“For colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf” is a ChoreoPoem by Ntozake Shange and directed by Sayeeda Carter. Opening night at the Caribbean Community Theater (CCT) in Orange Grove is Friday at 8 p.m. and will run for two Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. with two Sunday matinees at 4 p.m.
The Obie Award-winning play by the late playwright-author-poet Shange, written in 1975, was first produced off-Broadway and moved on to Broadway at the Booth Theater in New York City.
“It is so important to me. As dated as it may seem, this play still has so much relevance. We have seven powerful actors — some new — some seasoned — some new to CCT — some have worked with me before in [A Song for Coretta]; these seven ladies, known by the colors they wear, make me proud to be the director,” Carter said.
Nothing is really out of date, as Shange proved in her 2010 addition to the original script. She revised the popular character, Bo Willie, into a war veteran diagnosed with PTSD from his stint in the U.S. military, and she modified another character with HIV, which was not reflected in the timeline of medical history in her first writing. “It’s a coming-of-age play; that’s what excites me,” Carter said.
One of Carter’s favorite pieces is the reference to Toussaint L’Ouverture by the Lady in Brown as a young girl. She reads that he is a powerful person and she recreates him as her imaginary friend. She is so excited to run away from her integrated school and integrated neighborhood to Haiti and interact with this prominent leader from history who has become her present-day playmate.
She meets a little boy in her neighborhood who tells her, “My name is Toussaint Jones.” She gets a kick out of that.
She said, “Wait! I’m on my way to see Toussaint L’Ouverture in Haiti; are you any kin to him? He don’t take no stuff from no white folks. They got a country all their own and they ain’t no slaves.”
He said, “I’m Toussaint Jones and I’m right here looking at you and I don’t take no stuff from no white folks. You don’t see none around here, do you?”
“I think that’s so clever and hilarious,” Carter said. “Despite all the pain and how people have criticized Shange’s work as being very anti male, or slamming men, or just too feminist for words — despite that — there’s still the power of the words and the joy that comes out — it’s still there.”
“There’s still the suffering — yes, the monologues and the choreopoems have a lot of painful moments, yet they still have a lot of hope and so much beauty. And there’s so much rallying with these seven women — connecting with one another — sharing their stories in a way that empower women — even today,” Carter shared.
Carter spoke of the times her friend was in town. “When I have someone to chat with about the painful moments in my life, it provides a release and gives me perspective. And my friend would say to me, ‘It’s gonna be all right.’ It’s so valuable to have those women friends to share your life with.”
“This play would not be possible without Gena Seroogy as my stage manager,” Carter said. “She has given me my whole level of support that I’ve never had in working with someone on a theatrical project. We see things differently in a way that’s so amazing, because we’re a good [yin and yang]. She sees things from a movement perspective, so she has offered so much in terms of how the women need to move on the stage.
“We don’t think the same way — but our coming together — each thinking the way we do – has created the magic that I’m looking forward to,” Carter said.
Chevon Miles is the “newbie” in the cast. Although this is her first time as an actor, she is a creative — a DJ, a chef, a visual artist. She also works the music selections in the play.
“When Sayeeda reached out to me to audition for ‘colored girls,’ I thought not … and then I figured if Sayeeda believes in me, I’ll go audition. As it turned out, I was in the play.”
Miles enjoys challenges — putting herself out of her comfort zone — allowing herself to grow in ways that she would never expect, she said.
“I took this as a challenge … and it’s been a challenge. I didn’t think that memorizing lines was something I would be good at. That’s never been what I found myself doing well when I was in school. If I can show up as my best self and display myself as this character, Lady in Blue, I feel like I can do this.”
Miles resonates with her Lady in Blue character — as she works through her monologues — from where they both lived [in Harlem] to her character being of Hispanic descent … as Miles is often mistaken for someone of Hispanic lineage.
Miles feels good about the camaraderie among the cast. “We’ve grown into a sisterhood, for sure. I knew some of the ladies beforehand and others I may have seen in passing. We’ve all embodied our characters really well and we enjoy working together and kinda’ bringing the spirit of each one of our characters alive and helping each other figure that out.”
