explore their culture and present it to the audience. “I'm excited for the community to see them embrace who they are and these characters and make this story come alive.”
$15; students and youth: $8 | 8 p.m.; Sun.: 2 p.m. | Muhlenberg College | Baker Theatre, Trexler Pavilion for Theatre & Dance | 2400 W. Chew St., Allentown | 484.664.3333 | muhlenberg.edu
