The Prodigal Daughter
By Joshua Allen
Directed by Jerrell Henderson
Scenic Design by Lauren M. Nichols
Lighting Design by Jared Gooding
Costume Design by Gregory Graham
Props Design by Lily Anna Berman
Pictured: Stephanie Mattos, Stef Brundage, RJW Mays, Sól Fuller, Bradford Stevens, and Bryant Hayes
Photo by Michael Brosilow
In the Red Summer of 1919, Chicago’s Black Belt is boiling over, from both the ruthless heat and the intensifying racial conflict gripping America. Virginia Bass, a successful saleswoman, is traveling with her business partner when they decide to pay her hometown and her family a visit. However, Virginia finds the welcome not nearly as warm as the weather outside, especially from her estranged father, leaving her wondering if it’s ever possible to truly come home. Unresolved feelings, deep-seated tension, and a deadly urban clash set the scene for the third and final installment of The Grand Boulevard Trilogy.
I love working on new plays. Jerrell and I came to this process with very different ideas of what the show sounded like, and I ended up doing a lot of revision during the tech process (this doesn’t happen often, but sometimes needs must). The action of this play takes place at the start of Chicago’s Red Summer of 1919, which gives what appears to be a static living room play a lot of urgency. To enhance that sense of urgency, Jerrell and I talked about time a lot, and how to sonically create that feeling of staying up all night and feeling like your world is turning upside down. I started with a basic Westminster Chime melody and created variations based on those notes. The “instruments” ended up being majority clock sounds, supplemented by broken piano sounds, landing us in my favorite genre of composition for theatre: “Melodic, but not really” .
Pictured: Stephanie Mattos. Photo by Michael Brosilow
