Each season, Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe chooses a theme. This year, its “Soul of a People,” says founder and Producing Artistic Director Nate Jacobs.
“What makes a people? What are the beliefs, the morals, the cultures, the music, the uniqueness that make us who we are? What are those threads that make the full quilt? That's what this season is celebrating, opening with ‘Purlie.’”
“Purlie” premiered on Broadway in 1970.
“It showcased some of the most prominent black artists of film, television, and recording, starting with Melba Moore, who played Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins, the female lead,” Jacobs noted.
It was defined by its music, a combination of jazz, gospel and rhythm and blues.
“One of the hits that Melba Moore made famous is ‘I Got Love.’ [Singing] I got love. Sweeter than a flower. Growing by the hour. I got love. Which was a world hit. That still is. People love that song. I got love. That's one of the biggest hits from the Broadway musical.”
Set during Jim Crow, the play is known for its commentary on race and inequality in the American South.
“It's a comedy. It's a lot of entertaining laughter,” said Jacobs. “But there is a powerful, powerful message … and I think the audience is going to be taken aback when they sit in that theater and hear how Ossie Davis, the playwright, decided to deliver a timeless message. I mean, this was in the 1970s … and very little has changed when it comes to equality and liberty.”
“Purlie” plays in the Donnelly Theatre through Nov. 9.
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The protagonist in this Tony-Award winning comedic Broadway play is Purlie Victorious Judson, a Black self-made traveling preacher who returns to his segregated Georgia hometown with a mission to buy and rehab its derelict church, Big Bethel. That’s a tall order as the church, like the town, is in the grip of racist tyrant Ol’ Cap’n Cotchipee. Through quick wit and determination, Purlie sets out on a bold mission to reclaim dignity, hope and freedom for his community.
“Purlie” takes place in Georgia in the late 1950s, a time when Jim Crow laws were in effect in the American South. They ensured that Black people remained as second-class citizens in spite of receiving their freedom during the Civil War.
Playwright Ossie Davis grew up in racially segregated Georgia. Like Purlie, Davis had first-hand experience with discrimination and bigotry. Those forces inform the play and fueled Davis’ lifelong commitment to civil rights.
In “Purlie,” Ol' Cap'n Cotchipee is a metaphor for Jim Crow, a man dressed head to toe in white and who proudly reveres “all that is white and holy,” adding that, “My ol' Confederate father told me on his deathbed: Feed the Negras first — after the horses and cattle."
Similarly, the character of Gitlow represents so-called “Uncle Tom” Black people who were willing to play along to get along both on the plantations and elsewhere during the days of Jim Crow.
When it premiered on Broadway in 1970, “Purlie” starred Cleavon Little and Melba Moore. Both won Tony Awards for their portrayals of Purlie and Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins. Sherman Hemsley played Gitlow before going on to television, where he achieved stardom in the role of George Jefferson on the sitcoms “All in the Family” and its spin-off, “The Jeffersons.”
The play was revived on Broadway in 2023 to critical acclaim, starring Leslie Odom Jr. and Kara Young, who also won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance as Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins.
“I am so truly excited about bringing this classic to the stage,” said Jacobs, who noted that Davis originally conceived it as a straight play under the name of “Purlie Victorious.”
Davis wrote the original play in 1961, and it drew the attention of both Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X. According to Davis, X said, “Black folks laughing at white folks was revolutionary — the highest kind of struggle he could imagine.”
Eleanor Roosevelt also attended. She wrote, “Mixed with the humor there is intelligent, incisive commentary on segregation, discrimination, and the slow pace of integration. I think it is well for you as an American citizen to see it and ponder our racial problem … as a question affecting our standing and our real sincerity among the peoples of the world.”
Jacobs has assembled a stellar 12-member ensemble to tell the story.
“The cast sings and dances throughout the show,” Jacobs noted.
Raleigh Mosley plays Purlie Victorious. "This is his first true lead at the theater," Jacobs said.
Jasmine Carson plays Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins, the role made famous by Melba Moore.
Janie Jones plays Missy. “She’s a Sarasota favorite,” noted Jacobs. “She performs a lot at Florida Studio Theater. And Patrick, who was phenomenal in ‘Piano Lessons’ and last year's ‘Fences,’ plays Gitlow, the Sherman Hemsley role. So, we have a stellar cast, and I just cannot wait for the community to see the show.”
Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.
