‘The 1619 Project’ Hits The Theatre In Dallas

Source: Creative Services / iOne Digital

Nikole Hannah-Jones’ critically acclaimed journalism piece The 1619 Project is heading to the theatre stage.

On Feb. 9, Jones’ literary landmark initiative made a theatrical debut as a one-act-play festival in Dallas, Texas. According to Kera News, nine playwrights were commissioned by the Bishop Arts Theatre Center in Oak Cliff to create short stage plays heavily inspired by The 1619 Project.

The riveting play, which will run until Feb. 26, will highlight a number of essays, poems and personal memoirs featured in the original 2019 New York Times article and the book The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story.

“Four of the young dramatists are in the Bishop Arts playwriting lab; another is Soul Rep Theatre’s Anyika McMillan-Herod,” the report noted. Gabrielle Kurlander, the director of the festival, boasted about the diverse backgrounds of the writers involved in the theatre production. Nine of the playwrights include Black, Latino and Jewish writers.

For Kurlander, the decision was intentional and reflective of The 1619 Project’s core message.

“These very talented playwrights reflected the book through their lens. And so I think the result is that it not only adds to the work, it really deepens it.”

The writers could choose to dramatize or add their own personal twist to some of the stories and essays featured in the original project, Kurlander added.

So far, the play will include elements of “science fiction,” “personal remembrance” and an “imagined debate” between segregationist George Wallace and Shirley Chisholm — the first Black woman to be elected to Congress and to seek the presidential nomination, the report noted.

On Feb. 17, Hannah-Jones will pay a visit to Dallas to see the performance and conduct a Q&A session after the show.

What is The 1619 Project?

Published in 2019, The 1619 Project is a landmark initiative from The New York Times that aims to reframe American history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of Black Americans at the very center of the nation’s story.

The controversial piece has received widespread recognition and praise for its innovative approach to American history and its powerful examination of the central role that slavery and the African American experience have played in shaping the nation. It has also sparked criticism from right wing politicians, with many arguing that it stokes too much heated debate over racism and the country’s origins.

Last month, The 1619 Project debuted on Hulu as a six-episode limited docuseries that further examines the themes presented in Hannah-Jones’ contentious journalism piece.

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