Spunk

Drama
Written By: George C. Wolfe
Directed by: John Scott
Cast: Cary Hart;Marvin Gay;Keith Wade;Carlyne Belot;Herman McGloun;Stacy-Ann Rose;Featuring Ike & Val Woods

Synopsis:

Adapted for the stage from three short stories by Zora Neale Hurston. Music by Chic Street Man. Hurston's evocative prose and Wolfe's unique theatrical style blend to create an evening of theater which celebrates the human spirit's ability to overcome and endure. Utilizing the blues, choral narrative and dance, the three tales focus on men and women, trapped inside the "laughin" kind of lovin' kind of hurtin kind of pain, that comes from being human. This critically acclaimed adaptation was originally developed at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles and was first presented in New York as a co-production of the New York Shakespeare Festival and Crossroads Theater Company. "The true spunk in SPUNK belongs to Mr. Wolfe, who has gallantly met Zora Neale Hurston in the theater on her own uncomromising terms and, better still, has found the imainative means to make good on his half of so challenging a collaboration. NY TIMES.

The Story: The first of the three stories, SWEAT, tells the story of a young washer-woman who is abused and betrayed by her estranged husband,a dn the ultimate triumph over him. The second piece, STORY IN HARLEM SLANG, is told in 1940s Harlemese. It is the tale of two street lotarios rying to out-hustle each other and win the favor of-and a meal from-a dometic, on her payday afternoon off. The third tale, THE GILDED SIX BITS is a bittersweet story of an adoring husband's betrayal by his loving but innocent wife.

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