Online project collects expressions of Black experience
As The Drama Group in Chicago Heights works to reorganize its bylaws to be more inclusive, its creative team has gathered expressions of the Black experience for a virtual production called “Being the Dream.”
By crowdsourcing videos, organizers said the curated project facilitates the creative voices of African Americans in the south suburbs. The Drama Group put out a call for people to express their personal Black experience through stories, poetry, monologues or oratories that were then melded into a larger whole.
“I, for one, was very adamant that I didn’t want this production to be trauma born, because Black history is so often trauma born,” said Kelly Campos, one of the project’s curators. “I didn’t want it to be necessarily rooted solely in the past because history happens now.”
Campos recently came to The Drama Group, seeking an acting outlet at the same time the century-old Chicago Heights theater company was tearing down outdated practices to rebuild a structure that welcomes participation from people of color and actively recruits and includes them.
With “Being the Dream,” Campos said The Drama Group offers a platform to present a more well rounded depiction of the past and current Black experience, one that reflects more than major historical figures and events.
Black history includes far more than Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr., said Campos, who is also a librarian in Homewood.
While society should undoubtedly recognize heroes like these, she said the Black story offers infinitely more dimensions.
“There’s a danger of a single story — when you only talk about slavery and the Civil Rights movement, you miss the nuance and, frankly, the story gets boring,” Campos said.
“It’s like reading the same book over and over. From a story perspective, adding this nuance allows for more interesting things to see and enjoy.”
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Campos is curating and directing the production alongside a veteran of the nonprofit theater, board vice president MaryEllen Fawk.
By broadening its reach, Fawk said, The Drama Group can promote cultural equity and survival of the theater itself. As many members of its all-volunteer staff get older, they need passionate younger people to keep The Drama Group relevant and thriving.
The Drama Group’s inclusivity initiatives combined with its pivot to virtual productions during the COVID-19 shutdown have injected new life into a historically strong theater group, Fawk said.
“It’s wonderfully exciting,” she said. “We’ve had so many people that came out of the woodwork, people of all genders, races, ages and backgrounds, with immense amounts of talent. Our South Side is so talented.”
Contributors to “Being the Dream” recorded their performances on a smartphone, and The Drama Group hosted a socially distanced recording session for those who wanted studio space and tech help.
The production is available for online viewing through The Drama Group’s website at www.dramagroup.org, and Falk said they have reached out to schools that may present “Being the Dream” to students.
Campos said she hopes watching the short expressions of true Black experience will allow viewers to push past discomfort to learn and appreciate new facts and perspectives.
Society has a hunger for cultural education right now, she said, and “Being the Dream” offers a chance to devour stories of real substance.
“Our generation has had more information presented to it about race than ever before,” Campos said. “Black folks are in this unique place because we not only have to learn our culture, but we have to learn the dominant culture — and the reverse doesn’t happen. Being able to share this extra knowledge with ourselves and others is an opportunity we should take advantage of.”