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THE COLOR PURPLE Kimberley Rampersad Is the First Black Woman

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THE COLOR PURPLE Kimberley Rampersad Is the First Black Woman FORESHADOWING: THE COLOR PURPLE Kimberley Rampersad is the first black woman to direct the musical, The Color Purple, based on Alice Walker's tale of abuse and hopelessness rising to resurrection and enduring love set mostly in rural Georgia in the first years of the 20th century. It was about time to right what seems to be an ironic historic sin of omission. And who better to direct that production than a rising young Canadian actor/director who has already established a distinguished track record of highly regarded and notably successful projects. Kimberley Rampersad was brought up in Winnipeg. She remembers that she was about 12 when her mother gave her Walker's book. Apparently, it had a profound effect on the little girl, which explains her enthusiasm in an interview with Foreshadowing, in bringing the story to Edmonton audiences. The road to her present directing challenge has not been easy for the sincere and resolutely upbeat Rampersad. It has taken her 20 years, during which time she has established a distinguished career in theatre. She began as an actor (Crazy for You/Man of La Mancha) but found that her interest in movement and dance led to a concurrent course as a choreographer. Citadel regulars will remember the lively and inventive dances she created for last year's hugely enjoyable Matilda. She has also conceived (or co-created) choreography for Seussical, Bittergirl, and others. Choreographers work closely with directors. Rampersad says, “As a choreographer there's a language that isn't on the page, but is being created to support the text,” which is probably the best definition of what a choreographer does that I have ever heard. The next natural move was into direction. She told one reporter, “The director is something of a figurehead and everything has to go through that lens eventually.” She modestly refers to the job as being the “ultimate facilitator” who relies on an army of support people to get the job done. “For each person you see on the stage," she says, “there are probably three people behind the scenes. It's the sum of the parts. That is my mantra that when we make theatre – it's the sum of the parts.” The Color Purple is more than just another musical to Rampersad. “It's a part of a movement in an industry that is slowly waking up to the truth that there are stories outside the white, mostly male experience. I'm a black woman directing a black story told from that woman’s perspective. For a long time there have not been enough black artists to tell that kind of story – but that is changing.” The road to the Citadel stage has been a long one for The Color Purple. Perhaps a look at the journey might be in order to give us some idea of what we can look forward to when it opens on September 21. When Alice Walker, a former editor of Ms. Magazine, published her novel in 1982, it set off a cultural explosion, the ripples of which are still washing ashore today. The story is of Celie who lives most of her life as the wife/servant of a violent man. In his eyes, “You're black, you’re poor, you’re ugly, you're a woman. You're nothing at all,” - which makes her fit only for backbreaking work and little else. The narrative is about abuse: physical, emotional, and sexual. The central character's early years are a catalogue of pain. You may remember in the Spielberg film, we first see her as a 14-year-old playing in the sunshine with her sister. It's only when she turns to the camera that we learn that she is pregnant (for the second time) by her father – who gives away her children. She is married to a man who beats her and who brings home and flaunts his open relationship with a “fancy woman.” The story is told through a series of letters, some of which were never sent and never received. Observes the author, “The letters are Celie’s effort at maintaining sanity in a world where no others cared to listen to her.” Over the course of the story, Celie gains the strength to stand up to her unkind fate. Whoopi Goldberg, who won an Oscar nomination for her role in the movie observes, “The Color Purple is much deeper than just a movie about the American black experience. It's about the awakening of the human spirit.” Walker was accused of betraying her race, of hating black men, and damaging the relationship of black men and women. She was deeply hurt by the accusations. “It's a book mostly about women, and what they are doing and how they are accepting no matter what their men are doing.” At the time, respectability demanded that imperilled black women should stay mute. “It was very hard for our parents who saw us enter a world that they couldn't imagine.” And yet she wrote the book for her family and filled it with wonder, love and the beauty of God and nature. She wrote while living amidst the glories of the Redwood Forest and swimming in the river. “I noticed that in nature purple is everywhere. In that sense, it's like the people in the book. They think that what is happening to them is unusual, but it is happening right now on your block to many others every minute. What is great about Celie is that she finds out she is human.” Despite the controversy, the book was a huge hit. Its popularity continues and it has become a societal reference point. The book sold 5 million copies and has been translated into 25 languages. The Spielberg film, released in 1985, made over $100 million and the $11 million 2005 Broadway musical grossed over $103 million by the time it closed. Since then it has been successfully remounted on Broadway (in 2015) and the show has played all over the world. Kimberley Rampersad's production we are to see at the Citadel is somewhat different from both the book and the film. The original novel was crammed with character and event – too much to pack into a two-hour Broadway show, particularly when you have to get in the requisite songs as well. Walker herself enjoyed Spielberg's film but the director was uncomfortable with the central love story and so the movie tended to concentrate on other aspects of Celie's desperate and ultimately successful search for happiness. Marsha ('night Mother) Norman's theatrical book becomes the story of one woman's survival and in the process takes on a sense of something different - but equally valid. The evening manages to create a sense of fulfillment and through the process grows an integrity that is its alone. The big production numbers, the exuberant gospel numbers and the usual ballads and lively dance routines promote a sense of community not emphasized in the two originals. Rampersad says, “Fortunately, the musical doesn’t shy away from the central relationship.” Alice Walker told The Guardian, “Art comes out of silence ....and longing. The Color Purple reminds us that longing is natural. We can be the woman inside of us. We can be more than we are right now. Celie learns to understand the divinity that is all around us and we are a part of it. It's a spirit-affirming message.” -Colin Maclean .
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