Three Pittsburgh theater companies bring Fannie Lou Hamer's story to the stage
A new show opening in Pittsburgh Friday does more than just entertain. It educates and inspires.
"Fannie: The Music and Life of Fannie Lou Hamer" opens at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center.
"Fannie Lou Hamer was an activist," Janis Burley Wilson, president and CEO of the center, said. "She fought for women’s rights and just civil rights in general. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was not that long ago. She was very instrumental in making things like that happen."
In addition to her civil rights work, Hamer was known for singing hymns. That is included as a powerful portion of the 90-minute one-woman show performed by Robin Magee.
The show is a collaboration between the August Wilson Center, Pittsburgh City Theater and the Damaskus Theater Collective.
"It’s important to bring this show specifically to Pittsburgh because right now, Pittsburgh is going through a reckoning," Monteze Freeland, co-artistic director of the City Theater Company, said. "Recognizing that voting rights is a huge issue for us. Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania are instrumental across the country in dictating some of the amazing advancements that we can make if we work together."
The theater companies are encouraging people to get back to supporting Pittsburgh artists after having a difficult last few years.
"Our goal is to let people know that we are running a safe operation, that you should feel comfortable to come into our doors and sit next to someone," Cydney Nunn, the center's director of communications, said. "Wear your mask if that makes you feel even more comfortable, and really take the chance. Because we need you. As artists, we need patrons to support us."
The show runs through Monday, Jan. 16 – Martin Luther King Jr. Day.