There was difficulty when the cast began reading the lines to the play, Miles said. “We didn’t resonate with it at first. We didn’t understand the tone, the inclination. What is Ntozake saying? How does this make any sense?”
“They all took it on working together, analyzing the lines and getting more context until it became more understandable, digestible, more relatable,” Miles said.
The play is not necessarily dated, Mies said. There are a couple of pieces that are specific to a time frame in history. Yet, overall, she feels that she can understand and has gone through certain levels of these colored girls’ experiences.
“When it comes down to this play, I feel like I’m doing something more than myself – almost easier to give myself the space to relax and embody. I’m not fearing myself, because I’m embodying something else. And, it almost feels like a responsibility that I have to Ntozake to make sure it’s done to the best of my ability, as possible.”
Miles said, “I feel like the ladies that are participating — the cast, the stage manager — everybody has been so integral to the whole process. I’m excited for people to experience this play. I look forward to more opportunities for theater in the Virgin Islands. I would like to see more people getting involved and experiencing what theater can do for them.”
Community theater is not for the faint of heart, Carter revealed. “It’s hard work. There’s no remuneration. It’s a lot of time. These seven women have been so committed. They are outstanding — to give of their time three times a week for seven weeks — to memorize 15 pages each of dense text – they are amazing.”
Behind The Scenes
The Director
Sayeeda Carter is an educator and theater artist based on St. Croix. She has over three decades of experience as a public schoolteacher. Carter is a passionate advocate for encouraging students to challenge outdated ideas and conventional thinking. She has acted in and directed several productions at CCT. Carter founded Act Out Ensemble: Theater of the Oppressed Virgin Islands, a growing social justice theater company. She believes in the words of Augusto Boal: “The theater itself is not revolutionary; it is a rehearsal for the revolution.”
The Stage Manager
Gena Seroogy was born and raised on St. Croix and recently moved back home after living in Pennsylvania since 2001. Seroogy started out in theater and set design as a Good Hope School student. She has worked with the Philadelphia Fringe Festival and managed props and on location support for a street opera in Copenhagen in 2018. Seroogy was stage manager for Sister Act (2023) and was in the Chicago ensemble (2024) at CCT. She has danced with Caribbean Dance School.
Choreographer – Laurelle Day “LD” Holley
Music Selections – DJ Chef Chevy
Audio Visual Technicians – Michael Baker, Charles Jaquays
Photography – Kaila Francis
Poster, Postcard – Saskia Corke
The Cast
Lady in Brown – Kaden Grouby
Lady in Yellow – Evangeline “Vani” Gumbs
Lady in Red – Laurelle “LD” Holley
Lady in Purple – Azadi Sage Knight
Lady in Blue – Chevon Miles
Lady in Green – Keturah Nurse
Lady in Orange – Shanell Petersen
Show Dates
Fridays and Saturdays, Jan. 10-11 and 17-18, 8 p.m.
Sunday Matinees, Jan. 12 and 19, 4 p.m.
For reservations, email eileencct@gmail.com.
Tickets sold (for cash only) at the CCT Box Office/ Opens 45 minutes before curtain.
Adults $20, Seniors (65+) $18, College Students w/ID $15, Under 18, $10
Advance General Admission Tickets Sales on Eventbrite
This play contains sensitive content, including racial slurs and homophobic language, which may be disturbing and triggering for some audience members. Viewer discretion is advised. This production is NOT recommended for children under age 16.
This project is jointly supported by a grant from the Virgin Islands Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Cosponsored By:
Susan & Crystal Atkins; Christiansted Apothecary Hall; Marshall & Sterling; Baker Magras; Smiles St. Croix Dental Studio; Team Consultants; Armrey Industries; Crucian Gold; Caledonia Communication Corp/WSTX 970 AM
For more information:
cct.vi
Call CCT: 340-778-1983
