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Voices of tJw if/mfo in Mj/Joul Actress Nora Cole brings her family's fascinating his tory to the stage in her one-woman show "Voices of the Sprits in My Soul." Cole's family legacy includes the traits that are common for most African-Americans: slavery; children fathered by a slave owner; struggles for equality; and great strength and pride. "I want to enlighten people about African American history," said Cole, a native of Louisville, Ky. "I want people to real ize what a miracle it is that black people are where we are today." Using her own family as a springboard, Cole tells a much larger story in the show. She uses letters and photographs from her own family's archives to link their struggles with those of people like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela and historical event: like the tumul teous integra tion of schools in Little Rock, ? 1 Ark., and racca pin*! F 3 n n i 6 'in "Voice ''" Lou s Hamer 1968 Democratic Party revolt. New York's Richard Allen Center for Culture and Arts' Seaport Salon also brought Cole's "Voices" to the 2007 National Black Theatre Festival. Written by Cole, the show is produced by Imani, the artistic director of the Richard Allen Center for Culture and Art. Candace ? - Lunn is the production stage manager and Melody A. Beal is the lighting designer. In addition to ner acting, Cole is an adjunct professor, director and acting coach at Eastern Connecticut State University, where she debuted "Voices." Cole is no stranger to the National Black Theatre Festival. She played Coretta Scott King in Woodie King's "I Have A Dream," which was staged at the 1 989 festival, and had her first solo role in the Herman LeVern Jones directed "Olivia's Opus" at the 1 993 festival. Recent notable performances by Cole include "Fences" (opposite actor Tony Todd) at Rochester's GEVA Theatre; the Milwaukee Rep's staging of "Doubt" and the George C. Wolfe-directed "Caroline, Or Change" at the Royal National Theatre at London. Cole's television appearances include "The Cosby Mystery Movie" and the daytime dramas "All My Children," "Loving," "Another World' and "The Guiding Light." - The Chronicle aug. 4 at $ p.m.; Aug. 5 at 3 SB p.m. at WFU's The Ring Ticket Price: # 37 Includes both shows y Mike Wiley in "Dar He." Wiley Productions Photo Anyone who doubts that riveting entertainment can't be educational as well has obviously never seen Mike Wiley in action. For the past decade, the Durham, N.C., resident has penned and performed a series of powerful plays based on some of the most unforgettable episodes from black history. Wiley, who has a master's in fine arts from UNC Chapel Hill, is a chameleon. Though his plays are billed as one-man shows, that is a bit mislfladinn <?inrp hp nlavc cnmptimoc mi/?- in r?iow 0 ? ?- r-~. j w ?w. . .V.VH i uvt-v-i 10 v/i i uito h i a on iyit p1"/ ? :or example, in his play "One Noble Journey: A Box Marked Freedom" (about the true story of the slave who mailed himself \ to freedom), Wiley plays Henry "Box" Brown, Ellen Craft, \ William Craft, Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry, among \ many others. He will bring one of his most popular plays to the National Black Theatre Festival. "Dar He: The Lynching of Emmett Till" has left audiences across the state and nation in utter awe. Debuted in 2006, the play was named "the best of the / year's ten best" by theater critics of the Greater / Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area. / Many know the story of Till, the 1 4-year-old black / Mississippi boy who in 1955 was savagely lynched by a white rv\/->U n r- k/* ' * 1 *""* * " 1 1 1 iuu ai lci i ic aup^uacuiy wnistiea at a wnite woman, but in ine masterful hands of Wiley, the story takes on new dimensions. Within the first few minutes of the show, Wiley plays seven different characters - men and women, black and white. He makes each character, especially that of Till, human and personable and connects with each audience almost effortlessly. "I want my work to not be just in front of people, but inside them," Wiley says. "Each play requires willing audience participation ... I want to bring people out of their seats and have them feel what a slave, a civil rights worker or a juror might feel." Wiley is a favorite of school systems across the state and nation. He regu larly stages his plays for students of all ages. The genius of his work is that it easily translates to both youth and adult audiences. It was Wiley's intention when he formed Mike Wiley Productions (www.mikewileyproductions.com) to "shine light on untold stories from the African American past." His repertoire of plays also include "Jackie Robinson: A Game Apart," "Tired Souls: The Montgomery Bus Boycott" and "Brown vs. Board of Education: Over Fifty Years Later. Last year, he added two more plays, both based on popular books. "Life is So Good revolves around the inspi rational true life story of George Dawson, the grandson of a slave who learned to read at age 98; "Blood Done Sign My Name," based on Tim Tyson's best seller, tells of the unrest that occurred in Granville County, N.C., in the 1 970s after a black man was murdered. - The Chronicle
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